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http://www.montereyherald.com/mld/montereyherald/sports/9794180.htm
Nugent provides a leg up for Buckeyes
[size=-1]By REID HANLEY[/size]
[size=-1]Chicago Tribune[/size]
<!-- begin body-content --> CHICAGO - Ohio State kicker Mike Nugent isn't one of these little guys who struts on and off the football field without breaking a sweat.
The Buckeyes senior has been in a lot of pressure situations since he started kicking for coach Jim Tressel four years ago. Nugent has been in situations where sweating is a given.
Nugent, who will kick Saturday night at Northwestern's Ryan Field, is one of the reasons the Buckeyes are 3-0 going into their Big Ten opener against the Wildcats.
He kicked a 55-yard field goal as time ran out to help Ohio State defeat Marshall 24-21 in the second week of the season. The next week he kicked five field goals at North Carolina State as the Buckeyes won 22-14. He has been the Buckeyes' biggest offensive weapon.
"He just has done a great job, coming through when we needed him," Tressel said. "We keep saying he may be the best kicker in the country."
Nugent also knows the dark side of being a kicker. He was a .500 kicker as a freshman and feels the pain of other kickers who miss in key situations. He feels for guys like Northwestern's Brian Huffman, who missed five field goals in a loss to Texas Christian, and Oregon State's Alexis Serna, who missed three extra points in an overtime loss to LSU.
"I sit there and think, `I've been through the same thing,'
" he said. "It's real tough. A lot of people don't know what it's like. Everything is focused on that one play. You can't make it up on the next play. You have to wait 20 minutes or even an hour to get another chance."
Tressel has reason to say the former Centerville, Ohio, option quarterback is the best in the country. Nugent owns 16 Ohio State records and has made 56 of 70 field-goal attempts (80 percent) in his career.
This year he has one miss in nine tries, making seven straight. He followed up the Marshall bomb with a 50-yarder on his first kick at N.C. State. Nugent, a top NFL kicking prospect, has made 49 of his last 56 three-pointers.
"I've gotten a lot of experience," he said. "My sophomore year, every game was close and every field goal was under pressure."
When Tressel came to Ohio State, the Buckeyes had lost Dan Stultz, their all-time field-goal leader with 59, to graduation. Tressel knew he needed to recruit a kicker, and Nugent was offered a scholarship.
"He started from Day One," Tressel said.
The adjustment from high school to college is a bit more pronounced as a kicker than at other positions. College kickers don't use a tee on field goals and more than 100,000 fans might be watching instead of a few thousand neighbors, friends and family.
Nugent came to Ohio State having attempted only 17 field goals in his high school career, making 13. As a senior he was 5 of 7. He made only 7 of 14 his first season at Ohio State but learned not to sweat the small stuff and just kick the ball.
"It was mostly the mental aspects," said Nugent, whose friend and mentor is St. Louis Rams kicker Jeff Wilkins. "I really didn't change anything physically. I just changed the mental aspect.
"I did well in practice (freshman year) but not so good in games. I was thinking about things too much. You can't be worrying about the hold, about the snap. You have to forget about all that stuff."
Ohio State's special teams might be the best in the Big Ten. Punter Kyle Turano, who is Nugent's holder, is fourth in the conference with a 41.6-yard average. Only five of Nugent's kickoffs have been returned.
Nugent, Turano and long snapper Kyle Andrews have become a smooth unit. Nugent has made all seven of his extra points.
"If one of us doesn't do his job, it really puts a dent in things," Nugent said. "We work together every day. One of my biggest things is you should practice how you play."
Nugent, who is a team captain this season, tries to be more than just the kicker for Ohio State. The Buckeyes start practice with special teams, but Nugent's day isn't over when he stops kicking. He helps the defense in pursuit drills and catches passes from the quarterbacks.
"That tells them I'm not just a kicker, I'm an athlete," he said. "I ran the option in high school and maybe that gives them the feeling, `Hey, we have an athlete back there, not someone who has never been hit before.' `'
Although Nugent would rather kick a game-winning field goal against Michigan ("Actually, I'd rather beat Michigan 100-0," he said.), he doesn't mind admitting he was a bit envious when Iowa's Nate Kaeding ran for a touchdown on a fake field goal against the Buckeyes last year.
"I thought that was so cool," he said. "To score a touchdown is one of the coolest things, and kickers don't often get a chance to do that. I was just glad we came out on top in that game. Coach Tressel knows in the back of his head that's something we can do."
