Vanderbilt University soccer star Sarah Fuller will kick for Commodores football team today and become the first woman to play in Power 5 conference game
Women´s soccer player Sarah Fuller will don a football uniform Saturday for Vanderbilt and is poised to become the first woman to play in a Power 5 game when the Commodores visit Missouri.
Vanderbilt is set to face off against Missouri in an SEC clash on Saturday afternoon in Columbia, Missouri.
If Fuller plays, as expected, she will become the first female to play in a Power 5 conference college football game.
She'll be wearing 'Play Like A Girl' on the back of her helmet.
The Power 5 conferences are the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12, and SEC, the biggest conferences in Division I intercollegiate athletics.
No woman has appeared in an Southeastern Conference football game or for any Power 5 gridiron team.
Fuller posted the news on Twitter herself, writing 'Let's make history.'
Fuller is a goalkeeper for Vanderbilt's soccer team, which recently won the SEC Championship.
The Commodores were initially going to play Tennessee at home this Saturday before the coronavirus forced scheduling changes across the conference.
Sarah Fuller has a chance to make college football history when she suits up on Saturday
Fuller could become the first female player to compete in a Power 5 football game
Previous female players have competed at the FBS level, but not for the elite conferences
Vanderbilt is scheduled to play against Missouri on the road on Saturday afternoon. Pictured: Dudley Field at Vanderbilt Stadium
Fuller started nine games for the Vanderbilt soccer team this season, during which the team posted a 7-2-0 record. She didn't allow a goal in three of those starts.
Fuller also started all four games during the SEC Tournament, which concluded with a 3-1 win over the top-seeded Arkansas Razorbacks on Sunday.
Rather than take a break after the end of an exciting season, Fuller went right to work with the football team, which has been dealing with a COVID-19 outbreak in their special teams unit according to ESPN.
'This is super deserving for her,' Wylie High School girls' soccer coach Chris Bezner said to The Athletic. 'She's always had the grit and perseverance.'
'I'd be proud if this works out,' said Fuller's soccer coach, Darren Ambrose. 'The bravery and courage required to do this are immense.'
Vanderbilt has had a very challenging season on the gridiron, losing all seven of their games so far this season.
Kicking itself has also been a challenge for the Commodores, with junior Pierson Cooke making three of his seven attempts on the year.
Fuller previously competed for Vanderbilt's women's soccer team, which won an SEC title less than a week ago
'I'd be proud if this works out,' said Fuller's soccer coach, Darren Ambrose. Pictured: Fuller at a concert
The level Fuller would be kicking at is unprecedented, but it would not be the first time a female has kicked in a Football Bowl Subdivision game.
In 2003, Katie Hnida became the first female to score in an FBS game when she converted two extra points with the New Mexico Lobos in a blowout victory over Texas State.
In 2015, April Goss made an extra point for Kent State in a win over Delaware State.
Vanderbilt is in the midst of a tough season, losing all seven of their games so far this year
Fuller's arrival could rejuvenate the team, which seeks its first win of the season on Saturday
No female has ever made a field goal or scored a touchdown in an FBS game.
'I think it's amazing and incredible,' Fuller told Vanderbilt's website about the historic opportunity. 'But I'm also trying to separate that because I know this is a job I need to do and I want to help the team out and I want to do the best that I can.
'It's an honor they called on me to be able to do this and help them out.'