James Wilhoit Kicking Coach

Best Kicker in Tennessee Still Not Getting Respect

2012-02-16T08:11:00.002-07:00

Yesterday I made the drive from Nashville to do kicking lessons in Chattanooga, TN with Baylor School senior kicker Henrique Ribeiro and talented sophomore kicker Rafael Gaglianone. Henrique won the Tennessee Mr. Football Kicker of the Year Award this year. During the season he kicked field goals of 57, 52, and 50 yards, but has still not gotten a scholarship offer. How does something like this happen? I tried to figure out what was lacking for Henrique.Was it Height? Weight? Did he do something wrong? I have been trying to get to the bottom of this...

Lets do an exercise here...

Kicker #1: In 2011 he was 67 of 70 on extra points & 17 of 25 on field goals with a long of 50 yards.

Kicker #2: In 2011 he was 47 of 50 on extra points & 7 of 10 on field goals with a long of 51 yards.

Kicker #3 In 2011 he was 40 of 41 on extra points & 8 of 11 on field goals with a long of 57 yards

Of these 3 kickers which one has the best resume?

The answer is clearly Kicker #3, which is Henrique Ribeiro. The other two kickers are Adam Griffith and George Bullock, who just signed scholarship papers to Alabama and Tennessee respectively.

Obviously stats are not the entire part of the equation for a kicker and so this story is incomplete. Kickers are evaluated heavily by their performance in camps and also by their effectiveness on kickoffs.

The knock on Henrique has been that his kickoffs lacked the necessary hang time and he didn't attend any kicking camps. I love the quote by Maya Angelou that says "I did the best I could at the time and when I knew better I did better." There was no way for Henrique to have been aware of these issues that coaches had with him.

Henrique was never told to kick the ball higher because he was helping his team by kicking the ball in the endzone. Also, he was a transfer from Brazil and had never even heard of a kicking camp before. How was he suppose to know that some camp was going to be the determining factor in his college kicking chances?

Yesterday was the third lesson I have done with Henrique. I work with kickers at Southern Miss, MTSU, Arkansas St. and I have worked with Tennessee's current kicker Michael Palardy and current signee George Bullock. Also, as a kicker myself I have competed against some of the best kickers in the world and I know talent when I see it. Henrique Ribeiro is a kicker that deserves a college scholarship.

I came to Chattanooga yesterday to prepare Henrique for the National Camp Series Super Camp in Orlando, Florida. This camp has some of the best kicking talent in the country and there will be many top kicking coaches in attendance including the founder of the National Camp Series, former NFL kicker Michael Husted. Henrique is now trying to get out to the camps and get the exposure he didn't get last Summer.

During the lesson yesterday I worked with Henrique on his field goals and kickoffs. He has made a seamless transition to kicking off the ground as you can see in this 30 yard field goal (video below). Also, after about 20-25 minutes he was kicking his kickoffs with the hang time that college coaches said that he "lacked". Hang time can be developed by using the proper technique and Henrique can easily hit kickoffs with 4 second hang time.

In closing, Henrique Ribeiro may have to take the long road to get a college scholarship. He may walk on to a campus near you and pay his own way for a year but it won't be that way for long. This is a kicker you will see on Saturday afternoons as you enjoy watching College Football with your friends. He will be hitting big field goals and towering kickoffs. Maybe then Henrique will finally get the respect he has earned!

Visit: www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

Weekend Group Lessons

2012-02-13T08:01:00.000-07:00

As a kicking coach in Tennessee I am always striving to become better at understanding the needs of my clients. After a busy year of private kicking lessons in Tennessee I have decided to offer a new service to my business; Weekend Group Lessons.

These weekend lessons will consist of kicking instruction, group competition, and an online video evaluation. During a three hour session, kickers will get a chance to kick, observe, and compete against other kickers of their skill level.

As I have continued my training toward PRO football I have seen how important the competition element is in kicking training. A kicker needs time to learn how to kick with the proper technique and once they have mastered that skill on their own it is important to try their kicking out under pressure.

During my time out in San Diego with former NFL kicker Michael Husted I competed against some of the best free agent kickers in the country. This competition helped prepare me for success at my last two combines. Kicking is a job that requires just the kicker and the ball, but you have go compete to become the best kicker you possibly can be.

I will be conducting these kicking lessons from March-May in Nashville, Knoxville, and Memphis. The groups will be no more than 10 kickers and they will be split into two smaller groups for the drills and competitions.

