Legally blind player walks on at Tulane
By Cory Buck
A legally blind football player defied the odds and found a spot on a college roster. Mike Huguenin of NFL.com reports that long snapper Aaron Golub from the Boston area has been accepted as a preferred walk-on at Tulane University’s football team.
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Golub’s personal coach, Chris Rubio, describes the player’s sight in terms that we could all relate to.
“For reference, close one eye and then make a fist with a hole (the) size of a dime and put the opening to your eye. That is Aaron’s continuous view,” Rubio said.
Golub has a long way to go if he wants steady playing time on the roster. Tulane already has a long snapper returning to the roster and his coach wasn’t exactly glowing about Golub’s initial session.
“The first camp for Aaron was not the finest showing I have ever seen from a first-timer. OK, I am being nice: He was bad, real bad,” Rubio added.
But Golub has apparently made strides since. It’s a heck of an achievement for anyone to make a college football team, let alone someone who can barely see. If there’s one position in which muscle memory and execution can overcome such hindrances though, it might be long snapper.
Next time you watch Tulane, wait until they have to punt (it shouldn’t take long) and see how that goes.
You may just be watching Aaron Golub defy the odds.