Former Collingullie-Glenfield Park defender Steve Dawson is still coming to grips with life in the spotlight after turning heads across the Pacific in his debut season of US college football.
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Signed by Murray State University for a two-year scholarship back in June, Dawson quickly stamped himself as one of the premier punters in the NCAA Division I competition with a string of stellar performances with the boot.
Despite having no prior experience in the code, Dawson became the Murray State Racers’ mister fix-it with his hefty right boot averaging 42.1 yards per punt.
Crucially, none of Dawson’s 54 punts for the season were blocked, handing the Racers a net punting average of 39.4 yards – the third highest return in the competition.
The former Demon is back in town for the Christmas break and says it’s been a steep learning curve since arriving in the States.
“Honestly, the punting’s still a bit of a work in progress and it’s only been a year since I first started so I think I’m still getting a feel for it,” Dawson said.
“I’m slowly getting there but it’s a frustrating process sometimes – you’re just doing the one thing over and over and kicking the footy so sometimes you can just over complicate things.”
“Getting there” appears an understatement given his latest endorsement from college sports outlet HEROSports, who named the Wagga product as an All-American honourable mention in their season wrap.
“It’s only a mention but I’ll definitely take it,” Dawson laughed.
The 16,800-seat stadium at Murray State is a far cry from Crossroads Oval and Dawson admits it’s a “very different atmosphere” to his Riverina League days, particularly on away games.
“When we played against Kentucky, there were probably around 50,000 people in the stands and the noise was incredible.”
“I’m the guy who hold the ball for field goals and the guy who snaps to me is only six metres away, but I could barely hear the call over all the noise – that was a pretty awesome experience.”
Dawson also featured in the Racers’ “Miracle in Murray” – a last-gasp win that went viral earlier in the year.
He’ll head back overseas next month as the college cycle goes around and the Racers prepare for an improved showing in 2019.
“We went alright and definitely better than the previous season, but we did let a few games slip and missed out on a spot in the playoffs.”
“Making playoffs is the goal for next year and all the coaches have been out recruiting already.”
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