Punter, pg. 85 Pittsburgh in January to enroll early and get a head start on preparing for the season. One thing he didn’t prepare well enough for, though, was making his bed at Sutherland Hall. That’s when having a particularly well-off friend in the area came in handy. “The first night I got here, I didn’t have any sheets or bedding or anything, so I slept on just a plain mattress with a jacket. So then the next day I sent [Jordan Berry] a text, I was like, ‘Jordan, please take me to get some sheets. I’m freezing,’” Christodoulou said. “So we went to Walmart and Target and bought some pillows and stuff so at least I’m a bit more comfy.” Christodoulou has adjusted to life as a first-year student thanks to an assist from Berry, but he still says it’s a bit weird living in Sutherland. “I didn’t feel that old, but everyone thinks being 20 and a freshman is such a big deal,” Christodoulou said. “A lot of the other Prokick boys, like Wade Lees at Maryland and Dane Roy at Houston, they’re like 28-year-old freshmen. So I thought coming in at 20, I wouldn’t cop it too much, but everyone finds it still pretty bizarre. But that’s alright.” Once he got settled in as a college student with proper bedding, it was time for Christodoulou to find out how to prepare for his first season of college football. That’s where he benefited from having another friend to look up to — Pitt’s senior punter Ryan Winslow. “To be honest, I didn’t even know what was really going on at the start,” Christodoulou said. “I had to sort of ghost Winslow around all day, sort of follow him around because he’s been through it before, so it’s great to have him as someone to follow and learn from, because otherwise I would have been thrown into the deep end a little bit.” Winslow was happy to oblige and take Christodoulou under his wing, even though he knew he would have to compete with him for his starting spot. “He didn’t realize that [Pitt head coach Pat] Narduzzi stood next to us every time we punted, so he said his heart was beating pretty fast that first day ...” Winslow said. “It’s always good to have competition. I feel like it elevates both levels of our game.”
pittnews.com
After getting in 14 spring practices to shake off the nerves, Christodoulou put on a navy blue Panthers jersey and ran out the tunnel onto Heinz Field for the first time at Pitt’s Blue-Gold Game April 15. Competing for the Blue team while Winslow punted for the Gold, Christodoulou averaged 39 yards per punt on six attempts with a long of 49 yards. Winslow, meanwhile, kept his hold on the starting job by averaging 42 yards on five punts with a long of 50 yards. Still, Christodoulou showed that he’s not far behind the senior, who already has three full seasons of
punting experience with the Panthers.
Waiting his turn Barring an injury, Winslow will remain the team’s starting punter throughout his senior season, allowing Christodoulou to take a redshirt year and still have four years of eligibility remaining. After a full year with Powell and Narduzzi at Pitt, Christodoulou should be all souped up and ready to go for the 2018 season and beyond. “People assume that just because a kid’s
August 21, 2017
a kicker or a punter, they should be able to do it early. There’s a lot more to it than just kick the ball,” Powell said. “So, we’d like to let him get the teaching, get the experience, get the training, but not have to perform his first year in the program.” For now, Christodoulou will continue to observe Winslow and find out what it takes to make it through a full college football season while trying to meet the requirements of transferring into the Swanson School of Engineering. And once he does make it onto the field, See Punter on page 93
91