Print Photos  |  View Full-Size Image

 

My Story Posted by M Husted Feb 1, 2008 Going into my senior year of high school, I was starting to think about the hard decision that I would have to make in choosing the right college to continue playing football. Would it be Notre Dame or UCLA. I expected there to be a few other big players, but those were my top two choices. Do I go and play for Notre Dame and its elite program (at the time.) Or do I follow my calling to go out west to California and play for the Bruins. Both offered so many positives... I went to high school in Hampton, Va. The Hampton Crabbers, yes, the Crabbers, were a power house football team that consistently found itself in the state championship. I was All-State kicker two years in a row. We had won the state championship my sophomore and junior years. However, we lost in the state finals my senior in a very close game to T.C. Williams (Remember the Titans.) So, I thought that the schools would be calling me non stop once the "contact period" began. So, I waited....and waited...and waited. They never called. The national signing day came and went. I was still without a college to attend. I was completely unaware of how the recruiting process worked. I thought that if I kicked well and that our team was great, the rest would take care of itself. My parents didn't have a clue either. They just wanted to see me get a college education and hopefully see me kick at a few games. I found myself in the same situation that many student-athletes find themselves. I wasn't being heavily recruited, but I knew that I wanted to play at the next level. What was I going to do? Where was I going to go? Fortunately, I ended up walking on at the University of Virginia. My coach, Mike Smith, had a big role in getting me there. I sometimes wonder if he funneled me there. I had a few smaller schools interested in me, but all of a sudden they stopped calling. I wasn't sure what happened. Why did they stop calling? I think that he told them that I wasn't interested. Some coaches are great resources for their athletes. Most are not. However, there are m