There is a movement going around the Internet that proclaims that “punters are people too.” At UTSA, fans are well aware of how lucky we are to have not just a person as our punter, but a damn good football player in Yannis Routsas.
Coming to UTSA via Clear Brook High School in Friendswood, near Houston, Routsas was a stellar multi-sport athlete well before playing a down of organized football. He ran track, played basketball, and excelled at his first love of soccer. It was because of those particular skills that he made a smooth transition to football and became a star kicker and punter.
He would earn all-district honors his three years playing for the Wolverines. Since becoming a Roadrunner, he has shattered all of the previous marks for punters and earned national attention and acclaim for his play. Routsas was named a semifinalist for the Ray Guy Award – given to the nation’s best collegiate punter – in 2017 and was on the award’s watchlist in 2018.
As his career at UTSA winds down with the school’s final contest on Saturday, November 23, Routsas took some time to reflect on his career, talk about Greek food, and what being a Roadrunner has meant to him.
EM: Yannis, I know you have a strong background in soccer and some other sports. When did you actually start playing football?
YR: I started playing organized football in seventh grade. I had never played it at all at that point and never thought I would actually play football. I enjoyed playing soccer so much. I was also running track and playing basketball and my coach in middle school was like, ‘Hey why don’t we try you out as a kicker’ and everything just came naturally to me since I’d been playing soccer since I was so young.
EM: You were a kicker and a punter in high school, right? When did you make that permanent move to punter? Was that here at UTSA?
YR: Yeah that definitely happened once I got to college. All throughout middle school and high school I was kicking and punting. I felt like, honestly, kicking was my strong suit. In college, the coaches wanted me to focus more on punting and I just took it from there and just put all my focus on it.
EM: When did you know that punting and kicking a football was something you were good at and could do at that next level?
YR: I would say my sophomore year of high school. A lot of people were talking to me and telling me that I had the potential to make it to college doing it. So, I kind of dropped everything else and put my eyes on this. I started training, working in the weight room, and took everything very seriously.
EM: I’m always curious when it comes to specialists like yourself and how y’all handle the pressure that comes with having to make a play in a big moment. How do you do that and has that changed at all over the years?
YR: That really has come from experience. My freshman year, it was definitely a little rough, but as I have gotten more of that experience I’ve been able to handle it better. Also, having the coaches that I’ve had and the way they build up your confidence and make you feel comfortable with your unit out there, that helps a lot.
EM: How did you decide on UTSA as where you wanted to go to school and keep playing football?
YR: I came here on my visit and went around campus and loved it. The coaches were so awesome and the campus itself, everything is so close together. They had my major, as well, and it was close to home. Everything just worked out.
EM: Is there such a thing as having a ‘favorite’ punt in your career? Do you have one of those or is it like asking someone to pick their favorite child?
YR: Hmm, I wouldn’t say I have one favorite. There are several. There are punts where it was late in the game and I was able to back the other team up inside their five. I’ve been fortunate to have a couple like that.
EM: Gotcha. What about the attention you’ve gotten since you’ve started here at UTSA? I know you didn’t set out to be a football ‘star,’ so how have you been able to handle this focus that you have gotten?
YR: Well, I’m definitely thankful for it. I have pretty much had to learn to just push it aside and focus on what the task is at hand because I don’t want it to want those things to go to my head. Then I think I might start doing bad and then I would focus on those awards so much and lose track of what’s important. I pretty much just try to focus on my punting and go from there.
EM: Let’s talk about you a little bit about you and your life off the field. What kind of stuff do you do in your free time away from football?
YR: Spare time, I usually spend on my studies. I’m definitely a school guy. Outside of that, I definitely enjoy fishing and hunting. I love the outdoors and going with that kind of flow.
EM: What about sports? I know you were a soccer guy, did you have a favorite player and a favorite team growing up?
YR: Yeah I was definitely a soccer and Ronaldinho was my favorite player. He played for Barcelona for a while and Brazil. Soccer was such a big part of my life growing up because my Dad played it growing up too. I still miss playing it honestly.
EM: That make sense. Let’s talk food now. What’s your go to meal? Is there anything you haven’t been able to get while you’ve been here in San Antonio?
YR: I’m a pretty big Chick-Fil-A person [laughs]. I would also say that my Mom makes some good Greek food. Being off at college, I’ve been definitely missing her food. She makes a lot of good Greek food that I miss a lot.
EM: I know you’re getting ready to head into your last game here at the Alamodome and at UTSA. With that being said, what does having had the opportunity to be a Roadrunner mean to you?
YR: I take a lot of pride in it. A lot of people see us as a small school, but I don’t see that. We’ve got everything that a big school has and I take a lot of pride in what we’ve been able to accomplish and in what we have here and what we’re doing with this program.
