A Very Specialist Christmas
“He was just the punter, but they sold his jersey in the university bookstore.”
Surprise? Elation? Astonishment? Shock? University of Minnesota senior Peter Mortell had none of those reactions when, in December 2015, he was named the inaugural winner of college football’s Holder of the Year Award. After all, it was he who had created the honor only a week earlier.
College football bequeaths baubles for a plethora of positions: quarterback, running back, wide receiver, tight end, center, linebacker, interior lineman, defensive end, defensive back, kicker and, yes, even Mortell’s primary position, punter. No one had ever recognized holders, who perform the most dexterously difficult task on the gridiron: catching a snap from seven yards away while kneeling and then placing it just so for a field goal or