After the lessons are complete each kicker will be able to go to their own online account and view some of their field goals and kickoffs. I will give written feedback on each kick so that each kicker will be able to visualize what they excel at and what they need to continue to work on.

This group lessons will be a great way to sharpen your skills before some of the big kicking camps in the Summer. There is a lot of kicking talent in the state of Tennessee and I believe that if you can fare well at these competitions than you can compete against some of the best kickers in the country.

I look forward to seeing each kicker thrive in competition. Kicking under pressure is like lifting weights, the more you do it the better you get at it. I am excited to offer these weekend kicking lessons to help take football kickers in Tennessee to the next level!

Visit: www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

Chasing the Dream-NFL Regional Combine

2012-02-08T16:11:00.001-07:00

The difficult thing about being a football kicking coach in Tennessee is the weather. Obviously I don't live in Wisconsin or New York where there are extremely harsh winters, but the conditions are not always ideal for kicking year round. This year I was able to make great use of those two months by focusing on my training as a potential NFL kicker by attending the Aguiar & Husted Qualifying Combine in Las Vegas and by just recently attending the NFL Regional Combine in Los Angeles.

After coming off a very successful performance at the Aguiar & Husted camp I set my sights on a trip to Los Angeles for the NFL Regional Combines. This combine was run independently for quite a few years, but it was just recently purchased by the NFL. The association with the NFL has increased the resources and prestige of this combine and has made it an attractive competition for potential free agent kickers.

The key to kicking combines is to understand the structure of the combine and to prepare accordingly. Everyone runs a workout a little bit different and it is important to be physically and mentally prepared. You have to be able improvise and adjust! There was no better example of this then this recent combine in Los Angeles.

The kicker's were scheduled to perform at 12:30 PM but the combine officials called me at 10 AM and they had decided to move the workout up to 11 AM. Frantically I got dressed, rushed to the field, and tried to eat a snack on the way. Most people have routines before a workout but my routine went out the window a long time ago.

Once I got to the field I filled out the proper paperwork and tried to compose myself. So much of kicking is psychological and it is important to be calm and collected under pressure. We went through a quick warm up and then it was time to perform. I would have preferred to have longer to warm up, but it was time to trust my technique. I have been working 5-6 days a week following Coach Renner's Training Program and I can tell the training is paying off.

The workout went very well as I was able to kick all of my kickoffs with 4 second hang time with great distance. I also was able to connect on almost all of my field goals including kicks from 50 & 55 yards.

The moral of the story is that you learn from every situation you go through. I have had hours to prepare and warm up before and not performed well. The bottom line is that you have to TRUST your kicking technique and just have fun kicking.

By the way...I just recently learned that my performance in Los Angeles got me an invite to the Detroit Lions' Ford Field and a chance to kick in front of approximately 26 NFL teams on March 30th!

Visit: www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

Tennessee Kickers-National Signing Day 2012

2012-02-03T08:50:00.001-07:00

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
.

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

Chasing the Dream-Aguiar & Husted Qualification

2012-01-24T13:00:00.001-07:00

This past weekend I took one step closer to my dream of playing PRO football as I attended the Aguiar and Husted Pro Qualification Camp in Las Vegas, Nevada. The camp is designed for top free agent kicking specialists to compete and qualify for Louie Aguiar and Michael Husted's PRO Combine in April.

I obviously wanted to qualify for the combine in April, but more importantly I wanted to fine tune my kicking skills and improve as a kicker. I was able to obtain both of my goals by having a great showing at the camp and I felt that I really performed to my ability.

Louie Aguiar and Michael Husted are two of the most well connected and experienced coaches in the business. Both Louie and Michael have NFL experience and so they know what it takes to make it in the NFL and they can relate to other kickers, punters, and snappers that are chasing down that same dream.

The camp was run extremely well and I had a great time. Las Vegas is a great place to have a combine, even if it is a little distracting (I enjoyed the $5 blackjack at the New York New York Casino).

It is important to come to events like this one to see where you stand when kicking under pressure. I am out kicking three to four days a week on my own and it is near impossible to simulate the pressure of performing in competition. The right type of kickers actually improve under pressure, but it takes practice!

I was pleased with my performance as I made 9 of 10 field goals and averaged around 70-72 yards a kickoff with hang time around 3.9 seconds. I am kicking at a level of an NFL kicker and now it is about getting the right opportunity and making the most of it. I guess you could say that about most things in life...

