[URL=”https://twitter.com/search?q=%23cantgetbetter”][QUOTE]Greatest day of my life [/QUOTE][/URL][QUOTE][URL=”https://twitter.com/search?q=%23cantgetbetter”]#cantgetbetter[/URL][/QUOTE]That tweet says it all from the newest edition to the Kentucky Wildcats, Highlands receiver Austin Sheehan. (Follow [URL=”https://twitter.com/OzzySheehan6″]Austin on Twitter[/URL], too.)
“It’s a dream come true. I’m excited to finally be a Kentucky Wildcat,” an ecstatic Sheehan said by phone Saturday. “I’ve always been a Kentucky fan.”
After an exceptional camp Friday night in Lexington, the 5-foot-11 receiver accepted a preferred walk-on roster spot on Kentucky’s football team.
“I thought the camp went very well. I really proved myself.”
Sheehan posted a “slow” 40-yard dash time for his standards, as he clocked in with a 4.6; he also put up a 4.19 shuttle run and a vertical of 36 inches, a personal best for him.
But Sheehan believes the drills were what assisted him in getting noticed by receivers coach Tee Martin.
“Coach (Tee) Martin really noticed my footwork in the drills, and he liked what he saw,” he said.
In fact, Martin compared Sheehan to another notable player in Dickie Lyons, Jr.
“Coach Martin remembered me from some visits and other camps,” he began. “Then he told me I reminded him of Dickie Lyons, Jr. because of my quickness. It’s just exciting to be compared to someone like that.”
Sheehan said that he was conversing with his uncle, who accompanied him to camp, about his performance halfway through the session.
“I asked Coach (Chuck) Smith what he thought about my performance and he told me to go talk to Coach Martin.”
“Coach Martin said I was doing a great job and he was impressed,” he said. “I asked him, ‘Coach, what do I have to do to be a Wildcat?'”
It was then that Tee Martin and Joker Phillips offered the wing-mate of Patrick Towles a walk-on roster spot, and just for that, Sheehan is truly grateful.
“It’s a dream come true. I’m excited to be a Wildcat. It’s something I’ve always wanted.”
Sheehan grew up a UK fan and described himself as a fan “at birth.” His whole family is comprised of ‘Cats fans, so the apple apparently didn’t fall far from the tree, right?
“It’s not far from home, either. My family will be able to come watch me play, and the atmosphere is just amazing.
Sheehan also elaborated on some fond memories he had as a youngster and being involved at Kentucky games. His most memorable events were participating in the Cat Walk and getting player to sign his football as a boy.
“I always loved getting to meet the players I looked up to. I grew up wanting to be a Kentucky football player, and now I’m going to be signing the footballs for other little kids.”
After returning home from camp, Sheehan, his uncle, and his father stayed up till 4 A.M. talking about about the decision and opportunities that could await Austin in the future.
“If I get more offers, I will look into it, but in the end, I want to be a Kentucky Wildcat.”
Sheehan was also receiving interest from Butler, Morehead State, Ball State, Toledo, and Eastern Kentucky, who told Sheehan he was the best player at the camp Friday night.
“Eastern Kentucky told me that before I talked to Coach Martin, so I was already ecstatic. When I got offered to walk on, that just raised the bar!”
An eventual scholarship is not out of the question for Sheehan, but right now he will work and show his true love for the game, as well as his reaching for his aspiring dream of being a Kentucky Wildcat.
