Day 43: Bart Barnett

Bart Barnett at work today


Bart Barnett '90 was a great linebacker, good enough to make 1st Team All Ivy in his senior season of 1989.

But I come today to praise Bart Barnett as a punter.

Yes, the 5-foot-8, 205 pound Barnett also logged a considerable amount of time as the Lions punter, and for a linebacker, he was a heck of a punter.

But seriously, Barnett was voted captain of the 1989 team in no small part because he was willing to shoulder a lot of extra jobs besides defensive field general.

He came to Columbia from Panama City, Florida and Bay High School where he starred in football, baseball and even basketball. He once struck out 16 batters in a seven inning game. While at Columbia, he was also a star baseball pitcher for some competitive Lion teams.

Barnett did his best punting in his junior year, averaging a very respectable 34.5 yards per boot. During his sophomore year, he punted for a decent 31.9 yard average.

As a senior, Barnett was mostly relieved of his punting duties by Matt Pollard '90, except for an infamous incident in week two when Pollard missed the bus to Villanova and Barnett was pressed into service on game day.

Today, Barnett is a respected figure in the financial world. He is head of equities trading at Morgan Keegan and is a regular guest on FOX Business, Bloomberg and CNBC.