Want to get a Division I scholarship? Start practicing long snapping.

Harrison Elliott said he started snapping in the fourth grade. He said it was about his sophomore year when he started to realize he could play Division I football based on that skill. He started working with private snapping coach Chris Rubio about that time, and ended up committing to Air Force.

Elliott said he doesn’t know what offers he would have gotten, because he committed to Air Force so early, but said he had indications Georgia, Tennessee and Vanderbilt would have given him preferred walk-on status.

“I was so sure that Air Force was the place for me that I basically stopped talking to other schools,” Elliott said.

All the fuss over a long snapper sounds odd (Elliott’s highlight video – yes, he has one – claims he was the top ranked long snapper in Georgia and No. 6 in the nation) but it isn’t that unusual. Rubio said he had 66 long snappers go to college last year. Here’s the list.

“It is something that started small and exploded,” said Rubio, who has been tutoring long snappers for nine years.

In high school, Elliott played some tight end and defensive end, but mostly was a long snapper. It paid off for him. While he could be an important member of Air Force’s special teams over the next few years, he hopes to stay far away from any publicity.

“I’m not a big fan in getting recognition,” Elliott said. “If no one knows my name, it means I’m doing my job right. When fans know who the long snapper is, that’s when the team has issues.”

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