After every National Snapping Spring Event in Las Vegas in May, I choose the Event Elite underclassmen Long Snappers. They are the best of the best out in Vegas and are selected to participate in The TOP 12 and EVENT ELITE camp during the summer. Only the true great ones are allowed to attend the TOP 12 and EVENT ELITE camp and you must do extremely well in Vegas to be considered. The percent of Long Snappers that have been invited to this camp and continued their careers into college is well over 95%!
If you make this list, you obviously can snap the ball and do it well. Now, I wanted to give you a bit of insight on them off the field. In alphabetical order….
Name: Joel Baldwin 
School: Tupelo High School
Grad Year: 2014
Ht: 6’2”
Wt: 215
GPA: 3.7
SAT/ACT: 25
Top 5 College Choices:
1. Florida
2. Mississippi State
3. Ole Miss
4. Duke
5. Vanderbilt
Hobbies:
1. Spending time with my youth group at Church
2. Long Snapping
3. Playing Tennis
What is your favorite movie? Hot Rod
What is your favorite food? Roast Beef and Rice
What is favorite motivational quote? “Champions aren’t made in gyms. Champions are made from something they have deep inside – a desire, a dream, a vision. They have to have the skill and the will. But the will must be stronger than the skill.” – Muhammad Ali
What makes you the best Long Snapper in the country? My high goals and ability to achieve those goals make me the best Long Snapper in the country. I will do everything I can to be better than the person that is in front of me.
What is one unique quality about you that not everyone might know about? I am both a Varsity Football player and a Varsity Tennis player.
Name: Aidan “AJ” Carty 
School: Servite High School
Grad Year: 2015
Ht: 6″3
Wt: 230
GPA: 3.8
SAT/ACT: n/a
Top 5 College Choices:
1. Notre Dame
2. Duke
3. Clemson
4. Michigan
5. Washington
Hobbies:
1. Snowboarding/Skiing
2. Wrestling
3. Building catapults
Favorite Movie: The Other Guys
Favorite Food: Cheeseburgers
Favorite Quote: “To infinity and beyond” – Buzz Lightyear
What makes you the best Long Snapper in the country? My determination and my attitude
What is one unique quality about you that not everyone might know? I dance when I drink milk
Name: Seth A. Combs 
School: Hononegah High School
Grad Year: 2014
Height: 5’-11”
Weight: 190
GPA: 3.0
ACT: 22 (Retake Schedule June 2013)
SAT: N/A
Top 5 College Choices:
1.) University of Minnesota
2.) Illinois State University
3.) Wisconsin
4.) University of Kentucky
5.) Northern Illinois
Hobbies:
1.) Football
2.) Weight Lifting
3.) Hanging out with friends
Favorite Movie: Invincible
Favorite Food: Buffalo wings
Favorite Quote: “Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard” – Tim Tebow
What makes you the best Long Snapper in the country? I have a growth mindset which allows me to see effort as the path to mastery. I embrace challenges, persist in the face of setbacks, learn from criticism, and find lessons and inspiration in the success of others. I also have great work ethic, along with athleticism to be able to make plays down field.
What is one unique quality about you that not everyone might know? I have a strong will. I have the will to win and the desired to succeed.
Name: JC Everett 
School: Siloam Springs High School
Grad Year: 2014
Ht: 5’10”
Wt: 247
GPA: 3.4
SAT/ACT: 26
Top 5 College Choices:
1. Arkansas
2. Ole Miss
3. Duke
4. SMU
5. Florida
Hobbies:
1. Weight Lifting
2. Working on our farm
3. Outdoor sports (hunting, fishing, etc.)
What is your favorite movie? Elf
What is your favorite food? Italian
What is favorite motivational quote? Motivation: It is not strength but desire that moves us.
What makes you the best Long Snapper in the country? My work ethic and willingness to learn. Tell me to fix anything with my snapping and consider it done.
What is one unique quality about you that not everyone might know about? I have coached two 6th grade football teams in the past two years.
Name: Blake Ferguson 
School:
Buford High School
Grad Year: 2015
Ht: 6’3”
Wt: 230
GPA: 3.96
SAT/ACT: N/A
Top 5 College Choices:
1. LSU
2.Tennessee
3. Georgia
4. Oregon
5. Florida
Hobbies:
1. Video/Media Editing
2. Cooking
3. Weightlifting
What is your favorite movie? Braveheart
What is your favorite food? Seafood
What is favorite motivational quote? “”Success always looks easy to those who weren’t around when it was being earned.”
