The SEC was slammed on Twitter after naming the first female to play in a Power Five college football game as its co-player of the week.
“The SEC named Vandy’s Sarah Fuller co-special teams player of the week for her one 30 yard kickoff. Good lord. This is all such a sham. According to Vandy her ‘perfectly executed kick sailed 30 yards,’” OutKick’s Clay Travis tweeted.
The SEC named Vandy’s Sarah Fuller co-special teams player of the week for her one 30 yard kickoff. Good lord. This is all such a sham. According to Vandy her “perfectly executed kick sailed 30 yards.” pic.twitter.com/zFp03x7DRL
— Clay Travis (@ClayTravis) November 30, 2020
The football conference bestowed Sarah Fuller the title on Monday after she kicked a 30-yard “squib kick” during the second half of the game on Saturday against Missouri, which ended in a 41-0 loss for Vanderbilt. Fuller is a goalkeeper for Vanderbilt’s women’s soccer team but is also a fill-in kicker for the school’s football team.
“Fuller made history Saturday, becoming the first woman ever to officially take the field during a football game in a major conference football game,” the SEC said Monday.
Others joined Travis in lambasting the award as a “participation trophy.”
Sarah Fuller being named co-SEC Player of the Week is simply patronizing. She kicked off in the second half. Wonderful she’s on the team. Bestowing this honor is ridiculous. Makes it a participation trophy. That’s an insult to a competitor.
— Dave Cokin (@davecokin) December 1, 2020
What’s the most disgusting about this is it’s being “celebrated” (more like weaponized) by the same people who are ruining women sports—yet if we fail to celebrate this mediocre accomplishment we hate women. https://t.co/itAM7kbUOQ
— Lyndsey Fifield (@lyndseyfifield) December 1, 2020
I’m a woman. I want a participation trophy for being born. #SarahFuller
— Lisa Boothe (@LisaMarieBoothe) November 30, 2020
Additionally, OutKick ran a headline reading, “Vanderbilt’s Sarah Fuller Publicity Stunt Included A Halftime Speech.”
“If you were on the fence about whether Vanderbilt using soccer goalie Sarah Fuller as a fill-in kicker for Saturday’s game against Missouri was a publicity stunt or a necessity, you got your answer on Sunday when it was announced that Fuller had given a halftime speech to her new teammates. Keep in mind, Fuller hadn’t yet stepped foot on the field for her kickoff before giving this speech,” the piece stated.
Other outlets and many in the sports world, however, have lauded Fuller’s performance and award, saying she is an “inspiration.”
“I just want to tell all the girls out there that you can do anything you set your mind to, you really can. And if you have that mentality all the way through, you can do big things.”
Sarah Fuller is an inspiration ? pic.twitter.com/rUi1hJYap9
— SEC Network (@SECNetwork) November 28, 2020
The news comes after Vanderbilt fired its head coach, Derek Mason, after the team’s 41-0 loss on Sunday during Fuller’s debut.
