Ooltewah place-kicker Laszlo Toser, left, and cheerleader Haley Turner will participate in the TACA East-West All-Star football game at Tennessee Tech on Dec. 12.
photo by Larry Fleming
Ooltewah place-kicker Laszlo Toser and cheerleader Haley Turner, both seniors, will participate in the 2014 East-West All-Star football game at Tennessee Tech University on Dec. 12.
Toser, the Owls’ record-setting kicker who is a Mr. Football finalist, will report on Tuesday night for practices leading up to the eighth annual game promoted by the Tennessee Athletic Coaches Association.
The game will be played at TTU’s Tucker Stadium. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.
CST.
“This is a real honor,” Toser said Tuesday. “I worked hard in the offseason and playing in the all-star game could help with my recruiting. I think the all-star game is a major plus for exposure.”
Toser, who made an unofficial visit to Alabama to watch the top-ranked Crimson Tide defeat Western Carolina last weekend, has been contacted by Mississippi State, Tennessee, East Tennessee State, Tennessee Tech and Tennessee Tech will visit him after Thanksgiving.
Owls coach Mac Bryan fully expects a few more Ohio Valley Conference and Southern Conference schools to show interest in Toser once the 2014 season concludes.
“Those schools may sign a kicker that SEC schools would want to walk on,” he said. “I’ve seen smaller schools steal really good kickers that way.”
Toser, who has worked extensively with former Tennessee place-kicker James Wilhoit, had a superlative senior season that was highlighted by a school record 52-yard field goal against Bradley Central. He was selected as the Kohl’s Kicking Camp national kicker of the week.
He kicked 15-of-19 field goals, 53-of-54 extra points and consistently put kickoffs into or through the end zone.
Toser helped the Owls (11-1) reach the TSSAA Class 5-A playoff quarterfinals, where they lost to Rhea County, 40-14. The Golden Eagles (13-0) host Knoxville West (12-1) in the semifinals on Friday.
The Mr. Football winners will be announced on Monday at a ceremony in Murfreesboro. Toser, Franklin’s Corey Fatony and Columbia Academy’s Thomas Garrison are the three finalists.
Turner has been cheerleading since age 12 and transferred to Ooltewah from Grace Academy her junior year.
She will report to Tennessee Tech on Thursday, practice several times on Friday and be on the sidelines that night for the all-star game.
Turner was informed last weekend at a tryout in Murfreesboro, at which time an 18-member squad was chosen from 30 applicants. At the end of those tryouts, Turner was told she had made the East cheer squad.
“I feel honored to make the team,” Turner said. “It’s pretty cool. I believe I’m the only cheerleader from Chattanooga on the team.”
Turner hopes to cheer in college at Ole Miss. She will attend tryouts in May.
(E-mail Larry Fleming at larryfleming44@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter @larryfleming44)