What makes you the best Long Snapper in the country? I believe that I am the best long snapper because I strive for excellence in everything that I do, which not only includes my long snapping abilities, but also my academic pursuits, character, and relationships with God and others.
What is one unique quality about you that not everyone might know about? I have Type 1 Diabetes. It has shown me that I have the inner drive to overcome any obstacle.
Name: Patrick Freeze 
School: Chesterton High School
Grad Year: 2014
Ht: 6’4″
Wt: 260
GPA: 2.35
SAT/ACT:
Top 5 College Choices:
1. Notre Dame
2. Western Michigan
3. USC
4. Alabama
5. Indiana State
Hobbies:
1. weightlifting
2. fishing
3. adventuring
What is your favorite movie? Remember the Titans
What is your favorite food? cinnamon rolls/donuts
What is favorite motivational quote? “Train insane or remain the same”
What makes you the best Long Snapper in the country? Size
What is one unique quality about you that not everyone might know about? I love working with the special ed kids at my school
Name: Jordan Frese
School: Keller High School
Grad Year:2014
Ht: 6″1
Wt: 200
GPA:
SAT/ACT: 1530(taking again soon)/ not taken yet
Top 5 College Choices:
1. USC
2. Houston
3. Ok St
4. San Diego St
5. A&M
Hobbies:
1. Snapping Balls
2. Getting Invited to Snapping Camps
3. Answering Questionnaire
Favorite Movie: Anchorman
Favorite Food: Beef
Favorite Quote: “If you ain’t first, you’re last”
What makes you the best Long Snapper in the country? I thrive under pressure.
What is one unique quality about you that not everyone might know? I have a very keen sense of humor.
Name: Garrett Frum 
School: Moorpark High School, CA
Grad Year: 2014
Ht:” 6’2
Wt: 230lbs
GPA:3.1
SAT/ACT: ACT:21 SAT: N/A
Top 5 College Choices:
1. Utah State
2. Cal Poly SLO
3. Fresno State
4. Oregon State
5. Washington
Hobbies:
1. Weight lifting
2. Hanging out with Friends
3. Referring youth football games
What is your favorite movie? The Pursuit of Happiness
What is your favorite Food? Steak
Favorite Quote: “Believe in yourself! Have faith in your abilities! Without a humble but reasonable confidence in your own powers you cannot be successful or happy.” -Norman Vincent Peale
Why I am the best Long Snapper in the country: What makes me the best long snapper in the country is my constant hunger to achieve greatness. I take pride in my work ethic on the field and in the classroom. In addition, I train (weight lifting and snapping) harder than any other snapper in the country.
Something people may not know about me: I made Marmonte League finals in shot put this year (2013). I dedicate two Saturday afternoons a month to the “Take 5” organization helping disabled children for the last two years.
Name: Justin Garza 
School: Carlsbad High School
Grad Year: 2014
Ht:” 5’11
Wt: 210lbs
GPA:3.67
SAT/ACT: 1560
Top 5 College Choices:
1. Ohio State
2. SDSU
3. Kansas State
4. ASU
5. Colorado
Hobbies:
1. Umpiring
2. Dirt Biking/Wake Boarding
3. Hiking
What is your favorite movie? Into the Wild
What is your favorite Food? Mexican/BBQ
Favorite Quote:
1. Win The Day
2.If you don’t fall your not trying hard enough
3. You can be a bad loser or you can be a good loser but your still a loser so don’t Lose
4. Live Life, Love Life, Live it Long
Why I am the best Long Snapper in the country: The qualities that make me the best long snapper in the world are my abilities to take directions and criticism and use them to my advantage. I’m the hardest working and dedicated player/student that you can find. I will never stop training and trying to improve in every aspect. I snap a very fast ball and my accuracy and consistency have improved greatly and is almost dialed in. I’m Extremely Athletic. That is what makes we the best long snapper in the country.
Something people may not know about me: I love photography and I’m also very good at it.
Name: Mitchell Jon Hardy 
School: Muskego High School, Muskego, WI
Grad Year: 2014
Ht: 6 ft 2 in
Wt: 245 lbs
GPA: 3.4
SAT/ACT: 20 (retaking June 8th, 2013 at Muskego High School)
Top 5 College Choices:
1. Wisconsin
2. Minnesota
3. Ball State
4. Illinois
5. Navy
Hobbies:
1. Watching Deadliest Catch
2. Hanging out with friends
3. Working on my 2000 Chevy Silverado
What is your favorite movie? Dodgeball, A True Underdog Story
What is your favorite food? Buffalo Chicken Wings
What is favorite motivational quote? Seven days without training makes a weak one
What makes you the best Long Snapper in the country? I feel that my drive and dedication to the craft is what makes me the best long snapper in the country. I am always working on my form and doing whatever I can to get bigger, stronger and faster.
