Pontotoc K Taylor Hughes weighing options, history, following Ole Miss camp

Two years ago, life was so much different for Pontotoc K Taylor Hughes.

The head coach of the football team, Jeff Carter had a son, Jacob, who was wrapping up his final year of high school eligibility. There was a decent sized hole left at both quarterback and kicker following his departure.

"They knew I played soccer, and could kick a soccer ball pretty far, so they invited me to practice one day. I kicked a few, and didn’t miss any," Hughes said about how all of this came about, in an interview with RebelGrove.com on Saturday.

"After that, I was the kicker. I never thought about playing quarterback," she said with a grin on her face.

At Pontotoc, the adjustment was rather quick, and there wasn't much public backlash from having her on the team. She was re-introduced to that "elephant in the room" scenario on Saturday at the Manning Center.

"It was okay for the most part. Everyone knows who I am, and knows what is going on," Hughes said about the town of Pontotoc's reaction to her addition to the team. "It was no secret that after I practiced with them, that I was going to be the kicker going forward. "

Fast forward to Saturday afternoon. Dozens of specialists from all over the country had traveled to compete for the chance to impress the Ole Miss coaches. The look on some of their faces when they saw Hughes with a jersey on said it all.

"There was definitely an adjustment period when we first got out there after the meeting and everything," Hughes said. "Nobody was talking to me. It was really awkward, to be honest. I had an Ole Miss soccer shirt on, so the rest of the kickers were probably thinking that I wasn't supposed to be there. Then, once they saw me kick the ball a couple of times, they came up to me, told me I was good, and it wasn't too bad after that."

Hughes had effectively kicked the elephant out, both of the ball, and the room.

"I thought after that, I did pretty well. I feel like I could have done better, though," she said about her performance in the specialist camp. Her performance caught the eye of Chris Rippon, an off-the-field member of the Ole Miss football staff.

"He told me that if I was seriously interested in walking on, he would see about making it happen. He talked about there only being 120 roster spots, and that he would try his best to get an additional spot for me, a girl," Hughes said about her conversation with Rippon. "The board or whoever assigns the University their number of roster spots would have to yes/no it and they may not want to show special treatment just cause I’m a girl. It's really a lot to think about. He told me that I had a fantastic leg, and that he saw some real potential in me as a kicker."

After talking to some program insiders, it seems that this could in-fact be a feasible accomplishment. Sources around the Ole Miss program remain adamant that they would go to bat for Hughes, were she to want to walk on, but that the procedure may not be as simple as putting her on the 120-limit roster.

Per source: "Would we like to have her on the team? Of course we would. Let’s not act like she embarrassed herself out there," the source said about Hughes’ performance. “She showed that she belonged in this environment.”

Hughes doesn't just play football, though. At Pontotoc she was also at one time the starting centre back on the soccer team, before switching to playing exclusively at the club level. She seems prepared either way, for what the next step could be.

"I'm being recruited by Northeast C.C. and Ole Miss right now for football," Hughes stated. "I've been trying to get in touch with the staff at Itawamba C.C. too, because I talk to the soccer coaches there already. They're recruiting me to play for them, so I'm hoping the football team starts."

For strictly soccer, Alabama, Ole Miss, and Florida State have all shown interest, thus far. Playing both soccer and football at the division one level would be both exhausting and record-breaking, but Hughes doesn't back down.

"Of course I am hopeful that I can make it happen," she said about the chance to play both sports in college. "At the same time though, I have conditioned myself to know, that if it doesn't work out, I'll always have soccer.”

In the state of Mississippi, JUCO's have a way of completely reshaping athletes careers. Yes, there are junior colleges that are recruiting her to play football. If that was the avenue she chose to take, resurfacing at a school like Ole Miss could still happen.

"I know there is a girl who signed with a D2 school, but I would really really love to be the first to be on an SEC team," she said about the chance to be able to make history. "I'd be nervous. Really nervous."

How would Hughes be able to handle the pressure that would (inevitably) come with being a female kicker in the SEC?

“I honestly don’t know how I would handle it. It’d be awesome, but I know there’d be a lot of hate to go along with it. A lot of people would have a problem with it, just because I am a girl," she said about the reaction from people around the country. "I’d be a national story. It’d be something I would definitely love to be a part of, but at the same time, I don’t know how I would handle it. I feel like it would be hard not to let the hate get to me. I’m still a girl, and to be honest, sometimes it bothers me. "

One thing is certain. Whether she kicks a football or a round ball at the next level, and whether it is in Oxford or elsewhere, Taylor has set a precedent at Pontotoc High, and she has become an inspiration for others that won’t soon be forgotten.

“I have had a few girls come up to me and tell me that they are going to try out for the team after I graduate.”