The secret is out. Yes, it's true, there is in fact a girl on the Otterbein football team. Our very own Cardinal, Kristin Osborn, has already accomplished two of Otterbein's very firsts. Osborn will be tagged as the first girl to come aboard Otterbein's football team, as well as the first girl to kick an extra point in the JV game this past Tuesday at Wilmington. When hearing about Osborn, I found it almost impossible to track this girl down. After talking to a few of her teammates, I discovered that when Osborn is not kicking field goals she's hitting the high notes, literally. Osborn is also a first soprano in the Otterbein choir. She confesses that being a music major and playing football is very stressful. "I have to sprint from my voice lessons to get to practice on time," she said. "Because I have such a passion for football and music I have to force myself to balance them out." Osborn says that she is lucky to have such a great family as a support system. "When I decided that I wanted to play football my whole family was a little bit confused because we were all more of a soccer family, but once we were all on the same page everything was good," said Osborn. As you can imagine Osborn's family members weren't the only ones confused. For many years now, Osborn has been participating in a "man's sport," and she has been turning the heads of many people. "I find it interesting that it's such a big deal...I'm not anything special I'm just another player," said Osborn. "There will be people willing to do whatever they can to discourage you, but you just learn to not let them get in the way." Osborn seems to have found another support system within her team members. Fellow kicker, Dave Brewer says that Osborn has great ability. "If she needs help she asks, and she has no problem giving advice," said Brewer. Teammate Syvon Keys has begun to come around. "At first it baffled me because you don't see girls on a guys football team, but my thoughts have changed because I've seen her play and can clearly see that she is here for a reason," said Keys. "If anyone were to talk about her in a negative light I would think they were ignorant because she is just a part of the team as anyone else, so the fact that she is a girl makes no difference." Being around 150 guys at once, one has to wonder what Osborn learns each day. "Sometimes I hear things that I wish I wouldn't have, but guys are guys and they aren't going to change just because I'm there," said Osborn. "It was such a relief when I got to meet the guys and discovered that they were all so cool and very welcoming." As a whole, "welcoming" was the word Osborn used to describe her first four weeks here at Otterbein. "I'm not here to try to make Otterbein's football team look like a joke, I'm here because I have a passion for football just like any other player on this team," added Osborn. The Cardinal football team beat Heidelberg College 52-14 last Saturday to move to 4-0 overall and 3-0 in the OAC. The Cardinals are off to their best start since 1981 and are tied for a share of first place in the OAC. Next up for the Cardinals are the Yellow Jackets of Baldwin-Wallace University. The Yellow Jackets are 2-2 overall and 2-1 in the OAC. They are coming off a 48-3 drubbing at home, versus #1 Mount Union College. The Cardinals are looking for a little redemption from last season, since the Yellow Jackets came from behind to beat the Cardinals 37-27 in Berea last year. Game time is 1:30 at Memorial Stadium. t&c;
Not a man's game anymore
More