What is one unique quality about you that not everyone might know about? I work at a Movie Theatre
Name: Nate Hawkins 
School: St. Thomas Aquinas High School, OH
Grad Year: 2014
Ht: 6’1″
Wt: 225
GPA: 3.43
ACT: Taking in June 2013
Top 5 College Choices
1. Notre Dame
2. Rutgers
3. Florida State
4. UCLA
5. Colorado State
Hobbies
1. Skiing
2. Golf (Links and Disc)
3. Lifting
Favorite Movie: Rudy
Favorite Food: Anything with my Mom’s pasta sauce, especially Ravioli.
Favorite Quote: “Find a way to win” – Msgr. Lewis Gaetano
Why I am the best Long Snapper in the country: I am determined to do my best. I will find every possible way to get better, and I strive to make every single snap better than the last.
Something people may not know about me: I like to watch professional cycling.
Name: Joe Lang 
School: Pullman High School
Grad Year: 2014
Ht:6’3″
Wt: 225 Lbs
GPA: 3.52
SAT/ACT: Signed up June 1st (SAT) and June 8th (ACT)
Top 5 College Choices:
1. Illinois
2. UW
3. WSU
4. Arizona
5. Montana St.
Hobbies:
1. Cooking
2. Golfing
3. Playing Cards
What is your favorite movie? My favorite movie is The Intouchables. (French movie)
What is your favorite food? My favorite food is teriyaki chicken with white rice.
What is favorite motivational quote? “If you always put limit on everything you do, physical or anything else. It will spread into your work and into your life. There are no limits. There are only plateaus, and you must not stay there you must go beyond them.” -Bruce Lee
What makes you the best Long Snapper in the country? My humility; it allows me to create standards for myself. Standards hold me and only me accountable for everything I do. My standards go above any goal I would ever set for myself. Being humble fuels my desire to always work towards the next level, and approach every task with relentless determination.
What is one unique quality about you that not everyone might know about? Through hardships I have encountered in my life, I have become altruistic, due to the need to put my family’s well being before my own.
Name: John Morrison 
School: Pace Academy (Atlanta, GA)
Grad Year: 2014
Ht: 5’11”
Wt: That’s not important (171)
GPA: 95
SAT/ACT: 2210/33
Top 5 College Choices:
1. Alabama
2. Cornell
3. Yale
4. Georgia
5. Harvard
Hobbies:
1. Any kind of exercise– hiking, lifting, etc.
2. Playing guitar
3. Seeing new places and doing new things
What is your favorite movie? Forrest Gump or Talladega Nights
What is your favorite food? Pizza, but it has to have good crust. The crust can make or break a pizza.
What is favorite motivational quote?
“It matters not how strait the gate, How charged with punishments the scroll, I am the master of my fate: I am the captain of my soul.” – from “Invictus” by William Ernest Henley
What makes you the best Long Snapper in the country? I have a drive to practice harder and more effectively than any other snapper in the country. Every day I make sure I am improving each aspect of my game, from my technique, to my physical fitness, to my mental readiness. When I finish high school, I want to be the most dependable long snapper in the country, and I do everything within my power to make that goal a reality. I also have the advantage of speed and mobility that makes me ideal for punt coverage.
Name: Kyle Murphy 
School: Ardrey Kell High School
Grad Year: 2014
Ht: 6′ 3”
Wt: 230
GPA: 3.4
SAT/ACT: 1550/23
Top 5 College Choices:
1. Ole Miss
2. Tennessee
3. Clemson
4. UNC
5. NC State
Hobbies (name only three please):
1. Working out
2. Fishing
3. Golf
What is your favorite movie? Sahara
What is your favorite food? Steak
What is favorite motivational quote? “Whether you think that you can, or that you can’t, you are usually right” -Henry Ford
What makes you the best Long Snapper in the country? Out working everybody else in the country , having goals and being driven towards them, and always being able to stay mentally in control.
What is one unique quality about you that not everyone might know about? I once hit a full court shot in a game and I also once threw a no hitter.
