Seminoles Reward Walk-On With Hard-Earned Scholarship

Chris Revell is not likely a name you're familiar with. In fact, as the team's new holder, it's probably better if you don't hear his name mentioned again this year. Typically when holders or long-snappers come up during games, it's not for good reasons...

But Revell is also the kind of kid that deserves recognition. He's someone who many would point to as all that is right with student athletes. Chris Revell will never be a star or a standout, he isn't destined for the NFL, but that doesn't mean he isn't one of the hardest working guys on the Seminoles team.

A graduate of Tallahassee's Chiles High School, Revell was invited to walk-on to Florida State's football team and challenged for a job as the long-snapper, playing in two games as a freshman before suffering a season-ending injury against BYU that plagued him through last season as well. 

That didn't deter Revell.

"All that kid did every day to be able to be on this football team was work 40 hours a week, sometimes more, go to football practice, lift, do all those things, and go to school, and keep your GPA up," Fisher said. "He'd walk in with bags under his eyes and he wouldn't quit." 

With some of the roster turnover lately, Florida State had an extra scholarship available. It wasn't a tough decision for Jimbo Fisher to decide to give it to the dedicated junior special teamer.

"Every day he's over their holding, he's developed into a holder for Dustin [Hopkins], he can long-snap," Fisher added. "You reward guys who make sacrafices and want to be part of something and not acted like its given to them or they're owed something."

"It's fortunate the situation came up to give it to him, [and] I'm fortunate that you can give it to a guy like that."

After three years of teaming with punter Shawn Powell (now a Buffalo Bill), Groza candidate Dustin Hopkins admits it's going to be difficult to work with a new holder. His rapport with Powell was good and Hopkins acknowledged the punter's ability to salvage bad snaps and still make good holds.

"That being said, Revell is really good too. I've worked with him, when Shawn was hurt he held for me in the spring, and also this past spring," said Hopkins. "So two springs in a row and I'm really confident in his abilities too. We used to room together so he's a great friend, I trust him. I think that's the biggest thing is establishing that trust between kicker and holder. And it's there."

Now Revell can tell his kids he was on scholarship to play football at Florida State. And while holders are hardly the most romanticized of players in the game, you'd be hard-pressed to find another one in the country who works harder.

As Jimbo Fisher puts it:

"He's just a tremendous, I mean tremendous young man."

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