Colorado University Athletics
Brooks: CU's PK Spot Presents Weekly Adventure
October 22, 2010 | Football, B.G. Brooks
Last Saturday, junior transfer Marcus Kirkwood, a former soccer player eager to make his football debut, was ticketed to "get the first shot" against Baylor. That much proved accurate . . . sort of.
At least Kirkwood was the first kicker to leave the bench. After the Buffaloes' first touchdown, Kirkwood trotted onto the field with the PAT unit, headed by holder/backup quarterback Cody Hawkins. But once on the field, Kirkwood took up a spot on the left side of the formation rather than behind Hawkins in a kicking position.
"As soon as we were running onto the field, they called (the two-point try) without the option" to kick, Kirkwood said, adding it was "definitely" a let-down to not get his opportunity.
The two-point pass didn't work, and neither did Kirkwood for the rest of the night. He was one-and-done after one trip onto the field. "As far as I knew I was still kicking, then I was told not to," he said.
Instead of Kirkwood being called on to try a 45-yard field goal later in the first half, the chance went to senior Aric Goodman, who entered the game having hit one of his previous four attempts. Goodman was pulled after missing a 40-yarder in the previous game at Missouri, and his replacement - freshman Justin Castor - had a 40-yard attempt blocked.
After Goodman made his 45-yarder against Baylor, he was summoned again for a 25-yard attempt and a subsequent extra point try. He made every kick.
So who does CU's kicking Saturday at Folsom Field against Texas Tech (1:30 p.m., no TV)? You'll have to wait and see who trots out first.
"They're all competing," special teams coach Kent Riddle said. "We'll see how it works out in practice, so we could see several different guys."
When I asked Riddle if Goodman, Castor and Kirkwood actually were "all competing" this week, he said, "Absolutely."
Kirkwood echoed that: "The coaches are saying it's going until Saturday, so who knows? We'll see what happens. It's still a competition."
But it wasn't that way last week.
In the run-up to the Baylor game, after he had missed his kick at Mizzou, Goodman barely was noticeable. He did practice kickoffs, but Castor and Kirkwood took most - if not all - of the week's PAT work.
At game time last weekend, Riddle said he and coach Dan Hawkins were set to use Kirkwood for the 45-yard field goal try: "He was going to kick; we felt comfortable with him inside of 45 yards, maybe 46. But the first field goal was right there at the break point, so we decided to go with Aric - and he made it. We figured it would be foolish to change after a make."
So why inject the possibility of a change this weekend?
"We're going to put guys in there who can make it," Riddle said. "And they're going to know there is pressure on them to make it."
I asked Riddle what it says about Goodman not getting many/any "reps" last week, then coming in unannounced and making both of his kicks.
"I think it says that he didn't have time to think about it a whole bunch," Riddle said. "I think Aric can tell you as much as anybody that that's the frustrating thing - technically, he's a good kicker. But the results have been not good. At the end of the day, you either make them or you don't. We've just been trying to work hard with him to get out of his head. Maybe the way to do that was to surprise him a little bit.
"Now, he knew there was a chance he would kick (last Saturday); it wasn't like he just came out of nowhere. But I think he definitely felt a little relief of pressure not having to worry about it the whole time, then just go out there and go through his routine and kick it - and not think about, 'I can't do this, I gotta do this . . .' You get so tied up in all of that that usually you end up doing what you tell yourself not to do."
Isn't this an odd way to approach it?
"Yeah . . . it is," Riddle conceded. "But we've tried as many normal ways to approach it as possible and they haven't been very effective. That worked for last week, so we'll see what happens this week."
Goodman called last week "a whirlwind," but characterized this week as "a little better . . . we kind of had an idea of the structure going into it, rather than kind of (last) Saturday not going by the script."
He agreed with Riddle about entering last weekend's game on what appeared to be a spur-of-the-moment decision by the coaching staff, saying, "Sometimes going into stuff without prior knowledge of it is not a bad thing. You don't have to deal with a bunch of thoughts that ordinarily you'd be thinking about.
"But it was fun and fortunately I went out there and made the kicks. But the next opportunity I get, I've got to make. Last week doesn't change anything. In this business it's all about the next kick; none of the previous ones matter at all. I just have to go into it with that mindset."
Maybe Goodman is back on track. Maybe Kirkwood's debut comes a week later than expected. Maybe Castor gets the call. Maybe the Buffs' offense is so efficient they only need someone to kick PATs.