Name: Chris Nieto 
School: Segerstrom High School
Grad Year: 2014
Ht:” 6’4
Wt: 205
GPA: 3.2
SAT/ACT: N/A
Top 5 College Choices:
1. UCLA
2. Colorado
3. Notre Dame
4. San Diego State
5. USC
Hobbies (name only three please):
1. Basketball
2. Music
3. Video Games
What is your favorite movie? Remember the Titans
What is your favorite food? Steak
What is favorite motivational quote? What we do in life echos in Eternity.
What makes you the best Long Snapper in the country? I feel I am the best long snapper because I am calm and smooth with my approach. I also can get down field and make a play as well. I have been long snapping competitively since I was 9 years old in Pop Warner and now in High School. No situation rattles me. Snapping into the end zone or any situtation. I am always calm and collective.
What is one unique quality about you that not everyone might know about? A unique quality I have is I am also a 3 year varsity starter for my High School basketball team.
Name: Christian Samarzich 
School: Upland High School – Upland, California
Grad Year: 2014
Ht:” 6’2
Wt: 213
GPA: 3.2
SAT/ACT: June 1st taking for 1st time
Top 5 College Choices:
1. Nevada Reno
2. University of Southern California
3. Montana State
4. Colorado State
5. Portland State
Hobbies (name only three please):
1. Photography
2. Training and Working Out
3. Eating and sleeping
What is your favorite movie? tie–The Dark Knight and Step Brothers
What is your favorite food? Sushi and Pizza
What is favorite motivational quote? It ain’t how hard you hit; it’s about how hard you can get hit, and keep moving forward. How much you can take, and keep moving forward. That’s how winning is done. ROCKY
What makes you the best Long Snapper in the country? The 3 D’s — my Desire, Drive and Dedication
What is one unique quality about you that not everyone might know about? I have a new car and don’t have a drivers license yet.
Name: Wyatt Tucker Smith
School: Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College
Grad Year: December, 2013
Ht: 6’3″
Wt: 234lbs
GPA: 3.16
ACT: 21
Top 5 College Choices:
1. Baylor
2. Oregon
3. Georgia
4. Ole Miss
5. Washington
Hobbies (name only three please):
1. Water Sports
2. Basketball
3. Playing Guitar
What is your favorite movie? Good Will Hunting
What is your favorite food? Pasta of any kind.
What is favorite motivational quote? “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act, but a habit.” – Aristotle
What makes you the best Long Snapper in the country? My combination of size and athletic ability is as good as any in the country. The fact that i am never completely satisfied also fuels me. I strive every day to improve in football and life.
What is one unique quality about you that not everyone might know about? I plan to major in Education and Coaching in order to help kids get on the right track out of high school, and surround students with positive influences on and off of the football field.
Name: Tom Sullivan 
School: Wheaton Warrenville South High School
Grad Year: 2014
Ht: 6’0″
Wt: 225lbs
GPA: 4.8
ACT: 30
Top 5 College Choices:
1. Boston College
2. Duke
3. Northwestern
4. Cal
5. Penn
Hobbies (name only three please):
1. Magic Tricks
2. Golf
3. Lifting Weights
What is your favorite movie? School of Rock
What is your favorite food? Wings
What is favorite motivational quote? “Today I will do what others won’t, so tomorrow I can accomplish what others can’t”- Jerry Rice
What makes you the best Long Snapper in the country? I am confident, and want to win more than anyone else. I accept nothing but perfection, and will do anything to get to it. I am not afraid of any one on one challenge to prove I am the best.
What is one unique quality about you that not everyone might know about? I’m a sucker for Disney musicals.
Name: Adam Vaught
School: Blacksburg High School, Blacksburg, VA
Grad Year: 2014
Ht:” 6’7
Wt: 240 lbs
GPA: 2.7
SAT/ACT: 1320
Top 5 College Choices:
1. Ole Miss
2. NC State
3. South Carolina
4. Elon
5. Tennessee Tech
Hobbies:
- Following college and professional football
- Basketball
- Water Sports
What is your favorite movie? Forrest Gump
What is your favorite food? Grandma’s Apple Pie
What is favorite motivational quote? “When writing your life story, don’t let somebody else hold the pen”-Anonymous
What makes you the best Long Snapper in the country? I believe I am the best long snapper in the country because I understand how important the role of long snapper is to a football team. I know that hard work and determination is the only way to succeed. I do not believe I am a perfect long snapper, because perfection means I can never get better. I am the best long snapper in the country because I am not perfect, but I will never stop trying to be.
What is one unique quality about you that not everyone might know about? I have a great sense of humor and love to laugh.
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