A pair of Colorado high school cornhole phenoms made history by becoming the first players to earn Division I college scholarships to play the popular backyard game.
Gavin Hamann and Jaxson Remmick, both 17, are taking their bag-tossing talents to tiny Winthrop University in South Carolina next year after the two picked up cornhole a few years ago, according to reports.
“I never thought this is where cornhole would take me,” Remmick told KDVR. “I’ve come a long way, and this is awesome.”
“I’m shocked, I mean, as everybody is,” Hamann additionally told KUSA. “It’s crazy. It’s groundbreaking, it’s new, it’s making history.”
The teammates attend ThunderRidge High School in Highlands Ranch and are considered to be five-star recruits in the growing game.
They are also two-time American Cornhole League High School National Champions and reportedly the first to earn scholarships for the game for a Division I school.
Hamann became interested in the sport when he started going to a bar with his parents about two and a half years ago to play in a local league.
“I started getting good, and now I’m the first-ever 5-star Division I recruit,” Hamann told KDVR.
The two used to be involved in other sports; Hamann played soccer and Remmick played baseball before the pair started traveling the country for cornhole tournaments, the Washington Post reported.
Winthrop hopes to morph its nascent program into a powerhouse while being a pioneer for college cornhole. Right now, it is only a club sport and not sanctioned by the NCAA so teams must take part in tournaments organized by other groups.
The scholarships will cover about half of their tuition, according to the Washington Post.
“This is not just cornhole anymore,” Winthrop University cornhole coach Dusty Thompson told KUSA.
“This is not just something you might see on ESPN, see pros playing. This is something that is now going to give kids an opportunity to get scholarships, potential full rides eventually.”
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