Cole Tracy's incredible ride as LSU's kicker nearing an end

BATON ROUGE, La. — Saturday will be Cole Tracy’s second senior night.

Of course, it’ll be his first in Tiger Stadium — in just his seventh game and final game in one of college football’s most storied venues, where he has helped rewrite record books in his short tenure as a Tiger.

Tracy, who enters this weekend’s tilt against Rice leading all active placekickers with 90 career field goals, has drilled 22 as a member of the LSU Football team. Some have been bigger than others. For instance, the 42-yard game-winner to lift the Tigers past Auburn at Jordan-Hare in September not only vaulted the program into the College Football Playoff picture, but marked the first walk-off field goal in regular in program history. The nine made field goals he connected on during the Georgia and Mississippi State victories in October were the most by an LSU kicker in a two-game span. The five field goals and combined 18 points against the Bulldogs, then the No. 2-ranked team in the country, were crucial to LSU’s most signature victory of the season and one of the most memorable games in Tiger Stadium in recent memory.

The graduate transfer from Assumption, who snuck his way into LSU’s 2018 signing class last December, has two more games to continue to add to his place in the school’s record books. While his time in Baton Rouge has been noticeably abbreviated, his impact on this football team has been colossal. Naturally, that sets the stage for a rather reflective evening come senior night.

“I knew it was going to go by fast. It’s something I’ve been telling myself all year — to soak up every practice, every experience, every opportunity because it’s going to go by quick,” Tracy said. “You’re in training camp and the next thing you know is you’re in senior day. I’ve been able to soak up some moments, but it’s bittersweet. I’ve had so much fun the past few weeks and months, but unfortunately, this whole dream and this experience is kind of coming to an end. It’s been incredible.

“You can’t really write this whole story any better. I was hoping to get a smaller Division I offer when I got my release (from Assumption). I’m talking anything that was Division I. I didn’t care if it was Division I-AA. To be playing in the SEC … and not just be on the team, but I wanted to contribute … to see it all end is interesting, but I’m happy to have been a part of it.”

Tracy’s wish came true. He’s not just another jersey coming out of the tunnel; he’s the SEC’s leading placekicker and ranks No. 2 in field goals nationally.

Tracy is a Lou Groza Award semifinalist, having split the uprights 22-of-25 times — good for third-most in school history in a single season — with a perfect 27-for-27 mark on PATs, good for nearly 35 percent of LSU’s total scoring this season.

The kicker is not just a staple on the box score, but a welcomed presence in the locker room.

“Even though I haven’t been here for four or five years, it’s a reflection on my career and my time here,” Tracy said. “The team has really embraced me as if I’ve been here for five years. I was thinking about it in the weight room — how well I’ve been able to jell with the guys and how they’ve been able to jell with me. To be honest, I wasn’t sure if it was going to be as easy as it was. It’s been something I didn’t really expect.”

The last time Tracy stepped out onto the field for a senior night was just a year ago in Worcester, Mass. The 9-0 Assumption Greyhounds watched as their undefeated campaign unraveled in front of them in a 35-31 loss at the hands of visiting Bentley.

The weather was frigid, colder than LSU’s previous road trip to Arkansas, where temperatures dropped to the upper 30s for kickoff. Assumption, who was resting key players for the upcoming playoff run, wasn’t “overconfident,” Tracy says. Rather, the team couldn’t get mentally psyched for the contest.

“It was a painful one,” Tracy remembers after losing 35-31.

On Saturday, he’ll get a second crack at senior night against Rice, who carries a 1-8 mark into Tiger Stadium as he and 17 other LSU senior are honored at 6:08 p.m. kickoff. Tracy will be one of two graduate transfers included in the pre-game ceremonies along with defensive back Terrence Alexander.

The NCAA’s grad transfer rule gave Tracy not only tacked on another season to his career, but provided the decorated placekicker an opportunity to play on a bigger stage with higher stakes and continue to build up his legacy. Tracy counted the 12 members of the media surrounding him and compared it to the one local newswoman in Western Massachusetts who covered the Greyhounds before offering up an endorsement of the transfer rules.

“It’s a great rule and I love it,” he said. “I feel like it allows people to explore different opportunities … To think about the memories I’ve had the past few weeks, it allows us for another opportunity. It doesn’t have to be from Division II to Division I; you could from the SEC to the Big Ten. It opens up different opportunities and rewards the students who put in the time and got their degrees to go on a different path for whatever reason that is.”

When Tracy steps onto the field Saturday night, it’ll be his final game kicking in Tiger Stadium and a moment he is constantly reminding himself to soak in throughout the week.

It also opens the door for a new placekicker to step in for LSU in 2019. Whether that’s going to be rising junior Connor Culp, who drilled 11-of-16 field goals a year ago for this team, or soon-to-be freshman Cade York, one of the 20 pieces in the Tigers’ current recruiting class, remains to be seen.

Over the past six months, Culp, LSU’s former kicker, has be a friend and — to a degree — an understudy to Tracy. In and out of the special teams room, their friendship has blossomed. Naturally, Culp’s future has been a topic of discussion. Tracy may be three games away from passing the torch back to Culp, and he has no qualms with that.

“Him and I are really good friends, and something that came up was how he’s going to approach next year,” Tracy said. “He’s going to be able to do a great job. He’s been able to mature since I met him in June. He’s grown as a kicker and as a person, and I think he’ll be able to do really well. He can hit the ball from 60 yards. I didn’t have to reach him anything about kicking, but you’ll see a different approach from some new thoughts and ways I go about it. We’ve been able to feed off each other, and us being together the past six months has helped both of us. I think he’ll approach next year in a new, fresh way that’ll lead to a lot of success.”