If it's drama you're after, you're at the right matinee.
MR. SMITH PULLS HIS REDSHIRT: Freshman safety Terrel Smith, a standout in August camp, figured he'd play this season. He didn't figure it would take six games to reach the field, but multiple injuries in the secondary apparently have scratched any redshirt plans.
The 5-foot-8, 180-pound Smith, of Paterson, N.J., likely will see significant duty at safety alongside sophomore Ray Polk. Smith says he's tossing and turning in anticipation of his first college game.
"I can't wait," he said. "I can't sleep at night at times, just thinking about practice and the game and watching film. I'm stoked about playing this week. And I feel comfortable back there, so it's even better."
Smith turned heads in preseason camp with a handful of heavy hits. Hawkins said Smith's speed could make him a cornerback candidate, "but just because of his physical nature you'd probably rather have him be inside where he can help against the run."
That's fine with Smith, who said although he's still learning, "I feel much better than I felt during the summer. I know the system now and am getting it down correctly.
"The system just kind of clicked . . . I'm new to this, but it just clicked overnight. I know what my keys are and I know the defense much better than I did before - better than ever. I'm just preparing my craft this week and getting ready for Texas Tech."
Breaking in against an offense that passes as much as Tech might be more difficult than facing a run-oriented team, but Smith isn't dwelling on the possibility.
"It might be a little harder stopping the pass, but if I just stick to my keys and know my stuff, I'm not going to find it difficult," he said. "I'm prepared for it."
He also said Polk and safety Anthony Perkins, out for the season with a torn ACL, have been helpful in helping him adjust: "Everyone has . . . I'm looking forward to it."
HANSEN ON STAYING GROUNDED: On paper, the Red Raiders appear unusually porous in pass defense. They're allowing 292.3 air yards a game - worst in the Big 12 - and have been hit with 12 touchdown passes.
CU quarterback Tyler Hansen admitted that those numbers can make a QB dreamy.
"It's exciting when you see stats like that . . . you say we can throw the ball on these guys," he said. "But with their type of offense, you want to keep their offense off the field. So we have to be balanced, control the clock, run the ball effectively, have a controlled passing game and take our shots when we can. I feel like we've got a good game plan and we're going to be smart with what we do."
Hansen termed the Tech game "a real big one for us, just because it's a fairly even matchup, kind of a tossup game . . . . Texas Tech is a good football team; it would be a quality win for our program and a quality win for the confidence of our guys."
The Buffs have been awaiting a "breakthrough moment . . . that would be real nice if that happened," Hansen said. "I think we're being patient. Our day's going to come soon. If we keep fighting, it's going to happen sometime soon. Hopefully we can get a win this weekend, get to 4-3 and be on the winning side of things."
BUFF BITS: Reminiscing on a few placekicking numbers: Mason Crosby made 19-of-28 field goal attempts in his final season (2006) and Kevin Eberhart was 15-of-23 as a senior (2007). Since Eberhart left, CU is 19-of-42 on field goal tries (2008, 2009, halfway through 2010) . . . . Under new coach Tommy Tuberville, the Red Raiders use more two-back offensive sets than they did under former coach Mike Leach. Other than that, said CU secondary coach Ashley Ambrose, "They're basically the same type team . . . but they like to run the ball - that's the difference from the past, they run the ball and they've got two good running backs. They try to set up the run for their passing game." . . . . In Tech QB Taylor Potts, CU won't be faced with another Robert Griffin III, the versatile Baylor QB who ran for 137 yards and passed for another 234 against the Buffs last week. Tuberville uses Potts in much the same way Leach did - getting the ball out fast to his receivers. Said Ambrose: "He's a better thrower than (Griffin), but this guy is not a big runner." . . . . With CU moving to the Pac-10 next season, Saturday's visit by Tech might be the last. The schools have played only nine times, with CU holding a 5-4 series edge. The Red Raiders are 0-4 at Folsom Field . . . . Tech senior tailback Baron Batch needs 17 receiving yards to reach 1,000 for his career. He reached 2,000 career rushing yards last weekend against Oklahoma State . . . . Tech's secondary has eight of the team's 10 interceptions this season. The Red Raiders are second in the conference to Nebraska (11) in that category.
Contact: BG.Brooks@Colorado.EDU
