Football Kicker Travels Country

FOOTBALL KICKER STEPS AWAY FROM THE FIELD AND TRAVELS COUNTRY DURING LEAVE OF ABSENCE

BY AIDAN CHARDE

In 2019, Ithaca College junior football kicker Nick Bahamonde won the Liberty League Special Teams Player of the Year following a successful freshman campaign. However, after the 2020 season was canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic, he packed up his bags, put a sleeping bag in his car and drove out west to spend a semester on the road.

After stepping away from the gridiron for a year in favor of a cross-country road trip, he was named the seventh best kicker in Division III football entering the 2021 season upon his return. The rankings were released by The CFB Network, a popular social media page that covers all three levels of college football. Bahamonde was also named Liberty League Football Special Teams Player of the Week for his performance Sept. 4 in the football team’s 52–20 win over Bridgewater State University.

Bahamonde, who grew up surrounded by nature in Berryville, Virginia, said that the idea of facing online classes helped him make his decision to take a leave of absence.

“At some point I would have gone through what I went through in the last year,” Bahamonde said. “I feel like everyone has to go through that at some point. I know [I would have gone] eventually. I just don’t know if it would have happened in the same way if not for the pandemic.”

The COVID-19 pandemic caused Ithaca College to shift classes to remote instruction during the spring of Bahamonde’s freshman year. The college then made the decision to continue online courses through Fall 2020.

The college’s transition to remote learning prompted Bahamonde to enroll in a community college for Fall 2020, before packing his bags and driving to California in the frst week of March 2021.

“I had a rough plan of places I wanted to go but nothing too specifc,” Bahamonde said. “But then I ended up ditching that plan about fve days into the trip. So I literally just got into my car and I just drove around, met a bunch of people and explored wherever I wanted to.”

Bahamonde said he started with a four-day drive from his hometown to southern California, where he spent a few days before driving up the coastline to Bend, Oregon. He said he did not love Bend, so he left after only a day to go back down the coast to Lake Tahoe and the Malibu area. Afterward, he cut back inland to southern Utah and then Colorado before returning to Virginia the third week of April.

“I learned more in that year by myself than I’ve learned in school, probably ever,” Bahamonde said. “I can do algebra, but that doesn’t teach you how to talk to a stranger or be a good person or be a hard worker. I learned how to live my life.”

Bahamonde said that missing the 2020 season made him realize how tired he was of football. He said it was not that he did not love the sport, but no one knew him as anything other than the star kicker for the Bombers.

“I was like, this is all I do,” Bahamonde said. “This is all people know me for. … I want it to be more than that.”

He succeeded in that mission during his time out west, said Kaia Friedly, a student at Orange Coast College, whom he met in California.

“When he told me he played football in college, my frst thought was ‘Are we thinking about the same kind of football?’” Friedly said. “He’s the polar opposite of what I would’ve expected.”

Though they only met in person once, Friedly said Bahamonde made a lasting impression on her, and they still talk every day.

“When we met, it was an instant click,” Friedly said. “We became such good friends on the frst encounter because he’s such an amazing guy with such great ambitions.” Fellow Bombers kicker and junior Enzo Martelluci said he is not surprised that Bahamonde makes that type of impression on people. He describes his teammate as laid-back, someone who gets along with everyone and attacks each day with a smile. However, even though his personality may

Junior Nick Bahamonde traveled the country in his car during the spring of 2021. Courtesy of Nick Bahamonde seem relaxed, Martelluci said Bahamonde did not take any days off in preparation for the 2021 season. “To come right back to the feld was just the willingness to play right when he got here,” Martelluci said. “I do believe he’s got the ability and quality of a [Division I athlete], which is also why I believe he will be ranked frst in Division III football after this season.”

Tom Biscardi, linebacker and special teams coach for the football team, said Bahamonde is a great person and teammate.

“He gets along with everyone,” Biscardi said. “It’s not like he’s always off with the specialists. … He comes out there every day with a smile on his face.” When he takes the feld in important game situations, Bahamonde said his mentality and attitude help him stay focused, even in the hardest of situations.

Having that type of clear headspace is a technique Bahamonde said he has brought to football from his experiences in life.

“When you’re young, do the jobs and things you can’t do when you’re 45,” Bahamonde said. “Some kids are going to intern at JPMorgan and I’m sure they’ll be making a lot of money, but they are not going to be as fulflled as I am. I can guarantee you that.”

Friedly said that it seems like Bahamonde has really found himself.

“He told me when we met that he was doing [the trip] to experience what it has to offer,” Friedly said. “He wanted to get a new outlook on life, and he says he did.”

Bahamonde also created digital content while he was traveling. Bahamonde put photos on his Instagram, @nhbaha, and videos on his YouTube channel.

“He showed me that he was taking pictures of things like the northern lights,” Friedly said. “Everything I saw was insane.”

Even though he was tired of football a year ago, Bahamonde said that this year has made him want to play football more than he ever has. “The year off made me refect on why I play and why I want to keep playing,” Bahamonde said. “I’m more excited for the next two years of football than I’ve been for any year in the past.”

While most coaches might be worried about a player missing an entire year of working out, practicing and playing football, Biscardi said he is not worried in the slightest about how Bahamonde will reacclimate.

“Obviously it would’ve been awesome to have him here in the spring, but I know he’s taking care of himself off the feld,” Biscardi said.

The junior said that he is ready for the upcoming season but that he is not worried about trying to outperform expectations.

“No misses is always the expectation,” Bahamonde said. “[Freshman year], I missed my frst-ever kick in college and then I did not miss again for 10 weeks. I hate missing.”