Cimaglia: 'They Told Me I was Never Going to Kick'
Last season, Brent Cimaglia made 23 of his 27 field goal attempts, which included nailing two 53 and 51 yarders, in addition to making all of his extra points — earning praise from fans and media personalities alike as one of the best kickers in College Football. This week, the incoming senior sat down with “The Slice,” a podcast by the University of Tennessee, in which he revealed that he wasn’t always considered to have such an elite leg.
“I played pee-wee football, and I tried out for defense (and) made it,” said Cimaglia on Monday morning. “Then I tried out for kicker, and they told me I was never going to kick…(they said that) in pee-wee and Middle School, I was told for about 5 or 6 years that I was never going to be able to kick.”
“As a young kid, it hurt for a little bit, but then I was like, I’m going to show all of these people wrong,” continued Cimaglia. “I didn’t want to play sports for a bit after that… (my family) helped me in ways that I could never thank them… I really have no words to describe it.”
“When you think back to being in Middle School, being told that you weren’t good enough… what goes through your mind?” asked the interviewer. “The words ‘No, you’re not good enough’... I love it because I get to prove them wrong,” replied Cimaglia promptly. “My mindset always changes and I’m ready for the next challenge (when I think about it).”
The expectations are sky-high for Cimaglia as he enters his final season at Tennessee, and he will have the opportunity to prove the folks who told him that he would never kick when he was younger even more wrong than he already has. The future is very bright for Cimaglia, and if he keeps up his hard work, he might even be able to have a career in the NFL. You can listen to the full episode of 'The Slice' below.
https://open.spotify.com/episode/3zi4sFmeydo8x82apkqr1J?si=01wuyoGfQ4-2Rl0qGrBVew