No sweat.
http://www.montereyherald.com/mld/montereyherald/sports/9794180.htm
Nugent provides a leg up for Buckeyes
[size=-1]By REID HANLEY[/size]
[size=-1]Chicago Tribune[/size]
<!-- begin body-content --> CHICAGO - Ohio State kicker Mike Nugent isn't one of these little guys who struts on and off the football field without breaking a sweat.
The Buckeyes senior has been in a lot of pressure situations since he started kicking for coach Jim Tressel four years ago. Nugent has been in situations where sweating is a given.
Nugent, who will kick Saturday night at Northwestern's Ryan Field, is one of the reasons the Buckeyes are 3-0 going into their Big Ten opener against the Wildcats.
He kicked a 55-yard field goal as time ran out to help Ohio State defeat Marshall 24-21 in the second week of the season. The next week he kicked five field goals at North Carolina State as the Buckeyes won 22-14. He has been the Buckeyes' biggest offensive weapon.
"He just has done a great job, coming through when we needed him," Tressel said. "We keep saying he may be the best kicker in the country."
Nugent also knows the dark side of being a kicker. He was a .500 kicker as a freshman and feels the pain of other kickers who miss in key situations. He feels for guys like Northwestern's Brian Huffman, who missed five field goals in a loss to Texas Christian, and Oregon State's Alexis Serna, who missed three extra points in an overtime loss to LSU.
"I sit there and think, `I've been through the same thing,'
" he said. "It's real tough. A lot of people don't know what it's like. Everything is focused on that one play. You can't make it up on the next play. You have to wait 20 minutes or even an hour to get another chance."
Tressel has reason to say the former Centerville, Ohio, option quarterback is the best in the country. Nugent owns 16 Ohio State records and has made 56 of 70 field-goal attempts (80 percent) in his career.
This year he has one miss in nine tries, making seven straight. He followed up the Marshall bomb with a 50-yarder on his first kick at N.C. State. Nugent, a top NFL kicking prospect, has made 49 of his last 56 three-pointers.
"I've gotten a lot of experience," he said. "My sophomore year, every game was close and every field goal was under pressure."
When Tressel came to Ohio State, the Buckeyes had lost Dan Stultz, their all-time field-goal leader with 59, to graduation. Tressel knew he needed to recruit a kicker, and Nugent was offered a scholarship.
"He started from Day One," Tressel said.
The adjustment from high school to college is a bit more pronounced as a kicker than at other positions. College kickers don't use a tee on field goals and more than 100,000 fans might be watching instead of a few thousand neighbors, friends and family.
Nugent came to Ohio State having attempted only 17 field goals in his high school career, making 13. As a senior he was 5 of 7. He made only 7 of 14 his first season at Ohio State but learned not to sweat the small stuff and just kick the ball.
"It was mostly the mental aspects," said Nugent, whose friend and mentor is St. Louis Rams kicker Jeff Wilkins. "I really didn't change anything physically. I just changed the mental aspect.
"I did well in practice (freshman year) but not so good in games. I was thinking about things too much. You can't be worrying about the hold, about the snap. You have to forget about all that stuff."
Ohio State's special teams might be the best in the Big Ten. Punter Kyle Turano, who is Nugent's holder, is fourth in the conference with a 41.6-yard average. Only five of Nugent's kickoffs have been returned.
Nugent, Turano and long snapper Kyle Andrews have become a smooth unit. Nugent has made all seven of his extra points.
"If one of us doesn't do his job, it really puts a dent in things," Nugent said. "We work together every day. One of my biggest things is you should practice how you play."
Nugent, who is a team captain this season, tries to be more than just the kicker for Ohio State. The Buckeyes start practice with special teams, but Nugent's day isn't over when he stops kicking. He helps the defense in pursuit drills and catches passes from the quarterbacks.
"That tells them I'm not just a kicker, I'm an athlete," he said. "I ran the option in high school and maybe that gives them the feeling, `Hey, we have an athlete back there, not someone who has never been hit before.' `'
Although Nugent would rather kick a game-winning field goal against Michigan ("Actually, I'd rather beat Michigan 100-0," he said.), he doesn't mind admitting he was a bit envious when Iowa's Nate Kaeding ran for a touchdown on a fake field goal against the Buckeyes last year.
"I thought that was so cool," he said. "To score a touchdown is one of the coolest things, and kickers don't often get a chance to do that. I was just glad we came out on top in that game. Coach Tressel knows in the back of his head that's something we can do."
No sweat.
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