We’ve all seen the stereotypes of kickers in movies, television and the media at large, as near non-athletes. We see depictions of kickers duct taped to goalposts, strung up by their jock straps, and ridiculed in general as the black sheep of every football team.
The stereotype is definitely there, says junior place-kicker and kickoff specialist Matt Evensen, but it’s not true, at least not for him.
“We do get stereotyped as kind of the weak guy that’s not really going to do anything,” Evensen said. “The kicker has to be part of the game though, because if that guy gets through and (the kicker) just stands there and stares at him that’s not going to help anybody.
“I like to tackle and I think kickoff is probably one of my favorite parts of the game,” he said. “I like to tackle but I don’t want to have to do it because that means he’s gotten by 10 other guys.”
Evensen said that he and the other kickers on the Oregon football team certainly don’t have to put up with any pranks or disrespect from their teammates.
“Everybody on this team is really helpful and appreciative of what you do. There’s nobody out here that has put me down,” he said. “All the guys are pretty nice guys. There’s nobody out here that’s going to downgrade you for what your position is.”
That inclusive attitude toward kickers isn’t necessarily the norm in football though, and Evensen said that the stereotype definitely has roots in the attitudes of some in the football world. While he didn’t name specific programs, he did say he hears horror stories from other kickers about the way some coaches treat them.
“I’ve heard of schools where the kickers show up, kick, and then leave. They’re not even really a part of the team,” Evensen said. “I’ve heard of other coaches that just hate the kickers and don’t even want them there.”
But Oregon kickers have a friend in coach Mike Bellotti. The coach is deeply involved with the technique of his punters and the kicking crew in general. This attitude spills over to the rest of the coaching staff.
“(Bellotti is) more of a punting coach but I think he definitely shows interest. And the other coaches, they respect us because he’s out there working with us,” Evensen said.
Evensen is doing his part to refute the stereotype, working hard in the offseason to not only hone his technique, but to gain strength as well. This offseason Evensen, who weighs in at 194 pounds, increased his maximum bench press by 40 pounds to 265 pounds and his squat by 30 pounds to 375 pounds.
Part of that work ethic was motivated by the pride any serious athlete takes in his or her physical condition; the rest was fueled by the uncertainty surrounding the kicker position in the offseason.
“Going into the offseason I wasn’t going to be the kicker,” Evensen said. “I heard they were going to bring a freshman and he was going to take my spot, so there was motivation there to get better.”
Evensen earned the starting spot, and has delivered on 10 of 13 chances on field goals, 47 yards being his longest, and a perfect 42 of 42 on PATs to total 72 points he has scored for the Ducks this season. The performance has earned him a spot as a semifinalist for the Groza Award.
The award, named after former NFL Hall of Fame and Cleveland Browns standout kicker Lou Groza, is given annually to the top collegiate place-kicker in the country. He is one of three kickers from the Pacific-10 Conference named to the semifinalist list, joining Arizona State’s Thomas Weber and Oregon State’s Alexis Serna. The three finalists for the award will be announced Nov. 20.
“Matt has done a tremendous job this year … he’s comfortable, he’s confident,” Bellotti said. “I have ultimate confidence in him.”
Evensen is one of the more low-profile kickers on the list, given the Oregon offense’s red-zone efficiency, but he wouldn’t have it any other way.
“If we’re scoring touchdowns I’m fine with that,” he said. “It’s a little less pressure on me.”
Evensen hasn’t faced many pressure situations this season, or in his career at Oregon. The last and only time he was called upon to deliver a game-winning kick in the fourth quarter of a game was in last season’s Civil War. Then-starting kicker Paul Martinez had missed field goal attempts of 35 and 34 yards in the game, and Evensen got the call with 20 seconds left in the game and Oregon down 30-28. Evensen’s 44-yard attempt was knocked down by Beaver defender Ben Siegert to cement the win for Oregon State.
“It didn’t turn out how I wanted it to,” Evensen said of the blocked attempt. “But if it comes down to it again hopefully I’ll be mentally prepared and be able to put it in.”
Part of Evensen’s confidence comes from the fact that he knows he is “the guy” this year. Which wasn’t the case before, when he would come in when the starting kicker was unavailable or having a bad day.
“Having confidence to know that you’re the guy definitely helps at any position,” he said. “That was probably one of the weaknesses I had last year, was just not really knowing when I was going to go in.”
That kick against Oregon State was another driving force in Evensen’s offseason workouts. Dealing with those pressure situations was on his mind then, but won’t be when the time comes to deliver a game-winner for his team.
“All through the offseason I was thinking about that,” he said. “But preparing for that is just like preparing for anything else. It’s just like any other kick. You can’t put the pressure on yourself because once you start thinking about it, that’s when it gets to you.”
[email protected]