Before we get started, can you grow up already and spare us the juvenile “chicker” stuff, please? There’s no place for that here.
Anyway, there was an interesting mini-story coming out of Blacksburg Tuesday, with Virginia Tech head coach Frank Beamer experiencing a first in his long coaching career.
According to the Washington Post, freshman Lauren Luttrell tried out for the Hokies today as a kicker. And, she did well enough in the tryout that she’s earned an invitation to return to the team next year during spring practice.
“Right now it’s kind of tough to come out there and get a lot of attention. Things are happening so fast right now,” Beamer said. “But I was impressed with her and we’ll bring her back out there in the spring.”
It’s not like Luttrell is a complete kicking neophyte, however; as a senior in high school last year, she kicked 10 extra points and a 31-yard field goal for Spotsylvania.
Hopefully Luttrell will fare as well as Kathy Ireland‘s character in “Necessary Roughness”. And much, much better than what was alleged to have occurred during Katie Hnida‘s time at Colorado in the late nineties.
This is rare, JT, but I’m just disagreeing with you all over the place today
If women want to play football, then there should be women’s teams as in basketball. This is a dangerous sport played by large, physically imposing men. I’m an equal-rights advocate, but we need to recognize there are physiological differences between the genders. Men don’t have the genetic makeup to be surrogate mothers. Women don’t have the genetic makeup to engage in physical combat with men on a football field.
We can argue that kickers aren’t real football players. But once in a while someone runs back a kick and the last person between that runner and the goal line is the kicker. Yes, I’ve seen some male kickers run out of bounds in those circumstances. But ideally, they’ll take the shot and prevent that touchdown. Lauren Luttrell has no business taking the shot on a muscular man running at full speed toward the end zone. That’s why she doesn’t belong on the field.
Can men try out for field hockey? If their school does not have a men’s team, then they should be allowed. Or do they have to be bad enough not to make the men’s team in a sport to be able to try out for a women’s sport. I mean that is what the reverse is—a women who is good enough can try out for a man’s team?
Our junior high had a girl who was allowed to play on the boy’s team because she was very tall and good enough to make the boy’s team—and play on the girl’s team too. But a boy who was too small to play on the boy’s team was not allowed to play on the girl’s team. Why?
We had a golf team where the boys who averaged in the 70″s could not get a scholarship to college, but the girls who played from closer tees (which should have evened out the size disparity) and averaged in the 80′s got scholarships!!! Talk about unfair.
Some women are bigger than some men. Should those men not be allowed to play on the women
s team? Maybe we should have teams based on size rather than gender. Then the best athletes could play.
another rarity…..I’m in agreement with Deb.
With all due respect, no female is going to out-kick any male kicker on a football field (can she get a kick-off even to the goal line? doubt it). Face it, when it comes to leg strength or virtually any other form of athletics that involves muscular strength, men have an advantage that women simply can’t match. This is nothing more than a cheap publicity stunt by both the attention-grabbing female involved and the university. Hard to tell which is more despicable really.
JT, do us all a favor and don’t even bother with the sequel to this non-story.
You guys are killing me.
If she wants to play and can beat out the others, let her play.
She is probably the same size as a lot of kickers. All kickers take the same risks when they play the game. They make their own decission.
I hope she makes the team and does well…
@florida727
I dated a girl who played collegiate soccer and could leg press over 900 lbs. and squat 350 lbs. It was shocking to me the power she could generate kicking a soccer ball. The difference between male and female lower body strength is not nearly as disproportionate as upper body strength. I would still be concerned however. Kickers are often called upon to tackle and even run the ball. Furthermore they are sometimes hit when kicking. I do not doubt her ability to kick the ball through the uprights so much as I have concern for her safety.
If she can kick the ball well, who cares?
A lot of terrible kickers in college ball.
Tennfan-
There have been a few cases in PA where a male has played field hockey. I also had a former soccer player kick for the hs team. Noone questioned her toughness, she was also a 3rd degree blakbelt.
I am also with Deb on this one.
Sorry “tomosborne…”, but unless they start allowing roundhouse kicks and punches to the solar plexis as viable tackling techniques, her 3rd degree blackbelt means absolutely nothing. This is FOOTBALL, not martial arts. Until men start playing on women’s basketball teams, fastpitch softball teams, etc., she has no place being on the field. It’s a cheap publicity stunt. The article said she’d be invited back for spring practice. Translation: she’s not good enough or she’d be on THIS YEAR’S team.
