You can bet there will be no announcement. That's not the FU way. The only way we will find out is when the roster is updated. Still have to wonder why he did not participate in senior day.fufanatic wrote: ↑Tue Dec 03, 2019 11:45 amDisappointing, but not surprising as I think we were all hoping for a miracle since it was first mentioned last year. Really curious to see where he goes and when it's announced. I hope he's not leaving due to any issues with Furman or the program.aqualung wrote: ↑Tue Dec 03, 2019 9:26 amMy sources confirm that Grayson is gone. We will need a rebuild on the kicking game in 2020.The Jackal wrote: ↑Sun Dec 01, 2019 10:39 pmK: Certainly seems like we will still have Grayson Atkins. No need to belabor this.
P: Would be nice to have a non-Atkins punter.
LS: Evan Vaughn, who has snapped for us a long time. He's handled every snap since 2016. I'm sure he's got a backup, I just don't know who it is.
2020
I can confirm that it is definitely NOT Georgia.fufanatic wrote: ↑Tue Dec 03, 2019 12:55 pmThat would be fascinating. Would be trying to replace a legend, but hard to turn down an opportunity to go to a school competing for an FBS playoff berth every year.Paul C wrote: ↑Tue Dec 03, 2019 12:17 pmI heard maybe Georgia....fufanatic wrote: ↑Tue Dec 03, 2019 11:45 amDisappointing, but not surprising as I think we were all hoping for a miracle since it was first mentioned last year. Really curious to see where he goes and when it's announced. I hope he's not leaving due to any issues with Furman or the program.aqualung wrote: ↑Tue Dec 03, 2019 9:26 amMy sources confirm that Grayson is gone. We will need a rebuild on the kicking game in 2020.The Jackal wrote: ↑Sun Dec 01, 2019 10:39 pmK: Certainly seems like we will still have Grayson Atkins. No need to belabor this.
P: Would be nice to have a non-Atkins punter.
LS: Evan Vaughn, who has snapped for us a long time. He's handled every snap since 2016. I'm sure he's got a backup, I just don't know who it is.
To be honest, it's not Furman's announcement to make. It's Grayson's and the other school's. And I'm not sure why we would send out a release anyway saying a player transferred to another school, even if it is a grad transfer. Leaving early to go pro is a completely different story, but there's no indication that that's the case.apaladin wrote: ↑Tue Dec 03, 2019 2:45 pmYou can bet there will be no announcement. That's not the FU way. The only way we will find out is when the roster is updated. Still have to wonder why he did not participate in senior day.fufanatic wrote: ↑Tue Dec 03, 2019 11:45 amDisappointing, but not surprising as I think we were all hoping for a miracle since it was first mentioned last year. Really curious to see where he goes and when it's announced. I hope he's not leaving due to any issues with Furman or the program.aqualung wrote: ↑Tue Dec 03, 2019 9:26 amMy sources confirm that Grayson is gone. We will need a rebuild on the kicking game in 2020.The Jackal wrote: ↑Sun Dec 01, 2019 10:39 pmK: Certainly seems like we will still have Grayson Atkins. No need to belabor this.
P: Would be nice to have a non-Atkins punter.
LS: Evan Vaughn, who has snapped for us a long time. He's handled every snap since 2016. I'm sure he's got a backup, I just don't know who it is.
Posted on YouTube yesterday.fufanatic wrote: ↑Tue Dec 03, 2019 4:24 pmTo be honest, it's not Furman's announcement to make. It's Grayson's and the other school's. And I'm not sure why we would send out a release anyway saying a player transferred to another school, even if it is a grad transfer. Leaving early to go pro is a completely different story, but there's no indication that that's the case.apaladin wrote: ↑Tue Dec 03, 2019 2:45 pmYou can bet there will be no announcement. That's not the FU way. The only way we will find out is when the roster is updated. Still have to wonder why he did not participate in senior day.fufanatic wrote: ↑Tue Dec 03, 2019 11:45 amDisappointing, but not surprising as I think we were all hoping for a miracle since it was first mentioned last year. Really curious to see where he goes and when it's announced. I hope he's not leaving due to any issues with Furman or the program.aqualung wrote: ↑Tue Dec 03, 2019 9:26 amMy sources confirm that Grayson is gone. We will need a rebuild on the kicking game in 2020.The Jackal wrote: ↑Sun Dec 01, 2019 10:39 pmK: Certainly seems like we will still have Grayson Atkins. No need to belabor this.
P: Would be nice to have a non-Atkins punter.
LS: Evan Vaughn, who has snapped for us a long time. He's handled every snap since 2016. I'm sure he's got a backup, I just don't know who it is.
Looks like GA will finish his Furman career with the highest career FG% and in the top 5 in career kick scoring. He also has 5 of the top 17 longest field goals in school history.The Jackal wrote: ↑Wed Dec 04, 2019 6:21 amI suppose in some good news, Furman has never really struggled to find good kickers.
