Denver has a new power sports couple.
Maddie Karr, the star all-around performer for the nationally ranked DU gymnastics team, and Colby Wadman who just finished his second year as punter for the Denver Broncos, have been girlfriend and boyfriend since last summer.
Neither Karr nor Wadman knew much about the other’s sport until they started dating last summer.
"We’ve been a hockey family but not anymore," said Karr, who grew up in Stillwater, Minn. "Now everyone’s … "Football," Wadman said, finishing her sentence. "Cheering for the Broncos," she said.
Karr went to most of the Broncos’ home games this season. Wadman has been to both of Karr’s home gymnastics meets so far. The beauty of gymnastics is you don’t have to be Bart Conner to appreciate it.
"The last meet I was sitting with her dad the whole time and he was explaining to me all the little things," Wadman said. "Sticking the landing. Distance off the vault. Height. All these little things that I still don’t know what to look for.
"And I look at it and say, ‘Wow, she did great on that.’ And her dad’s like, "Well, there’s this little thing here,’ and I’m like, "Ok. I can’t see that yet, so.” I just like to come and enjoy it and support her and get to see her do her thing.”
The two met last May when Wadman spoke at a Fellowship for Christian Athletes meeting at the University of Denver. They didn’t meet that night, but after hearing Wadman speak, Karr clicked on Wadman’s Instagram’s account.
"Hardly ever check it and I just happened to see that she followed me and I saw that she was gymnast here and I figured she had been at that meeting," Wadman said. "I sent a message to her after that and the rest is history."
Although they perform in different sports, there are similarities they can talk about over a dinner date.
"Definitely it’s a little bit more individualized," Karr said. "When he’s up there taking a punt, he’s all by himself, besides the long snapper snapping him the ball. And same with me. I’m up on beam or bars or whatever all by myself. So we kind of have a lot of pressure on us when we’re up there competing."
So would Karr make a better football player or Wadman a better gymnast?
"One hundred percent she would be the better football player," Wadman said. "I would not trust myself going up there. I could not do a flip to save my life."
The speed and physicality Karr needs as a gymnast would transfer well to a football field. During DU’s dual meet win against Minnesota before nearly 4,000 fans at the Ritchie Center last Sunday, Karr won the bars and tied for first in the vault events to win the all-around title with a 39.625 score.
At the time, the DU Pioneers women’s gymnastics team ranked No. 2 in the country, the school best-ever ranking. (They are now ranked No. 3).
"It’s definitely a lot of pounding on our bodies," Karr said. "The stuff we go through every single week, there’s always pounding. We try to do a good job of resting and recovery but it is one of the most physically demanding sports."
At Karr’s home meet last week, Wadman blended in with the other 4,000 people in the crowd. He cheers for all Pioneers, not just his girlfriend. (Watch the TV version of this story on 9NEWS' Overtime segment at 10:35 p.m. tonight.)
"It’s definitely not pressure," Karr said of Wadman’s presence. "For me, it’s a lot more peace, actually. It’s really nice being able to look in the stands and having another person that loves you be right there."
Karr is close to graduating with her degree in business information and analytics. She already has a two-year contract with Deloitte where she will be consulting for the government and public services sector in downtown Denver.
Wadman, who earned his degree from Cal-Davis, continues to improve as the Broncos’ punter, although he will have competition this offseason from Trevor Daniel, the former Houston Texans’ punter who signed a futures contract with Denver.
"And then we’ll kind of see where it goes from there," Karr said. "Just depending on what happens with him and wherever we go, we’ll make it work."
SUGGESTED VIDEOS: Sports