New kickers

[RickRund]

The RAMS had the worst FG % in the nfl. Their kickers missed 11 FGs for the season. Haven't checked to see if that caused a loss or not.

49ers would have won if their kicker had been more accurate if I am not mistaken. That and the very, very rare McCaffery fumble.

He did miss a PAT in the Super Bowl, but at the same time he's the reason they were in a position to go to OT, having made two 50-plus yard kicks.

True, make 2 50+ yards and miss a PAT. kicked it low, correct.

[Catprint]

Late to the ball game on this thread but here are some stats and thoughts.

1) Punts/Kickoffs are very different from PAT/FG
2) PKs are all about hang time and distance. Accuracy is secondary but really only focused on keeping the ball in the field of play
3) PAT/FG are all about accuracy and pressure
4) PAT/FG involve a holder while PK's do not


Given those fundamentals we all know and understand...
1) Hall's (MSU's) Net Punting Stat was 43.65 to lead the Big Sky. This includes return yards. Montana State was #1 in the nation in Net Punting Yards. The NCAA does not provide an individual statistic for Net Punting since it is a combination of the punter and punt coverage. However, if you look at the stats there is a strong correlation between the best punters for distance and team Net Punting. The punter is the key. It is hard to argue with #1 in the FCS.
2) For punting average, Hall averaged 46.1 yards which was second in the Big Sky. In fact, Hall would have been 3RD in the country out of 100 some FCS punters but our offense was too good. His 34 punts was not enough to meet the minimum for the statistic.
3) The Bobcats had five blocked kicks. I believe all of them were PAT/FGs. However, feel free to recall a blocked punt. I looked through all the games and found 3 blocked PATs from Kautzman; 1 blocked PAT from Hall and no blocked punts. (which by the way, i know doesn't add up to five. Don't know where is the fifth.)
4) Hall had 72 Kickoffs for a Touchback and only 8 returned. The 72 touchbacks led the FCS and the next highest was 55 by the Griz. Maybe it is the Mountain air.

Summary of Punts and kickoffs: In Brendan Hall, we had the best punter in the country and arguably the best kicker in the country. We had one of the best punt coverage teams in the country. Our kickoff coverage ranking was hurt by Bergen's return in the Brawl. With only 8 kick returns all year, 1 bad one skews the average. Really hard to complain.

PATs and Field Goals - A different story

PATs: We scored 65 touchdowns (41 rushing; 20 passing; 3 defensive and 1 return). We missed 7 PATs including 5 blocked. That is 89% success ratio. As a comparison to other top scoring teams: SDSU- 93%; Holy Cross - 96%; Portland State - 96%; NDSU - 96%; UM - 89.4%; Idaho- 98%; Western Carolina - 98%. Pretty much Cats were trailing all but the Griz. One missed PAT likely affected the outcome of one game (NDSU).

FGs: In two games missed field goals (NDSU and UI) could have been the difference. The other two losses there were no misses (SDSU) and a miss that might have helped momentum (Brawl). Halls FG percentage was 72nd out of 80 kickers who had at least 10 attempts. He missed 6 field goals while Kautzman missed 3 so we missed 9 field goals.

Summary of PAT/FG: As we all know; not great. could be holder; could be blocking; could be kicker but definitely needs improvement. With 5 block PATs and 9 missed Field Goals there is room for improvement. But I really don't have the answer on how you get improvement. But getting a new punter and kicker for kickoffs is definitely NOT the answer.

[Montanabob]

simple answer.
score more touchdowns.
don't let opponents score tds

[mslacatfan]

simple answer.
score more touchdowns.
don't let opponents score tds

I think that was their strategy last year…. And that didn’t work out so well.

We absolutely need a solid FG kicker.

[MSU01]

simple answer.
score more touchdowns.
don't let opponents score tds

Full Dan Campbell, I love it! A lot of the analytics data agrees that going for it on 4th and short is mathematically the better option than kicking a field goal depending on field position and game score/time left.

[St George]

Just a silly question, has a kicker ever tried kicking the ball using a golf simulator? The kicker may have to use a soccer ball to get a more accurate reading.

[wbtfg]

Just a silly question, has a kicker ever tried kicking the ball using a golf simulator? The kicker may have to use a soccer ball to get a more accurate reading.

The ol’ foot wedge is probably the most reliable club in my bag.

[tdub]

Just a silly question, has a kicker ever tried kicking the ball using a golf simulator? The kicker may have to use a soccer ball to get a more accurate reading.

The ol’ foot wedge is probably the most reliable club in my bag.

[St George]

Just a silly question, has a kicker ever tried kicking the ball using a golf simulator? The kicker may have to use a soccer ball to get a more accurate reading.

The ol’ foot wedge is probably the most reliable club in my bag.

I carry two in my bag. Just trying to see what they can do until the indoor practice facility is ready. Field goals and extra points seemed to be the weakest link last year.

[PapaG]

simple answer.
score more touchdowns.
don't let opponents score tds

I think that was their strategy last year…. And that didn’t work out so well.

We absolutely need a solid FG kicker.

Tried that with Prukop/Cramsey and many who were posting here couldn’t stand it. It was largely a terrible defensive scheme with Jamie Marshall but those offenses were elite with Prukop taking snaps. The backup QB situation was underwhelming but those guys gave a lot to the program in being class acts.

Also wanted to add that I don’t like punt block attempts with an offense as good MSU’s. It seems when I watch games on Saturdays across college football a 15-yard first down on a roughing penalty is the result of a punt block attempt more often than a blocked punt.