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2010 Highlights Begin With;
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Washington Post's writer Michael Leahy comes to Arizona to observe Coach Zauner's One on One Training. Click To Read Article; 'Kicked around: Inside footballs loneliest position'.
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PRO Development for Kickers, Punters and Long Snappers with Former NFL Special Teams Coordinator and Currently Professional Kicking Coach.
Coach and Head Coach 'Team Zauner'
Christmas is quickly approaching, and Michelle and I just wanted to take a moment to wish all of you who read this blog -and who celebrate December 25th- a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS.
And for those of you who either don’t celebrate Christmas, or celebrate it differently, we would like to wish you a WONDERFUL HOLIDAY SEASON!
Michelle and I realize how difficult this last year has been for so many other Americans, and we realize just how fortunate we have been.
We also realize we are in a business (football) that has not been affected the way that so many other businesses have been affected and we are especially appreciative of that.
However, most importantly, we also realize that in the ‘larger’ scheme of things, football is-after all is said and done- still just a game. We also realize that sometimes, in the midst of all the excitement that football generates, it’s easy to lose sight of that.
So perhaps Christmas -the season of giving- is the right time for Michelle and I to take a moment to look beyond the ‘game’ of football to thank some of those who are giving so much of themselves, so we can have the opportunity to be building a business -professonal kicking coach- for ourselves.
In particular, we want to thank all those young American men and women in the military who are, every day, risking their lives to protect the freedoms that allow us to build our business; coachzauner.com around this wonderful game of football.
My nephew Eric is a Marine who served in Iraq, and will shortly be re-deployed to Afghanistan. And I can’t tell you how concerned I am for him and for his safe return.
Eric & Jill Zauner
When I think about it, it’s almost too far a stretch of the imagination to realize that, while I am on a football field, coaching a 20ish college kicking specialist whose biggest hope and dream is to get signed to an NFL team, there is another 20ish young man, who is not on a football field, but is on a battle field in Iraq or Afghanistan, whose biggest hope and dream is to get through the day alive, unharmed, with the goal of being one day closer to being home with the people they love.
It’s almost too far a stretch of the imagination to realize this is the reality of the world we live in. But it is.
Michelle and I are painfully aware this is the way of the world, and we are also embarrassingly aware that sometimes, in the midst of all the excitement and ruckus that surrounds professional football, it is easy to lose sight of this.
This is why we wanted to take our Christmas blog to thank all the young men and women who are on a battle field somewhere in the world making it possible for all the other young men to be on a football field here in the United States.
If Michelle and I could speak to them directly we would say ‘Thank You for your bravery and your sacrifice, and ‘Thank You’ for giving so much of your life, so we can have ours. YOURS is truly the gift of giving, and there could be no better time to thank you for this gift then at Christmas.'
So thank you. And Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all of you.
May God bless you and keep you safe.
Coach and Michelle Zauner.
Coach (Uncle Gary) Coaching Eric on the Golf Course
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Sequential Camera Shots To Analyze
During my kicking lesson with Clint I asked him a lot of questions and he gave me excellent feedback.
After the lesson we went back to my office to analyze Clint's video. As we reviewed the video I pointed out areas I thought he could improve.
We also watched video of several other NFL kickers I had worked with over the last two years including Billy Cundiff (Baltimore Ravens), Josh Scobee (Jacksonville Jaguars), Sebastian Janikowski (Oakland Raiders), Garrett Hartley (New Orleans Saints).
When I conduct lessons, I think it’s important for kicking specialists who are working to improve their technique to watch other kicking specialists who have gone through the same process.
On Tuesday I gave Clint a set of drills that I thought would help him improve his technique. The drills were designed to help Clint eliminate an arm bar and crunch. The key for any kicker is to get the proper muscle memory, so proper drills are extremely important in a kicker’s path to improvement.
I told Clint, it would take two to three weeks for him to become more comfortable with his new swing but it would be well worth it.
Clint said he was pleased with the results of our time working together. He said he now knew exactly what he needed to do to get better; which to me that meant he would never again tell me he was having a ‘bad day’.
He might have a bad ‘kick’, but never a bad ‘day’.
And it seems Clint’s days just keep getting better.
On Monday November 29, 2010 I received a phone call from the Cincinnati Bengals asking about kickers. I recommended three or four specialists, and the Bengals flew in three of the kickers I recommended. Clint worked out Tuesday morning and Tuesday afternoon he was signed.
In Clint’s first game he was 3 for 3 on field goals and he made a pressure 47 yard field goal with the score tied at 27. The Bengals took the lead in the last couple of minutes but lost to the Saints 34 -30 on a last minute touchdown.
