Boleski & Starr Return for Website

On Sunday and Monday Austin Starr (Indiana University) and Todd Boleski (Michigan State University) were here in Scottsdale, Arizona for some One on One Kicking Lessons. Both former Big 10 kickers returned to try and make highlight videos to post on the NFL Pro Personnel Section under 2009 Draft on www.coachzauner.com.

First up Todd Boleski...

Todd has a very strong leg for field goals, but his specialty is kickoffs. He demonstrated his leg strength on Sunday with some long field goals over 50 yards including a long kick of 63 yards! His kickoffs were equally impressive with most kickoffs at the goal line or in the end zone with an average hang time around 4.0 plus seconds.

Next up Austin Starr...

Austin had an excellent field goal workout going 12 for 13 with a long of 58 yards and his only miss was from 60 yards. He was kicking with confidence and in rhythm. Austin has really worked hard on the drills and his technique since I first saw him two months ago.

The injury he sustained last year affected his kicking motion and form. He has worked extremely hard to get his kicking technique and consistency back and take his game to the next level.

I believe this trip was a success for both Todd and Austin as they both were able to put together a workout for the website. I want to wish both of them good luck in the upcoming 2009 NFL Draft and in the future.

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Garrett Maloney Marquette H. S.

On Friday, Saturday and Sunday Garrett Maloney (Marquette High School) and his father Terry were in Scottsdale Arizona for some One on One Punting Lessons.

Garrett was a two sport standout athlete at Marquette High School back in Milwaukee Wisconsin my home town. Garrett came here to refine his punting technique and get my evaluation of his college potential.

Garrett is a good looking athlete and punter at 6'4 205 pounds. He has the potential to play both basketball and punt at the next level depending on the college he attends. Garrett received All-Conference 'Player of the Year' this past season in addition to several articles written in the Milwaukee and Wisconsin papers. The key will be to get him into the right situation to exhibit those skills.

Last summer I first met Garrett and I could tell right away he had punting talent. My goal then and still now is to make him fundamentally sound. When he hits a good punt it goes, however he must hit those punts more consistently.

The two things we worked on this weekend was for Garrett to eliminate crunching down (photo below) when punting and to improve his drop and make it more consistent.

In the photo above you see Garrett punting and crunching down and in the photo below you see Garrett punting up and through the ball. You will see punters doing it both ways and maybe being successful, however, I like my punters getting up and through the ball with full extension and not crunching or hurdling down.

The biggest change I suggested Garrett make is to change his drop. He was using what I call the torpedo drop. I really hate for anyone to change their drop however in Garrett's case his drop was killing him.

I showed him a couple of options and he tried them with success. But he was not comfortable with the change. I told him it would take time and a lot of practice.

On Sunday, Garrett came out to watch a couple of other kickers workout. During the break he started to hit some punts. As I watched Garrett from a distance he was turning over almost every punt with excellent distance. I went over to him and asked what drop he was using and he told me the new one. He smiled!

Garrett is now a believer in what a good drop can do for any punter. After working with Garrett again I believe this young man has the potential to be an excellent college punter. All he needs is chance and the right situation.

It was a pleasure working with Garrett again and I wish him the best of luck in his college career. I hope he finds a good home for next years football season.

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Seth Burkholder

On Wednesday and Thursday Seth Burkholder (Bluffton University) came here to Scottsdale, Arizona for some One on One Kicking Lessons. Seth came here to work on his kicking technique in the hopes of taking his game to the next level.

Seth played at a Division III school in Ohio and has had some workouts with the Columbus Destroyers Arena League team.

As you can see in the picture (above) I noticed that Seth was having some trouble with his 'Perfect Plant' which was effecting his foot position on the ball. I showed him my 'One Step Drill' and we worked on getting his foot a little further from the ball so he would make better contact on the ball. He was wrapping his foot around the ball and hooking or drawing too many of kicks to his left.

By the end of the first day we had made a couple of adjustments on the field and Seth was starting to kick much better.

The video review session after Seth's first lesson was very helpful. The things I pointed out on the field became crystal clear to Seth after he viewed himself on tape in slow motion and stop action.

