It was a near-perfect evening. The sun was about to set, the deep green grass was a tad moist, and the cadence of a marching band played in the background. Faint sounds of a crowd chanting “Rudy, Rudy, Rudy!” resounded in the crisp fall air.

Only the hero of this story was not not Notre Dame’s famous Rudy Ruettiger. He was a little known construction engineer major from Iowa State.

Nevertheless, Steve Watson booted a 50-yard field goal that split the uprights, solidifying his name in intramural history and earning respect from the crowd.

Contrary to popular belief, Watson is not an experienced kicker. “I never played football in high school. I only played soccer in middle school,” he said.

Nonbelievers will call this a fluke, a one in a million shot. But witnesses to the event watched as Watson successfully kicked field goals from 35, 40 and 45 yards before the “kick heard round the world.”

“It was just one of those days, I guess I should have played the lottery,” Watson said.

Others are not so modest. Joe DeGabriele, a senior in metallurgical engineering, has known Watson almost all his life.

“This Watson character is good at anything he does,” he said.

DeGabriele, who didn’t witness the feat firsthand, said he always knew there were bigger things in store for his friend.

“I think he could be respectable for the Cyclones,” he said.

But Watson isn’t busy making plans for a football career. He tried to make his kicking accomplishment seem mediocre.

“There wasn’t anyone trying to block it, and I don’t think I had as much pressure as a placekicker would,” he said.

However, if he did face opposition, Watson is confident his holder would hold up.

He remained modest, saying the members of Team Watson — Brian Treed, a holder in senior in mechanical engineering, and Shane Oesterle, a coach in senior in agricultural engineering — had much to do with the feat.

“I give these guys all the credit,” Watson said.

For his 50-yard triumph, Watson took home a t-shirt, but the fans in the stands took home much more. Watson demonstrated that nothing is impossible, and that heroes do exist in life’s everyday happenings.

And as Watson left the field that night in Ames, he couldn’t help but smile as he heard the echo of fans chanting his name.