Q&A With Groza Award Semifinalist Dan Bailey Of Oklahoma State
STILLWATER, Okla. – Oklahoma State kicker Dan Bailey, a semifinalist for the Lou Groza Award presented to the nation’s top kicker, visited with okstate.com to talk about his path to Stillwater and a variety of other topics. The highlights:
On how he got into kicking
“I played soccer for about as long as I can remember. I started really young and played all the way up until high school. I played soccer and then I started playing football in seventh grade and our coach said, ‘Hey we need somebody to kick the ball,’ I said I’d give it a shot. It just kind of escalated from there and then I kicked in high school and then I came here.”
On if he had a favorite kicker growing up
“Yeah, Jason Elam. He used to play for the Broncos and then he played for the Falcons for his last two years. I’m a big Broncos fan and I’ve always been a big Jason Elam fan. He was always good so I always tried to model him and I always wanted to be like him.”
On if he grew up an fan
“I wouldn’t say I was a die-hard fan, but for the most part anytime was playing I was rooting for them, especially if they were playing OU. I always wanted to win because they were usually the underdog. I wasn’t a die-hard fan but I grew up following them and watching the games.”
On getting the career scoring mark
“It’s an honor. Anytime you can set a record it’s definitely an honor. It’s even more surreal for me because it’s up with names like Barry and Cary Blanchard and Thurman Thomas and people like that. It’s a huge honor for me to be included with names like that.”
On being a semifinalist for the Lou Groza Award
“It feels good. It’s definitely an honor. I think there are 20 of them or so, but anytime you can be mentioned with some of the best kickers in college football, it’s definitely an honor.”
On what he wants to do after
“I’m definitely going to take a shot at the if the opportunity presents itself. I don’t think I could live with myself if I didn’t at least try it. If that doesn’t work out – I’m getting married in May – I’ll just go from there and hopefully find a job and start a family down the road and do the whole American deal.”
On being a good golfer
“I played in high school and my team won state and I won state. That was my sophomore year. I haven’t been able to play as much as I like to since I’ve been in college just because we’re busy with football all the time. Me and Weeden and a couple of the other guys get together as often as we can and play a few rounds. Me and Weeden go back and forth. He’s pretty good and we usually battle it out pretty good. It’s usually pretty competitive.”
Updated 11-16-2010
READER COMMENTS
