Saturday morning it was back on the field for a One on One Lesson with Michael Braunstein, Ohio University kicker. This past season, Michael was 20 for 24 on field goal attempts which was good for a .833 percentage. He was a 2007 Lou Groza Semi Finalist. Michael kicked at Ohio University and at the University of Washington during his College career. (84% at both places).
When I came on the practice field Michael greeted me with a big smile and hand shake. I could tell from our phone conversations and now in person that he is a very personable young man.
Like always, we start the lesson with Michael doing his warm-up and kicking progression. I observe his kicking technique and ask questions. He gives me answers. I can tell he is very knowledgeable about his kicking style and technique. However, some of his answers don't match with what he is actually doing during his kick.
My job is to not only teach but also educate my clients. I started to educate Michael on what he was doing during some of his kicks that was giving him negative muscle memory.
I believe the key to a kickers success is streamlining all his kicking and drills. I want kickers to execute the: no step /one step and his field goal kicking technique with the same muscle memory!
Michael quickly picked up my concepts and understood the adjustments he needed to make to get the same muscle memory on his no step, one step and field goal kicks. He's already a good kicker so all I try to do is help him or any kicker refine their technique.
The real reason Michael came to work with me was to improve his consistency and distance on his kickoffs. I first learn a kicker's field goal technique, then take that information and use it to make him better on his kickoff technique. Michael kicked off and I observed making mental notes. He definitely was kicking off out of control. I gave him my observations and suggested a couple of adjustments. Michael is a quick fix, as he executed the adjustments to perfection. He could feel the change and difference it made in his consistency and distance.
We ended our One on One Kicking Lesson with video review. Michael knows what he needs to do to refine his field goal technique and improve his consistency on kickoffs. I think, Michael left a happy camper!
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