Marshall University Athletics
MCGILL: White ready for final game and next step in football
12/22/2019 11:55:00 PM | Football, Word on the Herd
Marshall holder will be a graduate assistant at South Carolina
By Chuck McGill
HerdZone.com
TAMPA, Florida – Jackson White is a third generation quarterback and the son of a major college football coach, so he understands life in the spotlight.
His contributions as the holder on extra points on field goals, however, can sometimes be overlooked. Monday's Bad Boy Mowers Gasparilla Bowl against UCF, to be played here at Raymond James Stadium, will be White's final collegiate game. On Marshall's Senior Day, he decided to walk alongside 16 seniors, forgoing his final year of eligibility to enter his father's profession.
The Thundering Herd will lose senior kicker Justin Rohrwasser and senior long snapper Matthew Beardall after this season, but White's exit means Marshall must replace all three special teams roles. Those are not insignificant personnel losses.
"As far as the field goal unit, he's the most important," Rohrwasser said of White. "He's the middle man who brings both sides together, the snap and the kick. You see people blaming kickers in the NFL and college, but there's clearly a bad hold. It's not acknowledged how important the hold is for the entire field goal operation."
White is a 21-year-old who played quarterback at Buchholz High School in Gainesville, Florida, where his father, Brian, spent four seasons as an assistant coach at the University of Florida. Brian, who worked the past four seasons as Boston College's running backs coach, coached under Will Muschamp at Florida. After he's done at Marshall, Jackson White will head to the University of South Carolina to be a graduate assistant for Muschamp, who is in his fourth season with the Gamecocks.
"This is what I've wanted to do my whole life," White said. "I love Marshall and everything they've done for me. It's been a great experience. The community is awesome. I've loved every second of it."
White's grandfather, Don White, played quarterback at Notre Dame. Brian was an All-Ivy League quarterback at Harvard. Jackson White started playing football at 7 years old, and was a wide receiver through middle school before transitioning to quarterback at Buchholz. He came to Marshall in hopes for competing for playing time behind center, but instead made his biggest contributions on special teams.
After Kaare Vedvik entered the competition for kicking duties, he had to give up his role as the team's holder, paving the way for White to step in. This is White's third season as the holder. Beardall is in his fourth season as the snapper and Rohrwasser is a second-year kicker, so the trio has developed chemistry.
"The synergy between us three, it has to be really tight," White said. "You want to get (the hold) down in 1.2 seconds. If anything is off – the snap is off, the hold is off – the kick could very well not go in. Beardall has been snapping to me for three years and it's my second year with Rohrwasser. It's been awesome being with them."
White's grandfather coached high school football in Massachusetts, so the sport and the profession runs in the family. Brian White started his career as a graduate assistant at Fordham in 1986, and has had stops at Notre Dame, UNLV, Nevada, Wisconsin, Syracuse, Washington, Florida and Boston College. In 2004, he was named the American Football Coaches Association Division I Assistant Coach of the Year while he was the offensive coordinator at Wisconsin.
"It's really the whole team experience and being with a big family," Jackson White said of his reasons for pursing a coaching career. "Growing up around football, it's all about football and that's all I've ever known. I couldn't see myself sitting in an office with a normal job. I want to be out making a different in people's lives, being around kids coming out of high school. Since I've been little, I've always wanted to coach."
He'll take with him many memories from his time in Huntington, West Virginia, but none as cherished as Rohrwasser's game-winning 53-yard field goal against WKU this season.
"No doubt, my favorite moment at Marshall," White said. "Probably my favorite football moment ever. The first kick, I was so nervous. He kicks it through, timeout, hits another one, timeout. The third one I knew this was it, they have no timeouts left. I looked back and Justin gave me a little smile and I knew it was going in. I just started running. I didn't know where I was going. I tried to find Justin. What an awesome moment."
Rohrwasser said White's departure will leave a big void for the program.
"Jackson is a special guy," Rohrwasser said. "He's so fun to be around; he's always upbeat. He always puts 100 percent into everything he does. Coming in as a quarterback and started holding, he's held for two kickers, he's playing scout team at safety. He'll do anything to help the team. He's the best holder I've ever had."
Chuck McGill is the Assistant Athletic Director for Fan/Donor Engagement and Communications at Marshall University and a seven-time winner of the National Sports Media Association West Virginia Sportswriter of the Year award. In addition to HerdZone.com's Word on the Herd, McGill is the editor of Thundering Herd Illustrated, Marshall's official athletics publication. Follow him on Twitter (@chuckmcgill) and Instagram (wordontheherd).
