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Prep Football: Titans’ long snapper Kirkegaard commits to Air Force

Poway High senior long snapper Conner Kirkegaard.
( / Sherri Dunlap)
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Batting cages in backyards of high schoolers are not too uncommon. But Conner Kirkegaard has something outside of his house you don’t hear about often: a long-snapping cage.

The Poway High senior football player made his own long-snapping cage out of batting-cage materials. It has netting, turf on the ground and squares to represent the hips and chest of a punter.

“I have been snapping into it since freshman year,” said the 5-foot-11, 195-pound Kirkegaard, who is considered to be on the smaller side for the position.

The cage and all of Kirkegaard’s hard work paid off last week, when he committed to Air Force. Kirkegaard was also offered a full scholarship from Portland State and had thoughts of playing in the Pac-12 Conference, but Air Force gets him closer to achieving his dream of becoming a pararescue jumper.

“Air Force gives me a solid future right after I graduate and I get to serve my country,” said Kirkegaard, who is rated among the top 15 long snappers in the nation by Rubio Long Snapping. “It is a great school and it will change my life.”

Air Force is in Colorado Springs, Colorado and plays in the Mountain West Conference with San Diego State. Kirkegaard said he will redshirt his first season since he will be in the prep academy. But he hopes to start his second year.

Kirkegaard, who was called up to the varsity team as a freshman during the playoffs and has been there ever since, says he got the itch to be a long snapper at a football camp when he was younger. It also helped that he had a cousin who was a long snapper for one year at Idaho.

“I was pretty good at it when I was little and my cousin, Christopher Kirkegaard, received a scholarship to Idaho for doing it,” Conner said. “Long snapping is something that I have enjoyed doing for a long time and I look forward to doing it in college.”

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