College Student’s $100K Kick in Vans Goes Viral, Brand Pledges to Match With Hurricane Relief
A University of California, Berkeley student pocketed $100,000 Saturday and won another $600,000 for disaster relief in the wake of Hurricane Helene after making a field goal kick that has to be seen to be believed — and he did it all in a pair of Vans Slip-Ons.
As part of the weekly “College GameDay” kicking contest with NFL punter-turned-analyst Pat McAfee, Cal student Daniel Villasenor stepped up to the challenge. One of the first things McAfee calls attention to was Villasenor’s shoes: a pair of well-worn Vans Classic Checkerboard Slip-Ons. It’s then revealed that Villasenor waited in attendance overnight for the opportunity to appear on the show, making the feat he pulled off even more awe-inspiring.
Villasenor was close yet unsuccessful on his first kick to win $75,000, but McAfee was so impressed, the show hosts gave the student another chance to send the ball through the uprights. The second chance bumped the potential winnings up to $100,000, and McAfee also pledged to add an additional $100,000 to the show’s $500,000 hurricane relief donation if Villasenor made it.
“I might have gotten bamboozled here…He might have hustled me,” McAfee joked before the second kick.
And then, Villasenor nailed the 33-yard kick without breaking a sweat, causing the crowd to erupt.
“Damn Daniel!,” McAfee repeated after the winning kick, a reference to 2016’s viral video featuring high school students Daniel Lara and Joshua Holz, which coincidentally also took place in California.
Vans exec Steve Van Doren, who is the son of late company co-founder Paul Van Doren, was quick to respond to the viral video on Instagram. In a collaboration post with the official Vans account, Van Doren pledged to match Villasenor’s winnings with an additional $100,000 donation to Helene relief.
“Hi Daniel, this is Steve Van Doren from Vans,” Van Doren said. “We’re so proud of you, way to do a great kick today. We want to make sure we get ahold of you so we can bring you down. Want to give you some Vans shoes but we’re also going to match your $100,000 and send it to all the people from the terrible hurricanes that hit the south.”
As for the game, the Golden Bears took a heartbreaking 38-39 loss to the Miami Hurricanes, but it’s hard to see the day as anything but a win for Villasenor and Vans.