A Mother's Love & Passion for Teaching Helps During Pandemic

[Viktor]

The weekend of the 2019 NFL Draft, it was Austin who traveled home to Texas.


True to his reserved nature, he hadn't said much to his mom about the potential of being drafted. He didn't know if Air Force requirements would even allow him to play football before serving. And additionally, it's not often that the special teams position is tabbed during the draft; in fact, the first pure long snapper to be drafted was John Schmitt, a sixth-round selection by Seattle in 2008.


"He also knows I love social media, so he'd be afraid I would post something," quipped Lisa.


She started to wonder when Austin, who tended to lay low on his weekends home, told his parents he'd like to invite a few friends over. Then, he asked Lisa to order food. Oh, and his brothers also planned to come home.


"So then he had said, 'Yes, there's a possibility,' " Lisa recalled. "So we all just waited."


And waited. And waited.


Austin's family and friends watched each and every draft pick. Just before the 250th overall spot (out of 254), Austin received the news he'd been waiting for from retiring Vikings Legend Scott Studwell.


"Once he got the call, I think it was more shock than anything," Lisa said. "Finally we realized, 'All right, this is it.' "


At that point, the family pivoted from the television – they didn't watch the final four selections – to finding a way to celebrate. Initially not sure what the occasion called for, they ended up heading to a local mall and perusing the sporting goods stores.


It took some mining through Cowboys gear, but they eventually located and purchased matching Vikings hats.