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AT TECH: Outstanding student who was named to the 2003 CoSIDA Academic All-District III football team . . . Also named to the ACC All-Academic football team for 2003 . . . Awarded an Atlantic Coast Conference Weaver-James-Corrigan postgraduate scholarship.
Spent three seasons as Tech’s holder on extra points and field goals . . . Also handled Tech’s punting duties for the first eight games of the 2003 season . . . Averaged 36.9 yards on 43 punts for the season . . . Had eight punts downed inside the opponents’ 20-yard line . . . Nominee for the Football Writers Association of America/ESPN The Magazine Courage Award . . . Granted a sixth year of eligibility by the NCAA after battling Hodgkin’s disease in 1999-2000 . . . Took over as the holder in the first game of the 2001 season . . . Walk-on who joined the football team in the spring of 1999.
HIGH SCHOOL: Earned all-area honors as a punter and wide receiver at Habersham Central . . . Lettered three times in football and four times in basketball . . . Class president and salutatorian . . . Also an Eagle Scout.
PERSONAL: Full name is Hal Franklin Higgins . . . Born October 26, 1979 . . . Son of Don and Sally Higgins . . . Father is the long-time mayor of Cornelia, Ga. . . . Earned his bachelor’s degree in Management in December of 2002, graduating with honor . . . Now enrolled in graduate school . . . Member of the ACC Academic Honor Roll.
GAME-BY-GAME STATISTICS 2003 Punts Yds Avg LP Ret Yds Net TB I20 BYU* 3 125 41.7 51 3 28 32.3 0 0 Auburn* 7 254 36.3 48 3 32 31.7 1 2 FSU* 5 218 43.6 52 3 36 36.4 0 2 Clemson* 7 296 42.3 47 3 20 39.4 0 2 Vandy* 7 285 40.7 47 5 52 33.3 0 0 NC State* 4 103 25.8 35 0 0 25.8 0 1 Wake* 5 179 35.8 47 2 8 34.2 0 1 Maryland* 3 76 25.3 45 1 19 19.0 0 0 Duke DNP UNC DNP Virginia DNP Georgia 1 25 25.0 25 0 0 25.0 0 0 Tulsa 1 26 26.0 26 0 0 26.0 0 0
CAREER STATISTICS Year Punts Yards Avg LP Ret Yds Net TB I20 2003 43 1,587 36.9 52 20 195 32.5 1 8
CAREER HIGHS Punts: 7 vs. Clemson, 2003; Vanderbilt, 2003 Punting Yards: 296 vs. Clemson, 2003 Punting Average: 43.6 vs. Florida State, 2003 (5 punts) Long Punt: 52 vs. Florida State, 2003
