Kicking turns out to be Carlson's calling

For a student at The Classical Academy, faith is part of the curriculum.

How appropriate, then, the Daniel Carlson's life was changed in church; albeit in an unconventional way.

Carlson, then an incoming freshman and an avid soccer player, had just returned to Colorado after living in his father's native Sweden for a year. Chris Coughlin, the special teams coach at TCA, was desperately looking for a kicker.

They both attended North Springs Alliance Church.

“I was sitting in church thinking about special teams and wondering, 'who's going to kick? We don't have a kicker!'” Coughlin said. “I knew the Carlsons and I knew that Daniel's older brother (Anders), who's now a college soccer player, had a big leg so I went looking for them. His dad said that Daniel's the one with the stronger leg.”

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That led to an informal tryout where Carlson, who had never kicked a football before, took naturally to what would become his craft.

“He hit four or five from 35 yards on the hashmark and we had our kicker,” Coughlin said.

He's kicked so well since that he signed a national letter of intent Wednesday to play for Division I Auburn.

“It was the best fit for me,” Carlson said. “I love the campus, I love the south and the welcoming feeling I get there.”

Maybe more welcome than at home. Both parents are graduates of Alabama, Auburn's most despised rival.

“I'm never going to stop hearing the jokes, but that's part of the deal,” Carlson said. “My parents, my grandparents and the rest of my family are fully supportive no matter how big of Alabama fans they are.”