The life of a kicker changes week to week. The second game he had one PAT. The Bengals lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers 23 to 7.
This past Sunday, Clint kicked four field goals, helping his team get a victory over the interstate rival Cleveland Browns 19 to 17.
Michael Leahy quoted me in his article as saying "Clint has a chance to be a good steady kicker”. Well, I believe he does. And as I do with all the kickers I work with, I will be watching to see how Clint fares as he transitions into the NFL.
So far he is off to a very good start to what I hope will be a great NFL career.
Click below to listen to Clint Stitser’s Testimonial after working his kicking lessons with kicking coach Coach Zauner.
Billy Cundiff; The human side of kicking
As I mentioned in my last blog, in which I wrote about Michael Leahy and his article; about kicking; 'Kicked around: Inside footballs loneliest position' , it was really great to see a writer write about the ‘human side’ of a kicking specialist.
Billy Cundiff was certainly a good choice for his article.
I have a lot of respect for Billy as a kicker, and I enjoyed working with him and it is clear he deserves all the success he has achieved.
I also really enjoyed reading how Michael portrayed him. My own experience with Billy Cundiff goes back a few years. We both live in Arizona, and after a few casual meetings and conversations on different practice fields, Billy gave me a call because he thought it might benefit him to have another set of eyes look at his kicking technique.
This idea was reinforced by his agent Paul Sheehy, who believed more teams should be looking at Billy then were calling him at that time.
I knew Paul previously as I had produced results for a couple other of his kicking clients including Dave Rayner (Green Bay Packers & Kansas City Chiefs) and Rian Lindell (Buffalo Bills).
From the first day I liked Billy. He was always professionally both on and off the field.
After the first day of kicking, we went back to my office to analyze Billy’s kicking technique. I meticulously went through the video we shot that day and we discussed that days kicking session. It’s important to note Billy is not only an active kicker, but he also runs his own kicking camps and is very knowledgeable about kicking.
However having knowledge about a subject, and being able to apply it to yourself, are often two different things. I know this from my own experience.
Years ago I was an aspiring kicker and punter trying to make it in the league with the Minnesota Vikings & Houston Oilers, and I learned very quickly it is very hard to coach yourself no matter how much knowledge you have on kicking.
That is why most pro golfers –including the most successful golfers on the PGA tour- have a swing coach!
After I analyzed the tape Billy and I thought we had a handle on a few things he should address to improve his technique. So I went about looking for a ‘solution’ for him to implement.
It’s important to note, that when implementing any solution to a kicking issue, a kicking coach is only as good as his student. And Billy was a quick fix.
He attacked each drill and mastered it in a very short period of time, and soon he was on his way to getting the muscle memory needed to have the best swing for his style of kicking.
After two days of individual kicking lessons I believe Billy was feeling better about the direction of his kicking.
Billy Cundiff Attends 2009 Coach Zauner's Free Agent Specialists's Combine
A couple of months later I invited Billy to my first Coach Zauner’s Free Agent Specialist’s Combine in Phoenix, Arizona. Billy attended, and it was clear to everyone there -especially the coaches- Billy was the best on the field.
He was signed to an NFL contract a couple of months later by the Detroit Lions and Cleveland Browns. During the latter part of the 2009 season Billy signed with the Baltimore Ravens and ended the season strong. In 2010 Billy is not only having a successful field goal season but is leading the NFL in touchbacks and is on track to set an NFL Kickoff Touchback Record.
Billy was the perfect subject for Michael Leahy’s article on kicking. His story is a very good story, and Michael portrays it as a very ‘human’ story.
And the reality is, all kicking specialists have a ‘human’ story to be told. Unfortunately few kicking specialist’s stories ever get to print the way Billy’s has.
And that’s too bad, because there are some really good stories out there.
Though I can’t say I know the stories of all the kickers I’ve worked with as well as Michael learned about Billy’s story (for example I never knew how quickly Billy’s wife’s heart pounds during Billy’s kicks) I have learned a great deal about the kicking specialists I have worked with.
And one thing I have learned about them -as Michael so eloquently pointed out- is every kicking specialist has a human side. And part of that human side is about all the other humans they are connected with; their wives, their children, their friends and their parents.
And my guess is, that just like Billy Cundiff’s wife, every single one of those ‘connected’ human hearts is furiously pounding when 'their' kicking specialists is attempting a field goal, a kick or a punt.
Because that’s’ the human side of kicking.
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