Did you hear about Texas Tech's new kicker?

If you watch the video that's linked to at the bottom of the article, it says he's a former kicker from Tarleton St. Seems like Leach's lucky day to find out he has another decent kicker at the school.
 
seems like free market!

If you wanna find a good kicker, offer a prize!
 
That's how BC found Aponevi..., right? Not a contest, but playing soccer on campus and decided to give him a shot?
 
That could never happen here, unless you lie to get in the game. Part of the stipulations for kicking is that you've never been a kicker on a football team or played soccer.
 
LowcountryJacket said:
That's how BC found Aponevi..., right? Not a contest, but playing soccer on campus and decided to give him a shot?
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At the bottom of the article: "Boston College pulled its briefly famous Sid Vicious from the student section in 2006, with pretty good results"
 
RamblinPeck said:
That could never happen here, unless you lie to get in the game. Part of the stipulations for kicking is that you've never been a kicker on a football team or played soccer.
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What do you mean? I thought there were many kickers also playing soccer for their school. Last year, Clemson's kicker sure was.
 
cyptomcat said:
What do you mean? I thought there were many kickers also playing soccer for their school. Last year, Clemson's kicker sure was.
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I mean the halftime "kick a fieldgoal for a pizza thing" they ask you if you've ever done those thing and if so they move on to someone else.
 
kickers hardly ever play football and soccer in college..it's just too tough since both are fall sports..

Buckholtz or whatever his name is did both last year...good for him considering Clemson is always really good in soccer--but i think his football stats showed...pretty weak...

kicking footballs and soccer--is completely different...although it's called soccer style..thats just the approach.....hard to transition on a daily basis.

states like georgia that have HS soccer in winter/spring make it a little easier to do both...
 
RamblinPeck said:
I mean the halftime "kick a fieldgoal for a pizza thing" they ask you if you've ever done those thing and if so they move on to someone else.
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yeah i know, thats what i thought was weird...I got a chance to shoot a basketball from halfcourt for a thousand buckaroos one time---before i shot i had to fill out a lot of paperwork--a lot of previous sports questions...

i missed---rimmed out....looked pretty though....and i got a free coffee mug and 25 bucks from beef o bradys
 
So what's the rule on the halftime stuff? No athletic experience in college or does it ask for high school as well?
 
GTBlazer said:
kicking footballs and soccer--is completely different...although it's called soccer style..thats just the approach.....hard to transition on a daily basis.
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From a former kicker, It's not as different as you make it out to be. Soccer style refers to the side-winder approach and striking the ball on the arch of the foot instead of the toes. It's why you always see a kicker take 2-3 steps backwards and 1-3 steps sideways before they go to kick. I've known several good soccer players who could be successful kickers without much transition at all. They already have the technique engrained in their body, it's just a matter of being able to explode through the ball and strike the oddly shaped football at the "sweet spot" which is about 1/3 of the way up the ball. Then the only issue is the direction of the kick, which many soccer players have figured out from playing a sport that is all about kicking an object in a pre-determined direction, whether it be at a goal or to a teammate. Then the only concern is repitition, this allow you to not duck-hook kicks from 50 yards against Clemson and look like a doofus in front of a national television audience.
 
The problem with playing both kicker and soccer is that you have contact on your feet/legs regularly with opposition. It's just retarded to have your football kicker take that risk every week.
 
i was a D2 kicker..and d1 level soccer player...

Go kick me 25 field goals and kickoffs then go hit some crosses at soccer..then go back and kick footballs...its mechanically very different. in my case i would hit the footballs very fat.

you're right a lot of it's very similar--thats why soccer players sometimes transition nicely..but there are also major differences

the most obvious difference would be the follow-through.....in football---you want your leg to follow the ball--through the uprights--your plant leg would be the first thing that lands---you should swing with enough force to bump your body forward..
----in soccer the foot you land on after a shot--should be the foot that you took the shot with..

in football you look down at all times, coaches ream you for not keeping your head DOWN...in soccer once you graduate to a decent league coaches teach you to keep your head up--you should know where the ball is at all times..nothing more than a glance is needed

two-three steps backwards and one over is largely a a timing mechanism.....I could hit a 45 yard FG with 1 back 1 over--it does shorten your time and allows you to get off a kick with less pressure--BUT it also gives you less time to adapt to error in the snap/hold/etc.
 
BTW....footall kickers kick with their laces--the hardest part of their foot....not the arch--or side...is fact soccer players hardly use the side of their foot after the age of 8
 
GTBlazer said:
BTW....footall kickers kick with their laces--the hardest part of their foot....not the arch--or side...is fact soccer players hardly use the side of their foot after the age of 8
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When I said arch, I was referring to the hard bone on the top of your foot.

I still think that fundamentally they are extremely similar. I don't pretend to be a D1 kicker or soccer player, but from experience at the high school level, I see little difference in bombing a kick in soccer and kicking a field goal. I would say that after kicking a soccer ball, I often kick high on the football, sending it too low. That can be easily fixed with repetition. I'm not suggesting that someone would be well suited to go play soccer Sunday through Friday and be able to kick at a high level on Saturdays. What I am suggesting is that the mechanics are similar enough that the transition from a soccer player to a kicker in football is not that difficult. I assume you did not find it overly difficult since you were able to both kick and play soccer at the college level.
 
i def. see where you are coming from...to transition is easy....takes a little work..BUT--to switch back and forth is hard..

remember last year the clemson kicker drove himself to atlanta after missing the bus because of a soccer game..he missed a few--lucky for us because we narrowly won...

i think we are on the same page....both tech fans and thats the big picture...

speaking of kickers--we lost to UVa last year..Bell missed a pretty "easy" one....
 
One other difference--goal in soccer is to keep the ball down, so taught to kick with knee over foot when hitting the ball -- helps keep the ball down. In football -- you never try to keep the ball down.
 
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