Vansickel signs with Cornell football

MT. PLEASANT — Mt. Pleasant kicker Owen Vansickel will be a Cornell Ram next fall.

Vansickel signed his letter of intent to attend and play football at Cornell College in Mount Vernon on Wednesday at the Mt. Pleasant Community High School Media Center.

Vansickel, who also plays basketball and tennis for Mt. Pleasant, says the idea of signing for football has been sticking out to him for the last couple of years.

“My sophomore year, going out for kicking, I fell in love with the sport,” Vansickel said. “I started going to more camps, and I decided that I liked that a little bit more than basketball.”

Vansickel was a perfect 5-for-5 on extra points and 1-for-1 on field goal attempts before getting injured this football season. He made eight extra points and two field goals last season.

“Going to all the games while I was injured just showed how much I missed the sport, and just how much I wanted to be out there,” Vansickel said.

Vansickel plans on majoring in communication at Cornell, and he hopes to have a future in sports broadcasting.

“At first I wanted to go into education, and then I kind of switched last minute into sports broadcasting,” Vansickel said. “I've grown up loving sports, and it's just something I've always wanted to keep going.”

Vansickel will join a Cornell team that went 3-7 in 2022. The Rams scored wins over Beloit, Lawrence and Grinnell.