Pack Kicking Duties Belong to New Faces

After last week’s starting punter Nate Franklin fumbled a snap, giving Boston College the ball on the Pack’s own 13, coach Tom O’Brien decided it was time for a change.

In response, he put in redshirt junior Bradley Pierson, who will now take on the punting duties for the Pack at a position he knows has hurt the Pack in its first two games.

“As far as our punting, we didn’t get the ball down the field and give our defense the opportunity to stop the offense,” Pierson said. “In return that didn’t give our offense good field position starting, that definitely hurt us.”

The irony of the kicking situation is that both Pierson and the Pack’s starting place kicker, grad student Steven Hauschka, were seemingly unknown walk-ons when the season began.

Hauschka has since gone 2-2 on his field goal attempts in this season's two games, while Pierson had two punts, averaging 38.5 yards in his debut against the Eagles.

Pierson, who was recruited by former assistant Doc Holiday, said he was patiently waiting for his chance to arrive, but was confident that one day his name would be called.

“This is my fourth year here, and I’ve been here through many a-guys coming in and out, walk-ons, scholarship guys,” Pierson said.

"I’ve had coaches tell me to stick with it and I’ve kicked thousands and thousands of balls, and all of those kicks finally paid off this Saturday when I got in.”

Though, Pierson didn’t start kicking until his junior year in high school, he was recruited as a place kicker and came to State feeling he could one day earn a starting spot. With former kicker John Deraney taking all kicking duties, however, it left Pierson wondering if his time would ever come, despite his talent.

“I didn’t feel anyone was that much better than me,” Pierson said. “So if I stuck with it eventually I would get an opportunity to prove myself.”

Hauschka didn’t begin kicking until his sophomore year at Middlebury College in Mass., where he originally was a member of the soccer team. It was his football playing roommates that persuaded him to try place kicking.

“It was always something I wanted to do because I had a strong leg in soccer,” Hauschka said. “And then the real turning point was when my roommates in college, they needed a kicker and they convinced me to do it. So it happened that I went out on the football field my sophomore year and had a good year, and the rest is history.”

Hauschka, who has been described by O’Brien as having a big-league leg, knew that he was the man for the job, though he didn’t receive the pre-season hype.

“I didn’t think it was a surprise for me, I know it is for everyone here because I wasn’t listed at all in the media guide or anything like that,” Hauschka said. “But I was never really concerned about any of that hype. There’s a lot of talk that goes on, and I knew that if I came into camp and did my best, and focused on my own game, then I would eventually be out on the field.”

• Junior Tailback Andre Brown was practicing in pads today, though he had a small cast on the left hand that he injured in the Boston College game.

• For the second straight week redshirt freshman Javon Walker is listed as the starter at safety over junior DaJuan Morgan. Morgan has eight tackles this season compared to Walker’s four.