Haughney didn’t start punting until midway through high school. He started football playing in the second grade, and grew up primarily playing tight end, even into high school. During his freshman year of high school, he made the move to playing quarterback. But one day during his sophomore year, he was casually punting the ball before practice, when his coach took notice.
“Do that again,” his coach told him. Haughney punted again.
“One more time,” his coach said. He went again.
And that was how Haughney found his way onto the field — as the team’s primary punter. And that quickly became his speciality; he earned all-conference and all-state honors while at St. Peter’s Prep in New Jersey. It began to click that playing football in college was a real possibility.
“I was like, who knows?” he said. “Maybe I can do something with this.”
Despite seeing success throughout his career, however, Haughney wasn’t a highly recruited punter. He had some looks at the Division III level, and he applied to other schools in the chance that playing collegiate football wasn’t in the cards for him. But Holy Cross came calling, and was interested in bringing him on the roster. After just a 20-minute conversation on the phone, Haughney was immediately sold on the school and all that the program had to offer: the academics, the elite football, the mentorship programs.
“I was like, can I commit now?” he recalled.
The Holy Cross coaching staff later offered him a spot as a walk-on. Haughney didn’t hesitate for a second.
“I called my dad, and told him: ‘It’s not up for discussion. We’re doing this,’” Haughney said.
Haughney spent his freshman year on The Hill learning the ropes behind punter Cody Wilkinson. Upon Wilkinson’s graduation, Haughney stepped in as the team’s full-time punter as a sophomore during the COVID-shortened Spring 2021 season.
“Stepping into that position as a sophomore, it was surreal,” he said. “This is what I'd been preparing for all of my freshman year — and then just going out there and living out that moment.”
For Haughney, the journey has been more than worth it — after starting out as a walk-on, he earned a scholarship. He’s part of a unit that has won four consecutive Patriot League titles and four straight postseason berths. He’s grown on and off the field, both mentally and physically. He’s grateful for the connections he’s made, the lessons he’s learned and the chance he has to play the sport that means the world to him.
“I need football — I don't know what I would do with my life if I didn't have football,” he said. “It's been a dream come true.”