The second day I came up with a progression of drills to help Seth emphasize a couple of key fundamentals.

At the end of the second day he was kicking the ball much better and he seemed to be quite pleased with his kicking. Seth now knows what he needs to do to take his game to the next level.

It was pleasure meeting and working with Seth Burkholder and I want to wish him the best of luck in his kicking future!

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LSU Boys Back in Town

On Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday former LSU specialists Colt David & Brady Dalfrey returned to Scottsdale, Arizona for some One on One Lessons. Colt and Brady were here to refine their technique and to follow up on their lessons from about a month ago in hopes of pursuing careers in the NFL.

First up was Colt David. Colt really picked up everything that he learned on his previous visit rather quickly. From the first time I saw Colt kick I knew that he had the 'pop' in his leg to be an NFL kicker, but this time around he really showed the consistency that he needs to take his game to the next level.

Over the next three days I put Colt through two pro style field goal workouts and he performed extremely well. He hit several kicks of over 50 yards and even hit a 59 yard field goal with a brand new 'K" ball.

Also, on this trip Colt wanted to emphasize working on his kickoff technique. Colt mentioned to me that he had never handled kickoff duties in college. In my eyes, Colt is a sleeper!

We worked on his approach and also his plant foot in relation to the tee. During the three days of work Colt definitely improved on his kickoff technique. With the strong leg that he has showed kicking field goals I am confident this will translate into Colt also being a solid kickoff man.

Next up...LSU Punter, Brady Dalfrey.

Brady also has improved. His drop and footwork are much better. On Brady's previous visit we worked a lot on his drop and footwork, however, this time around I could see that he had been practicing! His footwork was much more consistent this time around and it really helped his punting.

We continued working on my 'Drop Progression' drill. However, at the end of the second lesson I noticed that Brady was changing his hand position during his drop. I never like to change a punters drop but for Brady to take his game to the next level I asked Brady to try a different drop. He tried it and boomed a bunch of (SNO) spiral nose over punts and smiled.

I believe that if Brady can continued to improve his drop and be more consistent he will turn the heads of NFL Special Teams Coaches and Scouts. Brady is very close to putting everything together on his punting game. He has a lot of physical tools to work with and with continued hard work I believe can be an excellent punter.

I want to wish both Colt and Brady the best of luck on the upcoming 2009 NFL Draft. Both of these specialists are talented and I believe they have a chance to be in an NFL camp this year.

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Evaluations Lindstrom & McHone

On Saturday Gabe Lindstrom (University of Toledo) and Garon McHone (University of Arizona) were in Scottsdale, Arizona for evaluations of their NFL potential. As my 2009 Coach Zauner Free Agent Specialists NFL Combine draws closer I will be evaluating more and more prospects.

First up was Gabe Lindstrom. Immediately I could see Gabe had good size at 6'4 220 pounds and a strong leg. At 32 years old he has had lots of experience with NFL teams like the New York Giants, Houston Texans, Chicago Bears, Cleveland Browns, and Seattle Seahawks.

I noticed during the evaluation that Gabe had a 'nose up' drop. We worked on making a few corrections and he hit the ball much better.

Gabe hit some booming punts with hang times as high as 5.1 and 5.2 seconds, but also had a couple of 'stray bullets'. He is definitely an intriguing prospect who showed some potential.

The next man up was Garon McHone. I could see that Garon had a good frame at 6'4, 232 pounds and could easily add another 20 to 30 pounds as he once weighed 270 in college.

Garon had some good snaps and showed good potential, but was also inconsistent at times. I gave him some different drills to work on and he will be back on April 4th to see if he qualifies for my Free Agent Specialists NFL Combine scheduled for April 6 in Phoenix, Arizona.

It was great working with Gabe and Garon and I want to wish them the best of luck in their pursuit of an NFL career!

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Gerry McGroarty U. of Buffalo

On Friday, Saturday, and Sunday Gerry McGroarty (University of Buffalo) came here to Scottsdale, Arizona for some One on One Kicking Lessons. Gerry handled the kickoffs for Buffalo this past season and is eligible for this year's 2009 NFL Draft. He came here to work on his field goal and kickoff technique and get my evaluation of his NFL potential.

