Blue White Illustrated

January 2023

Penn State Sports Magazine

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1 8 J A N U A R Y 2 0 2 3 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M In a perfect world, no Penn State football fan would know who Chris Stoll is. That, at any rate, is how the super senior long snapper sees his role on the special teams units. "If you have a good snapper, you shouldn't know his name," Stoll said. "As soon as you have a bad snap, every- one is like, 'Who's that guy? Why can't he do his job?'" Stoll, who is ending his career in the Rose Bowl, hasn't had a lot of bad snaps during the four seasons in which he's handled those duties for the Nittany Lions. Since 2019, PSU leads the na- tion in punts downed inside the oppo- nent's 10-yard line (19.7 percent). Stoll, a Westerville, Ohio, native, has been a big part of that effort. However, he's going to find it a bit more difficult to maintain his anonym- ity now that he's won a national award for his work. On Dec. 10, he was named the winner of the Patrick Mannelly Award, which goes to the nation's top long snapper. Now in its fourth year, the award seeks to provide "a vehicle through which football's unsung work- horses can finally bask in the warm glow of appreciation." Stoll recently opened up about how he got started as a specialist at St. Fran- cis DeSales High and how his career has gone at PSU. QUESTION: When did you first start long snapping? STOLL: "My sophomore year of high school was the first time I snapped. … I was just trying to get some time on varsity. Our senior snapper at the time didn't do so well in preseason camp, and they were like, 'Does anyone here know how to long snap?' I said, 'I don't know how, but I'll give it a shot.' "I found my niche there and slowly fell in love with it. I learned about all the little tweaks that you can make that can improve your snapping exponentially. That's when I fell in love with it." QUESTION: What's your journey been like, from snapping for the first time as a high school sophomore to be- ing a scholarship athlete at Penn State? STOLL: "I've been incredibly blessed. I didn't think I would end up playing col- lege football somewhere. I grew up lov- ing hockey and lacrosse, and thought I would end up going somewhere to do that or just go be a regular college stu- dent. "But when the opportunity started to present itself my junior and senior years of high school, I just tried to take it one snap at a time. That's all I can do. I've thoroughly enjoyed it. I've loved all of it." QUESTION: What is it that you love about long snapping? It can be a thank- less job, because you don't necessarily get a lot of attention unless you screw up. STOLL: "That comes with the job. Nobody should know who I am. That would be ideal. But I love being part of the special teams unit, and I love being part of a team. I've thoroughly enjoyed all of my teammates here through the years. I've made countless friends for life. "In regard to the snapper position spe- cifically, I love that little niche. There are some people who can do it. [Start- ing quarterback] Sean Clifford snapped in high school, but it's a different beast when you have to snap backed up in your own end zone against Ohio State. There aren't many people who can do that." QUESTION: Now that your college career is coming to an end, how would you sum up your six years at Penn State? STOLL: "The one thing I would want people to remember is my consistency, not only as a person coming into the building every day, but what I've done in the classroom, earning my degree, and my performance on the field. "I shouldn't be known in the com- munity around me, but my teammates should know who I am and what I'm about." QUESTION: Have you ever been rec- ognized on campus? STOLL: "No, not that I can remem- ber." Sitting Down With Super Senior Long Snapper Chris Stoll Stoll became the fourth player to be honored with the Patrick Mannelly Award, which goes to the nation's top long snapper. PHOTO COURTESY PENN STATE ATHLETICS

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