Sacramento State kicker Edgar Castaneda given scholarship after game-winning kick

Sacramento State stunned Colorado on Saturday with a 30-28 upset, and it could not have done it without kicker Edgar Castaneda. The transfer from City College of San Francisco connected on all three of his field-goal attempts, including a game-winning 30-yarder as time expired in the fourth quarter. He also got the Hornets to within striking distance with a 30-yarder earlier in the fourth.

After the game, Castaneda was given the highest possible honor when Sacramento State head coach Marshall Sperbeck awarded the walk-on a full scholarship.

“I was relaxed; it was just another kick,” Castaneda said, according to Dr. Saturday. “I was calm.”

If ever there was a player who is deserving of earning a scholarship, it has to be the guy who rose up under pressure and led his FCS team to a win over a Pac-12 opponent. Going 3-for-3 and hitting a field goal with no time remaining on the clock is no easy task. In an era in which guys burn their scholarship offers when they have better options available, I’m sure Castaneda feels like the luckiest man alive.

Photo credit: Ron Chenoy-US PRESSWIRE