Maybe Aqualung can offer some more insight into what a good FG%/leg strength for an FCS kicker is. Because we've certainly had three kickers in a row with a really strong leg (Early, Hollingsworth, Atkins), and 3 of our last four kickers (Cesari, Early, Atkins) are in the top 4 all-time in FG%. We've also been incredibly lucky at finding a kicker and having that consistency for their entire career. Unless I'm missing someone, it appears that Atkins, Hollingsworth, Early, Cesari, Beckler, Marshall, Wells, Richter get us from basically 1992-2019 having all been the primary kicker for multiple years.
Well, it is nice to hear from the horse's mouth. Maybe he's gone. Maybe not.
Great to hear from him. And I guess we can confirm that players read the message board ...The Jackal wrote: ↑Wed Dec 04, 2019 12:04 pmWell, it is nice to hear from the horse's mouth. Maybe he's gone. Maybe not.
Honestly, what he is doing is very smart. I think I mentioned it in a post at some point this season, but if you can get two degrees for the price of one - meaning a bachelors and masters - for playing 4 years of a varsity sport, why not. I've seen it before with athletes that have to redshirt for whatever reason. Graduate in 4 years and use the 5th year for a one-year MBA or something similar. GA is apparently very smart though and looking to accomplish all of this in a 4-year period. Pretty remarkable at a school like Furman if you ask me. It's incredibly disappointing that Furman doesn't offer more masters programs as it sure sounds like this wouldn't be a discussion if they did. I'm guessing as a communications major, getting a masters degree in education, chemistry or art doesn't make a whole lot of sense. While I would miss having GA as part of the Paladin program, he is absolutely doing the right thing and if I'm being honest and trying to see it through his or his family's eyes, returning to Furman to take random undergrad classes for at least one semester with nothing to show for it is kind of a waste of time academically. Maybe he's close to a second bachelors in an additional topic and could pursue being a double major? I don't know. But good luck to him as he goes through the recruitment process once again.
Yes we certainly have had a demonstrated history of success at finding very good kickers. Some might argue that the streak started a decade earlier...haha. Grayson clearly is the best of the best and no one can fault his decision making process. What an impressive young man he is to graduate FU in 3 yrs. I know I needed every bit of those 4 years to manage that. I'm sure that CBB and company will find the next great one for us.fufanatic wrote: ↑Wed Dec 04, 2019 10:39 amLooks like GA will finish his Furman career with the highest career FG% and in the top 5 in career kick scoring. He also has 5 of the top 17 longest field goals in school history.The Jackal wrote: ↑Wed Dec 04, 2019 6:21 amI suppose in some good news, Furman has never really struggled to find good kickers.
Maybe Aqualung can offer some more insight into what a good FG%/leg strength for an FCS kicker is. Because we've certainly had three kickers in a row with a really strong leg (Early, Hollingsworth, Atkins), and 3 of our last four kickers (Cesari, Early, Atkins) are in the top 4 all-time in FG%. We've also been incredibly lucky at finding a kicker and having that consistency for their entire career. Unless I'm missing someone, it appears that Atkins, Hollingsworth, Early, Cesari, Beckler, Marshall, Wells, Richter get us from basically 1992-2019 having all been the primary kicker for multiple years.
Luck is some of it. Some of it is numbers.fufanatic wrote: ↑Wed Dec 04, 2019 10:39 amLooks like GA will finish his Furman career with the highest career FG% and in the top 5 in career kick scoring. He also has 5 of the top 17 longest field goals in school history.The Jackal wrote: ↑Wed Dec 04, 2019 6:21 amI suppose in some good news, Furman has never really struggled to find good kickers.
Maybe Aqualung can offer some more insight into what a good FG%/leg strength for an FCS kicker is. Because we've certainly had three kickers in a row with a really strong leg (Early, Hollingsworth, Atkins), and 3 of our last four kickers (Cesari, Early, Atkins) are in the top 4 all-time in FG%. We've also been incredibly lucky at finding a kicker and having that consistency for their entire career. Unless I'm missing someone, it appears that Atkins, Hollingsworth, Early, Cesari, Beckler, Marshall, Wells, Richter get us from basically 1992-2019 having all been the primary kicker for multiple years.
Most D1 programs aren't going to carry many kickers/punters. FCS schools especially won't spend a lot of scholarship dollars on specialists given reduced restrictions. It's not coincidental that Furman has long had a history of one guy basically handling all the kicking and punting duties for a four year period and then handing the job to the next guy.
So, in recruiting, most of the teams Furman is competing against are only going to have space for a small number (maybe even one) scholarship kicker every few years. There's just not as much demand against a pretty steady supply.
Factor too that kickers are largely able to project. A 35 yard field goal or a kickoff largely looks the same at the smallest high school to the biggest P5 program. The level of competition doesn't really matter. Coaches, therefore, can more easily project what the player may look like in college because it won't be that significantly different than what they were doing in high school.