Tennessee Kickers-National Signing Day 2012

 National Signing Day came and went this year and it was another very successful year for kickers in the state of Tennessee. Numerous kickers from across the state either got scholarships or opportunities for success at the next level.

Being a kicking coach in Tennessee I know that getting a scholarship as a kicker is quite a feat and I want to congratulate George Bullock (Tennessee) and Landon Foster (Kentucky) for their accomplishments.

I have known George (pictured above) since 8th grade and I have watched how hard he has worked to get this opportunity. He spent countless hours working on his craft plus his parents invested money into going to kicking camps for exposure.

I have no doubt that he will step in and compete for a starting job. It will be interesting to see how he transitions to being a college kicker. I have always preferred that kickers would redshirt their first year at a university because of the mental demands.

My biggest suggestion to George is to avoid the message boards and newspapers and to just to enjoy the game. Handling the pressure and understanding the job of being the kicker at Tennessee is probably the hardest part. I am hoping that Tennessee's kicking game drastically improves from what we saw this past year.

 I met Landon Foster (pictured above) last Summer and I could see right away that he had big time talent. He is a very bright and articulate guy and I believe that Coach Phillips at Kentucky has made a very good decision signing Landon. He is the top combination K/P prospect in the state and gives Kentucky a lot of flexibility in their kicking game
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Another kicker I want to congratulate is Maryville High School's Evan Toby. Evan has committed to Austin Peay University! I trained Even this past Summer in preparation for taking over for Mr. Football Award winner Zach Sharp. Evan stepped in admirably and leveraged the opportunity to play at Austin Peay.

I believe that Evan has the chance to provide great depth his first year for Austin Peay and then certainly take the starting spot after current kicker Stephen Stansell graduates.

Overall it was a great day in the state for Tennessee football kickers and being a kicking coach in Tennessee I am proud that these guys are continuing to gain opportunities to do what they love to do!

Visit: www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com