\u00a0<\/p>\n
That will help cover his four-year tuition.<\/p>\n
A Vanderbilt student nailed a 33-year-old field goal live on ESPN on Saturday, earning himself a $500,000 payday and some high-fives from the roaring crowd.<\/p>\n
Tyler Hwang beat out 300 other students and was selected for the kick on College GameDay,\u00a0hours before #10 ranked Vandy beat the #15 Missouri Tigers, 17-10. Hwang, as co-host Kirk Herbstreit\u00a0held the ball in place, charged forward and smoked the ball between the goalposts, with the ball leaning slightly to the left as it sailed through.<\/p>\n
He then let out some \u201cWooos,\u201d did a golf celebration, and ran around celebrating with the crowd.<\/p>\n
\u201cTake the lap, kid!\u201d co-host Pat McAfee urged\u00a0him, before jumping up and bumping sides with Hwang.<\/p>\n
Herbstreit later guessed that Hwang\u2019s kick was so powerful it would have easily been good from 50 yards out \u2014 which is a pretty damn impressive kick, even by pro standards.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat was the best kick we\u2019ve ever had!\u201d Herbstreit told Hwang in a post-kick interview.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve done it a few times before, [so] knew I could do [it],\u201d Hwang told The Vanderbilt Hustler afterwards. \u201cSame as every old kick. Didn\u2019t process what was going on in the moment until after it was all done. Honestly, just super grateful for the opportunity.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hwang gets $500,000, and another $250,000 goes to charity.<\/p>\n
The weekly kick \u2014 which is a key segment for McAfee, a former pro kicker \u2014 is becoming a near 50-50 proposition at this point. Hwang was the fourth student to hit the kick this season, after Logan Pallo made his<\/a> at Ohio State University in Week 1, Jack Daugard made his at Oklahoma in Week 2, and Carson Albright made the kick at Penn State University in Week 5. Maybe ESPN will move the kick back in 2026?<\/p>\n