There are plenty of oddities that come up during the course of the football season, so it takes something special to make prep football news in May. Yet something special has definitely arrived in Philadelphia, where one kicker will serve as both the punter and kicker for a Public League all-star team, with one major catch: He'll punt left-footed and kick field goals and extra points with his right foot. Yes, you read that correctly: America, we have an ambipedal all-star football kicker.
According to the Philadelphia Daily News' Ted Silary, the talented teen in question is Philadelphia (Pa.) Northeast High senior Howard Lynn, who was a third-team all-area selection as a punter after his final prep season. That honor wasn't intended to overshadow his placekicking acumen, with Lynn racking up some 70 points as a placekicker from his sophomore through senior seasons.
How did Lynn, who does everything else in his life right-handed, end up as a left-footed punter? The reason has everything to do with the other fall sport he continues to compete in: soccer.
Shortly after Lynn began his soccer career, the Philadelphia athlete took a liking to playing between the pipes in goal. Because he was right-handed, it felt natural for Lynn to drop the ball down to his left foot when he drilled the ball out of his team's defensive zone. Those boots up the soccer pitch gave way to punts on the football field, which naturally came from the same left foot he used to kick soccer balls. The results were impressive, with punts that earned plenty of plaudits from other Philadelphia coaches.
"Legit boomers come off that kid's foot," Philadelphia (Pa.) Simon Gratz School football coach Erik Gratz told the Daily News.
For at least one more game, boomers will continue to come off of Lynn's left foot, all while any extra points or field goals come off his right. After that he'll head to nearby Lock Haven University, where he plans to major in business and could end up playing for the school's football team, soccer team or baseball program (he's a starting first baseman and pitcher for Northeast).
