The distance was familiar. The stage was not. Tate Sandell’s first college field goal at UTSA traveled 47 yards. On October 10, another 47-yarder gave Oklahoma a 27–24 win over No. 1 Texas as time expired at the Cotton Bowl.
Sandell is from Port Neches, Texas, and handled kicking and punting at Port Neches-Groves High, where he also played soccer. His college route took him through UTSA before Oklahoma. The kick that beat the Longhorns came from a player raised in their state.
During the wait before the winning attempt, Sandell told Oklahoma’s athletics site, he thought about his two late grandfathers and the games they never missed. Remembering those earlier days helped him treat the attempt as a familiar kick rather than an unfamiliar occasion.
When it went through, he ran toward the section where his family was sitting. He could not immediately pick them out, he said, so he started pointing into the crowd. The winning kick had ended the game. His first destination was family.
Sources: texaslonghorns.com, goutsa.com, soonersports.com, soonersports.com.
