Thing.
Posted on 07/25/2002 8:37:12 AM PDT by mhking
Female kicker to try out at Penn State
July 24, 2002
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) -- A former soccer player who kicked a career-long 36-yard field goal in high school will try out next month to be the first woman to play football for Penn State.
Stephanie Weimer, a three-year starter at place-kicker for Serra Catholic in McKeesport, Pa., will try out with other potential walk-ons when classes start in August.
She will have her work cut out for her -- Penn State already has three place-kickers on the roster, including two with game experience. Robbie Gould, who started last year as a true freshman, has hit six of 10 tries, including a career-long 46-yard score, and was a perfect 29-of-29 on extra points. David Kimball, who often handles kickoffs, is 0-3 on field goals and 3-4 on extra points.
But Tom Nola, who coached the 5-foot-4, 120-pound Weimer at Serra, said he thinks she has what it takes.
``She's a competitor like most boys are,'' Nola said. ``She's very consistent. If she had to kick 100 times from 30 yards in, I would say she makes 98 of them.''
Even if she makes the team, Weimer won't be the first woman to suit up for an NCAA Division I-A football program. Heather Sue Mercer made the team at Duke -- then won a $2 million discrimination lawsuit after she was cut from the team. Louisville and Colorado also have had women on their rosters, but none ever took the field.
In 1997, Liz Heaston became the first woman to score in a college game, kicking two extra points for Willamette, which was then an NAIA school. Last year, Jacksonville State's Ashley Martin became the first woman in NCAA Division I-AA to score, kicking four extra points.
No woman has kicked a field goal in collegiate play.
Weimer first played soccer at Serra, but quit after her freshman year in order to concentrate on football, where she was a three-year starter.
She kicked three field goals her sophomore year, but her season ended early when a Greensburg Central Catholic player dove into her right knee, tearing three ligaments. That summer, Weimer attended Penn State's kicking camp. She connected on one of two tries as a junior before an injury again shortened her season.
Her six field goals last year were the most among WPIAL Class A schools.
Read the article, dead.
She's trying out as a walk-on.
Nothing wrong with that, and there's no reason to question her personal motivations.
However, Paterno has been a target of liberal jihads in the past.
If she fails to make the team, don't be surprised if the Feminazis start whining that she's the best placekicker to hit PSU since Matt and Chris Bahr.
And the No. 1 surprise of 2002 . . .
1. Penn State. The Nittany Lions have two solid offensive lines for the first time since '95 and a talented quarterback in Zack Mills. Their season -- whether they play for the national championship -- depends on the Ohio State game. The winner of that game will play either Tennessee or Florida State for the national title!
Thanks for sharing with me the predictions of a lone college football fan, though I'll bet his roommate at Penn State thinks they'll be playing for the national championship too! 8-)
Assuming she makes the team, I don't think JoPa will give her the kickoff duties. Many teams designate a hitman to takeout the kicker. THAT would not be a pretty sight.
There's no way women should be allowed in men's locker rooms. People have gone nuts. I don't have a right to walk into a women's locker room. Why not?
Thing.
I remember the sports stories when Liz Heaston played. They did back-flips to avoid mentioning that she also missed an extra point and that a guy kicked a field goal for them. The only way you could tell was to look at the score. I think they had 23 points, which meant three touchdowns, two extra points and a field goal. I knew SHE hadn't kicked a field goal, as they didn't say dick about it. It's also possible that they scored a safety instead of a field goal, but I find that unlikely, as she only scored two extra points, and the only reason to avoid a scoring summary like they did was to keep it from being so obvious that she didn't belong on the field.
One thing I've always found funny is that the woman who should be THE poster child for the feminists is never mentioned, Shirley Muldowney. Four time top fuel dragster world champion, competing against men head to head, and NOBODY bent over backwards to give her a break. Problem is that car racing is a redneck sport, and it goes against feminist doctrine that a bunch of rednecks would say, "You wanna drive? Cool. If you can handle it, get out there." Kind of goes against PC doctrine to admit that the biggest reason women can't compete with men in most sports venues is that they aren't good enough.
However, if this girl's good enough to make the team on her ability, great. Just don't give her a free ride and claim it as proof that women can compete with men.
That wasn't the Sporting News talking, but it was a "Fan's View" letter. Good luck in '02, but the guy that wrote this is on some heavy meds if he thinks Boston College is better than Miami, Kansas State is the tops in the Big 12, and USC is the best team in the Pac 10. I'd say, find a better source.
LOL. I think it's implied that, by publishing that opinion, TSN is trumpeting it as their own. If not, they should be. Those Nittany Lions are poised for a Nat'l Title run.
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