Gerry is about 6'2 and 220 pounds and is a good looking athlete. He had many honors coming out of high school. However, at the college level he was only the kickoff man at the University of Buffalo. He wants to refine his technique and that is why is here.

On the first day I saw that Gerry has a very strong kicking leg but was having some trouble with his 'foot position' on the ball, which is illustrated in the picture (below). I had him work on some different drills to work on opening his foot more to get better contact on the ball.

Gerry obviously has leg strength, which he demonstrated when he hit a 64 yard field goal in high school off a two inch block.

Gerry must focus on better foot placement on the ball because his toe keeps hitting the ground behind the ball on almost every kick. If he can achieve better foot position and kick up and through the ball he will be a much more consistent field goal kicker.

Gerry just loves to kick hard and out of control. Kicking harder doesn't always mean kicking better. I really focused on trying to get him to slow down and kick more under control.

I believe Gerry has some tools to kick at the next level. He must take what he has learned and go back home and practice and become more consistent. As I tell all specialists the key to the NFL is practice, drill work and consistency, consistency and more consistency.

It was a real pleasure working with Gerry and I want to wish him the best of luck in the future on his pursuit of kicking at the next level.

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Romeen Abdollmohammadi

On Thursday, Friday, and Saturday Romeen Abdollmohammadi (Washington State University) returned to Scottsdale, AZ for some One on One Kicking Lessons. Romeen came in for a tune up before my first annual Coach Zauner 2009 Free Agent Specialists NFL Combine.

On the first day Romeen was not kicking as well as I have seen him kick before. Some of his trouble could have been attributed to being tired from traveling, but also I saw that he was a little 'toed in' on his field goals as you can see in the picture (above).

Over the next couple days we worked on refining his technique through his video review session and with drill work. Romeen made the necessary corrections and was kicking much better the next two days.

This is Romeen's third time out here to work with me and he has obviously improved since the first time I worked with him last year. On the last day I was able to put him through a kicking workout and he had a long field goal of 58 yards! His hard work has certainly paid off.

I want to wish Romeen the best of luck at my Free Agent Specialists NFL Combine on April 6. It has been rewarding to see what great progress he has achieved on his kicking.

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Michael Barnard FDU

On Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday Michael Barnard (Fairleigh Dickinson Univ.) and his father, Larry, were in Scottsdale, Arizona for some One on One Kicking Lessons. Michael is a draft eligible kicker from a Division III school in New Jersey and came here to refine his technique and get my evaluation of his NFL potential.

On the first day I saw that Michael had a tendency to 'crunch' on his kicks. Like many specialists, he was following the advice of a coach who told him to keep his head down. As the picture (above) shows it can be difficult to skip through the ball with your head too far down.

After reviewing the film and a couple of hundred reps at the hotel every night, Michael was able to kick up and through the ball better. The picture (below) shows Michael working on kicking and skipping up and through the ball and moving down field.

On the final day Michael was able to put things all together and hit three or four really nice balls in a row. The next step for him is to go back and master all the drills and refine his technique so that he has the same kick every time.

I really enjoyed working with Michael and from the work ethic I have seen from him over these past few days I am confident that he will continue to get better and more consistent!

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Brad Nortman Returns

On Tuesday and Wednesday University of Wisconsin Punter, Brad Nortman was in Scottsdale, Arizona for spring break and more importantly refining his punting skills through my coaching technique of A Natural Style of Kicking and Punting.

Brad was the starting punter at University of Wisconsin last season and started as a true freshmen. Not many players at any position can do that. He started the season with some excellent games and hit a couple of bumps in the road.

Brad is a big, good looking punter at about 6'3 and 215 pounds. Last summer I met with Brad for two days when I was back home in Milwaukee, Wisconsin visiting my parents. I worked with Brad on some basic fundamentals.

The key to success with any kicking specialists is good sound fundamentals. These fundamentals should be practiced and reinforced with good drills, not gimmick drills.

In the above photo Brad is working my drop progression and one step drills. We adjusted his stance because it was too wide and causing him to set up in a bad position after his first step.

