FCS Top 20 Returning Placekickers for 2009

[native]

Thanks for all the feedback on this thread and on SmallCollegeFootballFan's excellent Top 50 thread. I am refining my rating method based on all your comments and will post a new top kicker thread in the near future.

[bluehenbillk]

2007 1st team All-American John Striefsky is still at Delaware...... He couldn't crack your top 20??

Howdy, Bluhenbillk. Thanks for the post!

I did not look at 2007 stats, and I did not yet consider post season honors, but those are good points to consider.

After you brought him to my attention, I did take a look at Jon Striefsky's performance metrics. He would not have made the cut based on his 2008 statistics. He tied for 96th in the country for total kick scoring points, and his FG% was bested by at least 93 FCS kickers with 8 or more field goal attempts.

There were two ways to make the cut on my list: First, to be an underclassman on the NCAA Top 20 FG% list. Second, to be among the top 25 returning kick scorers (points total) listed on the espn FCS stats for 2008.

Striefsky's 54.5% FG success rate is well below that of other players who made the cut, and his season total of 43 kicking points is 16 points below the lowest point total to have made the cut. He had no game winners for the Blue Hens, but he did miss a 40-yard attempt which was the margin of a 21-23 loss to Furman.

I'll give you accuracy but kick scoring is a bogus measure of a kicker. UD's offense was pathetic last year & rarely got into the red zone. If Adam Vinatieri was the best kicker in the NFL when he was on the Patriots, let's say he went to the Lions instead of the Colts. Just because he's on the Lions, isn't he still the best kicker in the league???

[native]

...I'll give you accuracy but kick scoring is a bogus measure of a kicker. UD's offense was pathetic last year & rarely got into the red zone. If Adam Vinatieri was the best kicker in the NFL when he was on the Patriots, let's say he went to the Lions instead of the Colts. Just because he's on the Lions, isn't he still the best kicker in the league???

We are in agreement that kick scoring alone is a bogus measure for a kicker!

However, there is a big difference between a kicker taking 5 kicks per game and a kicker taking 20 kicks per game, just as there is a big difference between a runner taking 5 carries and one who takes 20 or 30 carries per game. Nobody pays attention to the runner who only takes 5 carries per game. 50 kicks in a season is not a sufficient test of performance, capability and endurance.

There is also an important technical reason that it is critical to measure the total number of kicks and the power of the kicks that kickers take. Many kickers open up their kicking foot a bit to increase the size of the sweet spot on their foot that strikes the sweet spot on the ball. This works to increase accuracy for shorter kicks but reduces the available striking power, is less efficient mechanically, increases the risk of injury to the kicker, and is therefore less valuable to the team and not sustainable in the long run.

Placekicker Jordan Congdon, Rivals' #1 rated kicker in 2005, is an excellent case in point. The high school and college freshman All American set the all time Nebraska Cornhusker record for field goals in 2005 and led NCAA freshman kickers in FG%, but he was not trusted by the Nebraska coaches on longer kicks due to his limited range. Congdon acheived his remarkable successes by severely blading his foot, which caused back pain throughout his high school and thus far his college career, limited the power he could deliver to the ball and decreased the range he could acheive with his kicks. Jordan is reported to have adjusted his kicking mechanics before transferring to USC as a walk on. It remains to be seen whether the adjustment will be successful as he competes for a starting position with the Trojans.

I'll take Adam Vinatieri anytime, but he is no longer the best kicker in the NFL, and there is a reason the Patriots let him go.

[polsongrizz]

I am shocked and appalled that Montana's kicker isn't on this list.

He is, just buried a little deeper at say, oh #129.

[native]

...I am interested in the Freshmen included. Did you look at K/O aver in your criteria. If yes, how did you factor in Cunningham , Mora and Scott who did not handle K/O duties. MSU had a K/O aver of 68.4, Ga Southern 62.5 and Fla A M with 55.5 aver!! To me the ability to handlle K/O displays leg strength as well as accuracy especially since they moved the K/O to the 30 and are doing more directional kicking. As well...Trevor Scott was 12/20 on F/G (1-6 from 40-49) long of 37 and didn't handle K/O duties?? and he is on the list?

Thanks, Pigskin1! I could not agree more that kickoff performance is an important measure of kicker leg strength and even accuracy! KOs are also an important indication of kicker durability and an indispensable contribution to team success.

According to the MEAC conference web site, Trevor Scott did indeed perform kickoff duties for the Rattlers, averaging 39.1 NET yards on kickoffs, which ranks him 9th in kickoffs among the top kickers. He also kicked a 43 yard FG against Hampton. Even though Trevor's overall FG% was dismal, he had a respectable 78.6% success rate in red zone field goals. These are the factors that got him on my list, despite his shortcomings.

Any placekicker who does not perform kickoffs is suspect, unless he is booming long field goals and playing behind a punter or another kicker doing the kickoffs. MSU's Jason Cunningham is such a kicker. He knocked in a 52 yarder against Northern Colorado and plays behind punter Eric Fisher, who had an outstanding 43 net yard KO average for the Bobcats. Mora is a superior short range kicker but we do not really know his power potential because he does not do kickoffs or attempt long range field goals. His longest attempt was 42 yards, which he made, but he missed 40% of his kicks from outside the red zone.

I use NET yards on kickoffs instead of KO distance, because it is a more important factor in team success and can be an indication of hang time, which is just as important as distance on kickoffs. Besides, low flat kickoffs with great distance are more likely than any other kickoffs to be returned for big yardage and even touchdowns.

All that said, I am still refining my scoring method.

[gater123]

I have seen Ranked #7 Ryan Gates Kick in many games, as a true freshman last year he went 17-22 with a long of 49, and from 40+ went 7-9. And made first team all confrence and is a pre-season ALL AMERICA, and set 5 records in the Big South Confrence. why isn't this kid getting any attention?

[tampajag]

The NCAA top 20 kicker FG% list is a good place to start, but is inadequate by itself to capture the value of kickers to their teams. My criteria for kicker value include total kicking points scored, FG%, red zone FG%, longest FG, average net kickoff yards, and clutch kicks.

Based on these criteria, here is my list of the top 20 returning FCS kickers for 2009:

Rank, Kicker, Team
1 Eddie Carmona, Central Ark
2 Jon Williams, Weber St
3 Brian Pate, William & Mary
4 Kyle Dougherty, SIU
5 Jeff Turner, SE Louisiana
6 Billy Hallgren, UNI
7 Ryan Gates, Gardner-Webb
8 Jason Vitaris, App State
9 Davis Rodriguez, Lafayette
10 Ross Schexnayder, Nicholls St
11 Jason Cunningham, Montana St
12 Eric Perri, Jackson St
13 Taylor Wilkins, Sam Houston St
14 Shawn Bibeau, ND State
15 Trevor Scott, Fla A&M
16 Patrick Long, Harvard
17 Andrew Howard, Richmond
18 Peter Reifenrath, SD State
19 Jeremy Licea, Alabama A&M
20T Andrew Samson, Penn
20T Adrian Mora, Ga Southern

Great list! Just wondering where you would place Southern's Josh Duran on the list? Not saying he should be ranked, just wondering if you had an opinion on him.