College football plays an undeniable role in shaping the careers of young footballers. It allows them to follow their passion while preparing them for the big leagues. Recently, college football saw a huge revolution as it got its first female non-kicker. Shenandoah University’s Haley Van Voorhis made this new record during the game against Juniata when she hurried the QB.
Haley Van Voorhis is a Division-III safety from Shenandoah University. She made her entry in the 1st quarter of the match and impressed everyone with a quarterback hurry. This makes her the first woman, who’s not a kicker, to play a game in college football. After the match, Voorhis mentioned in an interview that she wanted to show “what women can do”.
“It’s an amazing thing… I just wanted to get out and do my thing. I want to show other people this is what women can do, to show what I can do. It’s a big moment. I made the impossible possible, and I’m excited about that,” she said.
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The young star is a 5-foot-6 tall junior player from Plains, Virginia. and weighs around 145 pounds. Haley Van Voorhis has been on the junior varsity team for the past 2 years. Other than football, she’s great in track and field and participates in sprinting events.
Scott Yoder, the Shenandoah’s coach, didn’t hesitate to express his admiration for the talented safety. He mentioned that it’s the strong willpower and dedication of Haley Van Voorhis that helped her. Yoder further expressed his gratitude for serving as a coach.
Haley surely made a big name for herself with her entry as a non-kicker in the game on September 23. Now, the 20-year-old star must be looking forward to getting stronger in her career.
Haley Van Voorhis has always emphasized on the challenges faced by women in sports
Haley Van Voorhis grabbed everyone’s attention with her quarterback hurry in the game against Juniata. Along with this, she opened new prospects for non-kicker women players in college football. However, this is not a new thing for the talented athlete. Haley has been stressing on the challenges that women players face in general.
Back in 2021, Shenandoah’s safety talked about the problems she had faced being a woman athlete. During an interview with ESPN, she mentioned how people feel that women cannot do much in sports.
“There’s definitely people out there who see the story and think, ‘This girl’s going to get hurt.’ I hear that a lot. Or, ‘She’s too small, doesn’t weigh enough, not tall enough.’ But I’m not the shortest on my team, and I’m not the lightest,” she said.
Before Haley Van Voorhis, there have been other record-breaking women athletes as well. NAIA Campbellsville University’s defensive back Shelby Osborne became the first female non-kicker to be on a team. However, she didn’t get a chance to play a game.
Generally, women athletes play the role of kickers in college football. But, Voorhis broke all the records with her groundbreaking move. Hopefully, she’ll get to exhibit her talent in big leagues like the NFL in future.
