Some ugly kicking numbers I just pulled elsewhere.

[wreckrod]

I get that FG's are hard. But, kickoffs shouldn't be THAT bad. Is it crazy to see if our punter with legs as big as my torso can kick the ball off a tee into the end zone?

Surely he's got the leg, and the ball is in the same place every time. Does anyone know for sure whether we tried this or didn't try it?

 

[Skeptic]

,
There weren't many Butkickers around, but everyone else's poor kicking game doesn't excuse being ranked #124 in touchbacks, #121 in FG, and #118 in return yards. We were abysmal and it cost us some games. We probably would have faired better by just kicking it out of bounds.

One thing nobody seems to be talking about in the NC semi-final game for some reason is that Clemson is still without its outstanding kicker and if the game comes down to field goals, it could spell the difference.

 

[OldJacketFan]

I get that FG's are hard. But, kickoffs shouldn't be THAT bad. Is it crazy to see if our punter with legs as big as my torso can kick the ball off a tee into the end zone?

Surely he's got the leg, and the ball is in the same place every time. Does anyone know for sure whether we tried this or didn't try it?

They are NOT going to screw up Harvin by having him kickoff. The mechanics of the two action are very different and why chance messing up your AA punter for a short term fix.

 

[Skeptic]

They are NOT going to screw up Harvin by having him kickoff. The mechanics of the two action are very different and why chance messing up your AA punter for a short term fix.

But as wreckrod said, the ball is in the same place every time...

 

[RedPete]

One thing nobody seems to be talking about in the NC semi-final game for some reason is that Clemson is still without its outstanding kicker and if the game comes down to field goals, it could spell the difference.

Great observation Skeptic! When I was at the Clemson game the fans around me we taking like their kicker was downright inept.

This reminds of Alabama vs Clemson 1 when nobody was talking about Bama’s dangerous kick return game, and sure enough they scored a huge kick return TD for the win.

 

[OldJacketFan]

But as wreckrod said, the ball is in the same place every time...

Yes it is indeed but, again, the mechanics are way different

 

[MikeJackets1967]

It didn't seem to be a good year for FG kickers in general. For instance, Clemson was so desperate they held campus tryouts, and got a pretty good kicker. Who then got hurt and they were back to square one with a 3-deep guy trying them. I guess it could make a difference against Alabama, but I'm not sure what the injury status is. But I read no rousing reviews of any kicker from anywhere.

A lot of schools have problems with kickers. Butch Jones at Tennessee never had a decent FG kicker he only had luck finding good punters.

 

[wreckrod]

They are NOT going to screw up Harvin by having him kickoff. The mechanics of the two action are very different and why chance messing up your AA punter for a short term fix.

Ok, I don't presume to know anything about it. Is that a thing? Would trying to do kickoffs mess with his punting mechanics and throw off his punts?

Just from a logical point of view the two kicks and their motions are very different, but the kickoff is exactly the same every time. It doesn't seem too crazy to me to have two different shots, heck in golf you can have several different swing nuances for different shots. This would just be like the difference between hitting a high flop shot (punting) and hitting a drive in a decently wide fairway (kickoffs).

Does anyone on the board coach kicking for high school, or even better has anyone on the board kicked in high school or college and able to speak on this with some authority?

 

[Tech93]

A good kicker is so valuable in college football today that we need to be recruiting a top 5 kicker right now...it should not be hard to find one that academically qualifies either. There needs to be a lot more emphasis placed on special teams in general too. Both of the above account for easily 7 points per game in college football today.

 

[MikeJackets1967]

A good kicker is so valuable in college football today that we need to be recruiting a top 5 kicker right now...it should not be hard to find one that academically qualifies either. There needs to be a lot more emphasis placed on special teams in general too. Both of the above account for easily 7 points per game in college football today.

I think all in all it's a mistake not to use a scholly on a kicker it's too much of a crapshoot to depend on walkons...............................................just sayin'

 

[Skeptic]

Great observation Skeptic! When I was at the Clemson game the fans around me we taking like their kicker was downright inept.

This reminds of Alabama vs Clemson 1 when nobody was talking about Bama’s dangerous kick return game, and sure enough they scored a huge kick return TD for the win.

