Boilermaker Feature
Being Unknown Suits Schmitt Just Fine
By Matthew Staudt
Note: This feature ran in the Purdue football gameday program on Sept. 27 for the Boilermakers' game against Iowa.
As the saying goes, "If you know the long snapper's name, he probably did something wrong." If that's the case, you probably don't know Jesse Schmitt, despite the fact he is a four-year starter and hasn't missed a play at his position.
Schmitt doesn't mind his place in anonymity though. He doesn't yearn for television time or interviews. He simply enjoys playing the sport that he loves, whether he is a household name or not. That's the way he was raised and the way he learned the game.
Schmitt's father, Karl, was a long snapper in the early 1970s at Morehead State University. His grandfather started the Southern Independent Officials Association, and his uncle was the referee that ran out with Boston College quarterback Doug Flutie on the infamous "Hail Mary" play in 1984. With his family ties, Schmitt grew up around the game and learned to love it for what it is, not for any kind of fame or glamour.
And that is how he has always played.
In fifth grade, Schmitt decided to follow in his dad's footsteps and try long snapping as a way to simply get on the field. It may not be the Bob Griese-Brian Griese father-son quarterback legacy that fans are used to, but a long snapping legacy is definitely real, according to Schmitt.
"My dad told me it was a way for me to get on the field at a young age," Schmitt says. "I knew it was something he did in college, so I thought it could be fun. The coaches asked who wanted to long snap, and I volunteered. It helped me get on the field when I was young, and now it has gotten me this far."
After numerous long-snapping camps in high school, Schmitt was touted as the nation's No. 1 long-snapping prospect and wound up at Purdue on a scholarship. He has been an integral part to Purdue's special teams' success over the past four years. He has been a part of three of the 10 longest field goals in school history, helped Purdue finish second in the nation in net punting in 2013 and ranked second individually in the Big Ten last year with two fumble recoveries.
Not bad for a guy you probably have never heard of.
"I kind of like being a guy that no one knows," Schmitt says. "I'm not much of a person who likes to be in the spotlight. I would kind of rather be a guy that no one knows about. I don't need to score all the touchdowns or make all the headlines. I just want to go out there and snap the ball seven or 15 yards."
While his on-field work has set him up for the potential opportunity to make an NFL roster next season, Schmitt isn't consumed with making it to the next level. He will train and put in all the essential work, but if a professional football career doesn't pan out, he may follow in another of his dad's behind-the-scenes legacies.
"My dad was a sports information director at the University of Miami, and I could see myself doing that," Schmitt says. "I worked in Purdue's athletics communications office over the summer, and I could see myself doing that … anything to try to stay around football and athletics."
In the meantime, Schmitt will keep working hard to help the Boilermakers, not taking a single snap, or play, off in order to ensure that he doesn't become a household name.