We next concentrated on eliminating him from crunching down and stopping his leg motion from going up and through the ball. He was kicking up but not through the ball. He had no skip! Matter of fact, on video he was jack knifing a moving backwards.

Brad is a good listener and can visualize and process information. In a very short period of time after working on a couple of drills he was now punting up and through the ball and skipping down field.

He hit some big booming power zone punts about 45 to 50 yards down field with 4.8 to 5.1 hang times. If he keeps improving he will be one of the nations leading punters in a couple of years. The key is fundamentals and hard work.

A kid from Wisconsin can handle that, I did! We are both from surrounding communities of Milwaukee!

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Nico Grasu (WSU) Tune Up!

On Tuesday, Washington State kicker, Nico Grasu was in Scottsdale, Arizona for a quick One on One Kicking Lesson or tune up before spring practices start in Pullman next week.

Because of the bad weather Nico had not kicked for about three weeks and started off a little rusty. He was very disappointed in his effort in the beginning. However, he end up on a strong note to finish the lesson.

Nico is making steady progress in his fundamentals and technique. In the photo below which was taken in December Nico was crunching a lot and punching his kicks. He was not kicking up and through the ball and finishing his kicks. He was not using his hip muscles to finish!

In the photo below three months later Nico is finishing his kicks. He is kicking up and through the ball much better.

By the end of the lesson he was kicking much better. Nico has a very strong leg and now needs to kick a little more under control. He attack the ball and must learn to kick with more technique rather than brute force. He's young and aggressive but he will learn.

It's always a pleasure working with Nico. He's a nice young man and a hard worker. He wants to improve and will improve.

Nico has received excellent training from one of my former kickers, Sean Cheevers. Sean is now a special teams coach himself and is doing an excellent job at coaching the kicking game and developing kickers. Sean should be very proud of Nico's development.

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Garrett Palmer SDSU

On Monday Garrett Palmer (San Diego St. University) came back to Scottsdale, Arizona for some One on One Kicking Lessons. Garrett is preparing for the First Annual 2009 Coach Zauner Free Agent Specialists NFL Combine here in Phoenix, Arizona. Garrett came here to sharpen his skills before the combine on April 6th. (Click to See Information)

Garrett has improved so much from the first time that I worked with him last year. He has just recently been recovering from an injury and has been doing drill work instead of full kicking to ease his way back into kicking shape. The drills have definitely been helping his technique! As you can see in the photo (above) Garrett is doing a great job kicking up and through the ball and skipping down field rather than rolling on his ankle like he did previously.

He's my poster specialists of the year for most improved on technique. His technique is like day and night.

I want to wish Garrett the best of luck in my upcoming combine. His continual improvement is a lesson to all young kickers that drill work and practice is vital to a kickers improvement.

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Britt Baumann & Breck Ackley

Over the weekend, kicking friends Britton Baumann (U of Minnesota-Duluth) and Breck Ackley (Southern University) returned here to Scottsdale, Arizona for three days of One on One Lessons. Britt and Breck came here together in early December for lessons and they wanted to return to show my what they had learned and to further improve their skills and technique as specialists.

First up was Britt Baumann. Britt has made really great strides since our last meeting. We worked on some different things to help refine his technique. He has a tendency to 'crunch' when kicking and I worked on helping him kick up and through the ball more.

I worked on his foot to ball contact. The photo above is a great shot of his foot making contact with the ball. Britt has some great 'pop' on his kicks and he really showed some leg strength while he was here. He even kicked some One Step Kicks from 53 yards with some room to spare!

Next up was Breck Ackley. Breck, just like Britt, had definitely improved from the last time I saw him. Back in December we had worked on improving his approach and drop. After the first and second days he was definitely much better this time around.


While he was here we worked on improving his footwork. We used my 'Drop Progression' to work on his footwork. Breck knows the drills to work on and I fully expect him to continue improving.

It was a pleasure working with Britt and Breck. I look forward to working with them again in the future and I wish them the best of luck in their pursuit of taking their games to the next level and their pursuit of a career in the NFL.

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