Name From The Past

This morning after posting a blog I happened to click on my blog’s “2005” link. The first post was an article I had written on a Christmas Eve college football bowl game, lost in OT by Central Florida. They had scored a TD and only needed the successful PAT converted to continue the game…but the kicker missed. The name of the kicker sounded familiar for some reason.

I'd forgotten the name of the Falcons kicker that lost the Jacksonville game just a few weeks ago, and had to look it up. Just another guy in the sea of bodies trying to make a name in the NFL. Same guy...Matt Prater.

At the time I wondered if that miss would be his last ever kick in a game. I was wrong.

Just wondering…we are told that kickers are different, that they aren’t real football players. More low-key. Prater had a shaved head and tattooed arms. Looked like a football player, except for his size. Made him not look like a kicker. Perhaps he doesn’t have the makeup for the job.