Hey! Did you hear about the kid from New York who moved to Denmark, later wanting to become a College football player, so he enrolled into Northwest Missouri State? He made the Team as a Wide Receiver, caught a few passes, then became a kicker.
Well if you didn’t, you’re going too now. For this Small School sleeper profile, we sat down with Simon Mathiesen, and everything you just read, was very real.
Needless to say, his story is nothing like any NFL, prospect you might have heard of. As a child growing up in the small area of Vedbaek, Denmark, Simon, would quickly learn the new sport slowly taking over his community. As he grew to love the sport, he found himself studying one player more than any other. Terrell Owens stood out to a young Mathiesen, as he found himself emulating his style in backyards.
This interest would slowly become and obsession and Simon would turn it into a reality. After months of making highlight tapes, scouring the internet to find a school to attend. Simon found himself with an opportunity, from the small school of Northwest Missouri State.
Standing at 6’4, 205 LBs, it made sense why the school decided to try him out at WR. With strong hands, quick feet, and a propensity to catch on quickly, Simon was on his way to a successful career as a wideout.
Injuries would lead to his opportunity, to become a specialist. Never being the type to say no, when he is needed, he took to his new role as a Kicker, and really ran with it.
“I loved it!, I really loved it. Mathiesen said about the transition. We discussed it briefly and all of a sudden I was a kicker. I was on special teams as a kicker, I love special teams, it really is the third step to success on a team.
When I came too school, and when I decided to really approach being a football player, I was and wanted to be a wide-out. I wanted to be like T.O. (Terrell Owens). I really did…I loved his style, I loved how he was a big show, and always delivered.
When he came back after that long injury, and it was a bad one, he came back to play in the super bowl for the Eagles. He was a hero…..But when my coaches asked me too kick, I was excited for the chance, and I knew it I was meant to do it.”
We asked him how he adjusted to the pressures of becoming a kicker.
“Pressure?…I love pressure! I am the guy that when it is the end of the game, we are down by one, or down by two, and we are range, I want the pressure, I want to be put in that situation. That is the moment I believe great players, and great moments come together and make for a great game. So pressure doesn’t bother me, I ask for it, I want the pressure.
You can look it up, in the playoffs, in school I don’t miss, in big games, that is when I do my best. I love the whole situation. So when the playoffs came and my number was called, I did what I loved to do the most.”
The Eagles, are okay for now at the Kicker position, but upgrading any spot is never out of the question. The team may also wish to add another kicker for OTA’s and Training Camp, which could be just the opportunity Mathiesen needs. The addition of Simon, could come as a real boost for the Eagles, special teams, as he could be a true weapon for years to come.
AP Photo/St. Joseph News-Press, Sait Serkan Gurbuz- MANDATORY CREDIT