The general rule is that if there is a contact sport for which there is no women’s alternative, a females do not have a right to try out for the team. However, if they are given the opportunity to try out, they cannot be discriminated against by virtue of their gender. I think that arguably can be said to be equitable.
Here’s a novel concept – why not just let the coach decide who the best player is for the team? If she is the best available, it necessarily precludes all arguments against her.
If she can win a fair competition then who cares? This certainly sounds like it could be a publicity thing, but if she can out kick the team’s other options then why not?
Oh please, just like a few others have said, if she can beat out the other kickers then let her play. However
Comparing physiological attributes of men and women with respect to their abilities to birth a child and kick a ball is asinine.
@pricecube
You have never met a single person in your life that can leg press 900lbs much less a female.
To gain credibility with a statement that says “women are equal” the information has to be realistic even if its exaggerated.
I don’t care in the slightest who kicks as long as she can consistently kick 50+ yard field goals. Not 1/5 but 3 / 5 or 7/10 sort of thing. The only area have issues with is men can’t play with women but she can play with men. They should take away a women’s soccer scholarship and give it to the football team so they are not missing out on “men’s scholarships” according to title 9. what’s fair is fair and it goes both ways ladies
I don’t think anyone was comparing the abilities of men and women to birth a child with that of kicking a ball. I’m sure there are women that can kick better than some men.
I see it as simply pointing out the physical differences between the sexes. A 250 pound male player crashing into a 145 pound female would not be pretty.
Believe it or not men and women are two different creatures.
I want to know how the hell she kicks the ball with one leg? Must be tough.
if her name isn’t Chuck Norris, I don’t want her on my team
@sirmixalotalotalot
Oh I forgot, you know more about who I have met and dated than I do.
Here is video of a woman squatting 700 lbs. Anyone who can do that can leg press 1500+ lbs.
Please stfu.
Soooo many ACC players are girly jokes running through my head right now…..
pricecube says:
Aug 31, 2011 12:41 PM
@sirmixalotalotalot
Oh I forgot, you know more about who I have met and dated than I do.
Here is video of a woman squatting 700 lbs. Anyone who can do that can leg press 1500+ lbs.
Please stfu.
———————————————
You seem to have a fetish for inordinately strong women.
@maddog111
lol
Thank you, dickroy.
drexelvol, I’m not comparing childbirth to football. It’s annoying when people deliberately take a statement out of context just to be asses. As dickroy explained, I’m saying what was obvious to my friend’s five-year-old who asked his little sister why her penis is a crack: There are physiological differences between the genders.
Yes, I’m sure some women can outkick some men. But sometimes kickers are called on to do more than kick. If a coach wants just 10 players on the field covering kick returns, that’s up to him. The San Diego Chargers made that sacrifice years ago for a kicker who had Chrohn’s Disease. He left the field after kicking. But if you make that sacrifice for a kicker just because she’s female, then she’s not winning the job on an even playing field, is she? Equal opportunity isn’t supposed to be about easing the requirements to accommodate women.
@pricecube
Here is what I know. You didn’t date anyone like the person you described. If a women leg pressed 900+ lbs, she should be terrible at soccer because her bulk would prevent her from being able to run fast and especially for long periods of time.
I was a division 1 college athlete and know what I am talking about and D-Linemen that squat 600+ lbs can because they are 250+ lbs and need quick leverage. They never run 7+ miles like a soccer player will per game. Endurance sports use lean muscle and small bursts of muscle when needed. Weight lifters, some football players, etc. use different muscles types for quick, huge explosions of strength but have limited endurance.
@sirmixalotalotalot
I will grant you that leg press is kind of a b.s. lift… e.g. Madeleine Albright claims to leg press 400lbs and Pat Robertson claims he can leg press 2000 lbs. I shit you not.
I mentioned it only to make the point that women’s lower body strength is much less disproportionate.
Finally, you are clearly an imposter. The real sirmixalot would appreciate a woman with “back” who can leg press 900 lbs.
@pricecube
I added the extra 2 “alot” to absolve me of liking overly large butts.
I prefer thin, toned, and athletic.
I would love to see Madeleine Albright square off with Pat Robertson in a leg-pressing contest.