Emmaus’ Carson Landis was set to take his kicking skills to the Lafayette football team.
But that’s when he got a chance he couldn’t refuse.
“I couldn’t pass up the Penn State opportunity. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” Landis said.
Landis was one of 20 Green Hornets to make their college choices official during a signing ceremony on Wednesday afternoon at Emmaus High School.
The kicker will be a preferred walk-on for the Big Ten champion Nittany Lions. He’s guaranteed a roster spot and can earn a scholarship depending on his performances in practices and games.
“It was kind of mutual just because I’m in the state. So they kind of know what type of players are in the state. My coach (offensive coordinator) Matt Senneca, he played (quarterback) for Penn State. So he reached out to (Penn State coach James) Franklin’s staff. They said that I was already on their radar. But after Senneca sent them an email, I was a lot more involved in their recruiting process,” Landis said.
He was 9-for-12 kicking field goals as a senior, including four from 41-48 yards. Landis had school records in field goals made with nine and the longest kick in school history with a 48-yard field goal. He made 51 of 56 extra points as a senior.
“He meant a lot to our team. He could’ve easily been MVP of our team. I know there was a lot of debate going back and forth between us coaches when we selected our MVP,” Emmaus football coach Harold Fairclough said. “He gave us great field position on a constant basis. That’s an advantage for us. He won a couple games for us. Parkland game, kicking that field goal in the overtime.”
Landis impressed Penn State special teams Charles Huff during a winter visit to Emmaus.
“Coach Huff came down, it might have been a Tuesday, 6:30 in the morning. We opened up the stadium, ground was frozen, balls were hard. Carson was out there kicking for him and kicking well,” Fairclough said. “They liked the technique that he used. It wasn’t just like a kid who can kind of kick the ball. The technique was there and they knew that they could work with that and build on it. I think they got a good kid.”
The kicker, who hasn’t declared his major yet, made the decision to become a Nittany Lion last Monday. He said Lafayette’s coaching change from Frank Tavani to John Garrett did play a part in his decision.
“It did have a little effect. I was kind of hesitant. I didn’t meet the special teams coach. So I didn’t really know what I was getting into,” Landis said. “I was kind of rushed in that process just because of the old coaching staff, they wanted to get everything together before the coaching change. So I was kind of rushed. But I’m definitely happy with the decision I made.”
Despite becoming a Penn State kicker, Landis doesn’t expect to bring the big hits like current Nittany Lions kicker Joey Julius has.
“No, I won’t. I’m a little small,” Landis said.
Landis joins former Whitehall running back Saquon Barkley on the Penn State roster. Barkley wrapped up another big season for the Nittany Lions with a 194-yard rushing performance against USC in the Rose Bowl.
“It probably helped my process just knowing that they can count on athletes coming out of the Valley. I’d imagine that helped a little bit,” Landis said about Barkley’s success impacting his recruiting.
“Penn State’s getting a great kid, high-character kid,” Fairclough said of Landis. “They’re getting a guy who works really hard at his craft. I think that’s what kind of separated him from the other guys that they were taking a look at.”
Other Green Hornet football players who signed on Wednesday were Ian McCardle (secondary education-chemistry at Kutztown) and Drew Schwindenhammer (secondary education-social studies at Millersville).
Emmaus basketball player Kiyae White signed to play at Auburn University. Unfortunately she had to do so on crutches as she tore her right ACL during a game against Central Catholic on Friday night. White missed all of her junior season when she tore her left ACL.
White, who is majoring in communications, is confident she will be ready to go for the Tigers later this year.
“Definitely I’m going to work hard in physical therapy and get back. I’ve done it before, so I know I can do it again better than ever,” White said.
Fresh off his SportsCenter Top 10 play, basketball player David Kachelries made his commitment to New Jersey Institute of Technology. He is undecided what he will major in.
“It’s really exciting. I’ve been working to commit to a college. Since I was a little kid, I always wanted to play Division I basketball,” Kachelries said. “To be able to play at a school I really like is really exciting. This day is awesome.”
Four members of the state championship field hockey team made their college decisions official. Meredith Sholder will major in biology at North Carolina, Madalyn Dorn will major in health sciences at Boston College (pre-law), Kira Koehler will study business and economics at Dartmouth and Brittany Morgan will major in physical therapy at Slippery Rock.
“What they have achieved not only in the classroom, but on the athletic field is well-deserved. They’ve worked awfully hard. They’ve made a lot of sacrifices,” said Emmaus coach Sue Butz-Stavin, who was presented with the National High School Coaches Association Field Hockey Coach of the Year award during Wednesday’s assembly. “They just had that determination to be the best they can be at all times. It’s just part of their personalities. They’ve done a tremendous job for the field hockey program. Out of their four years, they only lost three games and had one tie out of 109 games. A testament to them. They carried on the tradition of excellence.”
Also signing at Emmaus on Wednesday were soccer players Reilly McGinnis (a kinesiology/math/economics major at West Point), Noah Bacon (biology major at Le Moyne University), Kacper Grycel (business management at Bloomsburg), Dylan Sosnow (business administration and marketing at Millersville), volleyball player Alyson Bohman (accounting major at Kutztown), baseball players Eric Cichocki (integrated business and engineering at Lehigh), Todd Moxey (criminology at Longwood University), lacrosse players Tyler Corpora (physical therapy at University of Hartford), Braedon LaBar (finance and entrepreneurship at Siena College), field hockey player Christina Carotenuto (bio-medical engineering and forensic science at Temple), golfer Samantha Fritzinger (sports management at Wingate University).
Josh Folck may be reached at jfolck@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @JoshFolck. Find Lehigh Valley high school sports on Facebook.
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