Late entry into the PLL Player Pool will send the offseason into overdrive.
The Entry Draft maybe over and waiver moves are in full swing, but another big name is entering the PLL player pool. In the wake of NFL athletes like Chris Hogan and Dalton Crossan entering the league, other athletes with a lacrosse background have thought about making a return to the sport. Today, former Minnesota Vikings, Baltimore Ravens, Atlanta Falcons, Detroit Lions, Las Vegas Locomotives, Denver Broncos, Seattle Seahawks, Baltimore Ravens (again), Buffalo Bills, and Jacksonville Jaguars kicker Stephen Haushcka has signed with the Premier Lacrosse League and entered the player pool.
“I’ll be honest, I wasn’t sure how this would all go,” Haushcka said. “I saw Hogan and Crossan sign, and that was cool, so I gave the league a call. The phone rang once, it was like they were expecting me. I didn’t even finish saying my full name or why I was calling before a contract hit my inbox.”
Hauschka grew up in Needham, Massachusetts, playing soccer, basketball, and lacrosse. He also played trombone, which while irrelevant to lacrosse or sports in general, matters because it’s an interesting fact that can be used in promotional social media videos. Along those lines, Haushcka has shirtless photos and video on his instagram account, but he isn’t working out in any of it. The league office had no comment on this issue.
He didn’t play football in high school but the PLL was willing to look past that. He went to Middlebury as a two-sport athlete, playing soccer and lacrosse. “I ended up being cut from the soccer team at Middlebury, so I walked onto the football team as a kicker. Little did I know how much this decision would matter when it came to my chances at a pro lacrosse career,” Haushcka said. After graduating form Middlebury he went to NC State, where he again won the kicking job, ultimately gaining interest from NFL scouts.
Hauschka is listed at 6’4, 210. The obvious player comparison is Sergio Perkovic, since they are the same size and their first names both start with the letter S.
Haushcka has been both a Super Bowl Champion and a UFL Champion, something no one in the PLL can say. “He’s a great athlete and an NFL champion, which is exactly what we are looking for in a lacrosse player,” said a PLL rep. “Any time you get the chance to add someone who’s kicked 264 career field goals to your lacrosse league, you do it.”
“I’m just a guy who’s gone undrafted a number of times, been doubted a ton, but I’m still a world champion and want to prove I can play lacrosse at this level,” said ̶C̶h̶r̶i̶s̶ ̶H̶o̶g̶a̶n̶ Hauschka.
Haushcka is expected to have serious interest from all eight teams in the league, with experts predicting that some clubs would be willing to cut midfielders from their current roster to create a spot for the 2004 2nd Team All-NESCAC kicker.
