Friday letter to readers Linfield's new long snapper
Linfield’s new long snapper
Talk to Linfield University’s new president, Mark Blegen, and you ‘ll probably hear the term “long snapper” a few times.
Blegen played the position when he was a member of the football team at St. Olaf College in Minnesota in the early 1990s. He went on to study the nuances of long snapping, to create 3-D models of how the position is played, and to write an undergraduate paper and his master’s degree thesis on the subject.
I’m a Linfield Wildcat, too, and I spent happy hours watching the football team win again and again when I was a student. But I am not fluent in the language of football.
So during my interview (please see story in today’s paper) with the new president — attended by photographer Rusty Rae, another Linfield alum and someone who understands sports — I had to ask an important question: “Uh, what’s a long snapper?”
The long snapper plays an important role during punts and field goal attempts. He must snap the ball precisely over quite a distance — hence, the name for the position. Then he goes back to playing with the offensive line until the next punt or field goal opportunity arises.
That’s my understanding, at least. Obviously, the position and football itself are more nuanced and more complicated than my simple explanation. Perhaps I need to read that thesis.
For Blegen, being a long snapper opened up opportunities, not just in research, but in his work as a college professor and administrator. At his first teaching assignment, a coach noticed his expertise and recruited him to coach the long snappers.
“Coaching was the biggest teaching experience. A wonderful lesson for me, and one of the reasons I feel at home at Linfield.” he said.
He was talking, of course, about Linfield’s championship record on the football field, which includes 68 consecutive winning seasons. “Linfield’s Streak won’t end on my watch,” he vowed.
That’s language I understand.
Comments