Shelbylynne Osborne of Lafayette, Indiana made history this past week when she signed her letter of intent to play for NAIA school Campbellsville. Osborne will be the first female to play college football in a position other than a kicker. As a defensive back, Osborne will be out on the field getting physical with the men.
via USA Today:
Osborne, who played sparingly at cornerback her senior year and wanted to continue, contacted schools around the country with no luck.
Then she attended an open recruiting visit at NAIA Campbellsville in Kentucky. Osborne’s recruitment took off from there, and on Wednesday the 5-foot-6, 140-pound prospect signed with Campbellsville. When she joins the team, Osborne will become college football’s first female defensive back — most all women who came before her were kickers.
“She can get through the rigor of the running and conditioning part of it,” coach Lonnie Oldham said. “I don’t know how she’ll do physically — like taking hits and stuff. But being a defensive back, it’s kind of like Deion Sanders. You can choose to hit or not hit. She’s got to make business decisions.”
