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- Dec 28, 2016
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I wanted to believe there was at least some merit involved in this, and so like any rational, fair-minded person, I did my own research...
First I looked into whether Vandy had any sort of open tryout. There's about 13,000 students enrolled there, so maybe they would have had an open tryout and maybe she won that tryout. None of the sources discussing this talked about any tryout. In fact, the articles that first picked up on this about a week ago stated Vandy football "reached out" across athletics.
Okay, well, maybe she was the only suitable athlete who responded? So checked to see what other men's sports (including, maybe, men's soccer) Vandy has other than football. The answer was not a whole lot. Other than football, the men have basketball, baseball, golf, tennis, and cross country. No men's soccer? Well, they used to, but they don't anymore (likely Title IX casualty).
Then it hit me. Vandy punted a boatload of times last week. Most punters some kick in HS, right? So what about their punter, Harrison Smith (who played against Missouri)? His recruiting profile didn't say much, but I did find a link to his HUDL page were he was listed as a Punter and Kicker. However, his senior and junior highlights only showed him punting. Same thing with all the game footage... until I found this gem:
Harrison Smith, in middle school, lining up for a field goal! Now, he doesn't actually kick the ball. But based on his poise alone, I am confident this young man can place kick.
As an FYI, Vanderbilt also happens to have a backup punter, Jared Wheatley, who definitely kicked and punted in high school. According to 247, dude went 8 of 9 on FGs as a senior in HS and kicked a 52 yarder (link). Not sure whether he was available or not, since his name wasn't in any of the press I could find about the kickers who were unavailable.
Verdict: Total PR move.
First I looked into whether Vandy had any sort of open tryout. There's about 13,000 students enrolled there, so maybe they would have had an open tryout and maybe she won that tryout. None of the sources discussing this talked about any tryout. In fact, the articles that first picked up on this about a week ago stated Vandy football "reached out" across athletics.
Okay, well, maybe she was the only suitable athlete who responded? So checked to see what other men's sports (including, maybe, men's soccer) Vandy has other than football. The answer was not a whole lot. Other than football, the men have basketball, baseball, golf, tennis, and cross country. No men's soccer? Well, they used to, but they don't anymore (likely Title IX casualty).
Then it hit me. Vandy punted a boatload of times last week. Most punters some kick in HS, right? So what about their punter, Harrison Smith (who played against Missouri)? His recruiting profile didn't say much, but I did find a link to his HUDL page were he was listed as a Punter and Kicker. However, his senior and junior highlights only showed him punting. Same thing with all the game footage... until I found this gem:
Harrison Smith, in middle school, lining up for a field goal! Now, he doesn't actually kick the ball. But based on his poise alone, I am confident this young man can place kick.
As an FYI, Vanderbilt also happens to have a backup punter, Jared Wheatley, who definitely kicked and punted in high school. According to 247, dude went 8 of 9 on FGs as a senior in HS and kicked a 52 yarder (link). Not sure whether he was available or not, since his name wasn't in any of the press I could find about the kickers who were unavailable.
Verdict: Total PR move.