[nfbmi-talk] Another Attempt: Incredible Story About Blind American Football Long Snapper

Kane Brolin kbrolin65 at gmail.com
Tue Sep 15 19:50:48 UTC 2015


The following was forwarded to Indiana's ACB mailing list, but it
certainly deserves at least an honorable mention here.  Don't say
anything, but I think this might actually make me openly cheer for USC
against Notre Dame in the future!

Sorry for the botched initial attempt to send this.  I believe one of
ESPN's publications is the original source of this article.  I have
corrected the text here to reflect one of Jake Olson's most recent
tweets, since this wasn't transcribed faithfully in the copy I was
originally sent.

==============================
Jake Olson, a blind long-snapper who had hoped to join USC as a
walk-on, has achieved his goal.

He tweeted Monday night that he will join the Trojans "as a player," writing:

"Tomorrow I walk out onto Howard Jones field not as a fan or honorary
member, but as a player for the USC Trojans! #fighton"

USC tweeted that Tuesday would be "Olson's first practice as an
official member of the USC Football team."

He joined the Trojans on Tuesday morning, making snaps on extra points
during practice.

Olson, a freshman, has been waiting to be cleared by the NCAA. He
received a Swim With Mike scholarship, given to physically challenged
athletes. The NCAA considered it an athletic scholarship, which meant
he could not be classified as a walk-on for the football team, and the
Trojans did not have a roster slot in the 2015 class for another
scholarship player, leaving Olson in limbo.

Olson was born with retinoblastoma, a rare cancer of the retina. He
lost his left eye at 10 months and endured numerous procedures
designed to save the right eye. He was 12 when doctors determined it
would need to be removed.

Olson also is a lifelong Trojans fan and was introduced to the team
when Pete Carroll was the coach. Carroll welcomed Olson as a frequent
visitor to USC practices and games, and they developed a connection
while Olson still had sight in his right eye.

When Olson learned in 2009 that he would need the surgery that would
cause him to completely lose his sight, among his requests were a
visit to Notre Dame Stadium to watch the Trojans face the Irish and a
trip to USC practice the night before the surgery.

When he arrived in high school at Orange (Calif.) Lutheran, Olson went
out for football and made the team as the starting long-snapper.

Trojans coach Steve Sarkisian previously said he would welcome Olson
as part of the team with the goal of having him long snap during a
game.
==============================

You can follow Jake Olson on Twitter @Jakethesnakeo.  His previous
handle was @OutOfSightFaith.

Kind regards,

-Kane




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