Clemson, I believe, is using a guy they picked up from a campus-wide student tryout.

 

[OldJacketFan]

Ok, I don't presume to know anything about it. Is that a thing? Would trying to do kickoffs mess with his punting mechanics and throw off his punts?

Just from a logical point of view the two kicks and their motions are very different, but the kickoff is exactly the same every time. It doesn't seem too crazy to me to have two different shots, heck in golf you can have several different swing nuances for different shots. This would just be like the difference between hitting a high flop shot (punting) and hitting a drive in a decently wide fairway (kickoffs).

Does anyone on the board coach kicking for high school, or even better has anyone on the board kicked in high school or college and able to speak on this with some authority?

My nephew was an all region/all state P/PK. The drop, placement and timing of punting is critical. Tech has a Ray Guy award, AA candidate at punter so why take a chance screwing him up to possibly correct a short term problem. I guarantee you'll see a big difference in both King and Davis come spring/fall.

 

[MikeJackets1967]

My nephew was an all region/all state P/PK. The drop, placement and timing of punting is critical. Tech has a Ray Guy award, AA candidate at punter so why take a chance screwing him up to possibly correct a short term problem. I guarantee you'll see a big difference in both King and Davis come spring/fall.

I wouldn't mind seeing GT hire a special teams coach it would be one less thing that Paul has to do.

 

[Skeptic]

My nephew was an all region/all state P/PK. The drop, placement and timing of punting is critical. Tech has a Ray Guy award, AA candidate at punter so why take a chance screwing him up to possibly correct a short term problem. I guarantee you'll see a big difference in both King and Davis come spring/fall.

I was never a kicker -- well, kicked off, once, and was banished -- but the mechanics of kicking either way seem so fine-tuned in terms of leg swing, extension and contact I wouldn't think a guy could work on more than one style anyway. Besides, when you have a punter who can flip the field, hands off.

 

[OldJacketFan]

I was never a kicker -- well, kicked off, once, and was banished -- but the mechanics of kicking either way seem so fine-tuned in terms of leg swing, extension and contact I wouldn't think a guy could work on more than one style anyway. Besides, when you have a punter who can flip the field, hands off.

You nailed it!

 

[franklinjacket]

Matt Bosher handles kick offs and punts for the Falcons. This year has been a little down for him, but he has been successful doing both. In high school Harvin had 11 kickoffs with 4 touchbacks. It isn’t like we’d be asking him to play the French horn at halftime. He’s a D1 athlete. I’m sure he can be good at more than one thing.

 

[OldJacketFan]

Matt Bosher handles kick offs and punts for the Falcons. This year has been a little down for him, but he has been successful doing both. In high school Harvin had 11 kickoffs with 4 touchbacks. It isn’t like we’d be asking him to play the French horn at halftime. He’s a D1 athlete. I’m sure he can be good at more than one thing.

IF there was a need and no other options available, maybe. Bosher is the only one I know of who does both at the NFL level which ought to tell you just how hard it is. Don't you think coaches would love to have that roster slot if possible? '17 is behind us so worrying about the numbers from last year is pointless. Having both kickers in the S&C program and healthy will show come spring/fall. Why would you want to screw up one huge asset on a poor S/T group? I just don't get it.

 

[GTRhino24]

When I was walking on, there were like 4 kickers in the group. We already had Rodney and Mel. They cut them all. There was a surfer dude that was pretty good. He made the team the following season and did really well. Can’t remember his name but he did that weird little chopping feet motion when waiting on the snap. Point is that there are lots of powerful legs around that are willing to walk-on.

 

[JacketGirl]

Matt Bosher handles kick offs and punts for the Falcons. This year has been a little down for him, but he has been successful doing both. In high school Harvin had 11 kickoffs with 4 touchbacks. It isn’t like we’d be asking him to play the French horn at halftime. He’s a D1 athlete. I’m sure he can be good at more than one thing.

I lol’d at the French horn at halftime comment.

 

[franklinjacket]

I’m an advocate of putting the best players on the field. We know Harvin has a big leg. If he can be better than the other guys at kicking touchbacks, I’d put him in. It is up to the coaches to figure that out though. We just won 5 games. It’s time to get creative.