There were a few other kickers that stood out at the camp like Kenny Spencer and Julian Rauch. I have competed with both kickers last year at Aguiar and Husted's Combine in April and they are excellent kickers. I have no question that there are plenty of talented kickers that are waiting for that same opportunity to compete in an NFL training camp and to make an NFL roster. It is all about exposure and a little luck!

The Aguiar and Husted combine is the place to be for kicking specialists who are looking for an opportunity for exposure. I really enjoyed my experience this weekend and I was fortunate to kick well and leave Vegas without losing too much money. I believe I am becoming a safer "bet" to achieve my dream of playing PRO football!

Visit: www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

Free Agent Kicking in San Diego

2012-01-18T14:18:00.000-07:00

This week I have been in sunny San Diego, California working out with Michael Husted to sharpen my kicking skills as a free agent kicker. Michael played 9 years professionally with 4 teams including the Tampa Bay Buccanneers & Oakland Raiders. I went to San Diego to see where I stood as a kicker and to pick up some things as a coach.

I have gotten to know Michael over the past few years and I have been very impressed with his knowledge of the game and the atmosphere he creates with his kicking specialists. I spent this past week working out with some of the top available kickers that haven't been signed to NFL teams yet and stacked up very well.

One of the toughest parts of being a free agent kicker is being away from the team environment. I spend many hours each week keeping up my kicking skills, but nothing can replicate competition and pressure. These different factors have inspired me to make some adjustments in my style as a kicking coach in Tennessee. I have some exciting new things to offer my current kicking clients.

Coach Husted has told me several times that I have the ability to be an NFL kicker, but the big hurdle is getting the opportunity. The difference between a kicker hoping for a dream and being in the NFL is so small. The same goes for a successful high school kicker and a kicker who receives a scholarship. You can't do it all on your own! Coaches are there for a reason and I certainly benefited from this experience.

I recommended that a client of mine, MTSU kicker Alan Gendreau, come out to San Diego and work with Coach Husted. Alan was a 4 year starter at MTSU and the all time leading scorer for the Sun Belt Conference, but I explained to him that he can't rest on his laurels. There are lots of good kickers out there that want an NFL job and only 4 to 5 new jobs each season. It is important to get your name out there and compete and there is no one better at that than Michael Husted.

Another bonus of being out in San Diego was meeting former Chargers punter Darren Bennett. Darren was the first Aussie Rules punter to make it in the NFL and he paved the way for punters like Ben Graham, Sav Rocca, and Matt McBriar. It was an honor meeting him and he even held for all the kickers on Saturday's kicking session. He also demonstrated the Aussie Drop Punt, which is a deadly weapon for punters to use inside the 20 yard line.

I have had a great time being out here working with top kickers and I am excited to bring some new ideas back to my kicking clients in Tennessee. I believe that you are either getting better or getting worse and I feel that this weekend was great for my development as a kicker and a coach!

Visit: www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

Supportive Coaches Aid Kickers

2012-01-10T10:42:00.001-07:00

Alabama Coach- Nick Saban

One thing that I have learned as a kicker and as a kicking coach in Tennessee is how important it is to have a supportive Head Coach to have success as a placekicker. A kicker is only as good as the opportunities that he gets and the environment he is placed in.

You look back last night to the BCS National Championship Game and you can tell the emphasis that Alabama put on their placekicking for this game. In the last meeting against LSU back in November you could tell that Alabama had not focused on mental aspect of placekicking.

The change they made for this game was to settle solely on Jeremy Shelley as their field goal kicker and they let Cade Foster focus on the kickoffs. Also, you could tell Coach Saban decided to completely trust his kickers. Coach Saban is known for being so intense and tough but decided that respect and support would be the best method to help his kickers confidence.

I like John Maxwell's quote; "People don't know care how much you know until they know how much you care." This is certainly true when it comes to placekickers. Anyone who is ever been a kicker knows how much it means to have the support of his coach.

During my career at Hendersonville High School, my coach Bruce Hatfield, did an incredible job of showing confidence in me. I never saw hesitation on a decision to try and field goal and when I went out to kick I had supreme confidence in myself. I attempted 35 field goal attempts my senior year in high school and we made it all the way to the State Championship Game.

Hendersonville Coach- Bruce Hatfield

The smallest things can be distractions for kickers sometimes. One of those distractions for me was when my Head Coach in college would come up to me before a longer field goal and ask me "can you make this kick?" This was always confusing to me because I would give him my range in warm ups and I felt that him asking me whether I could make the kick was him not believing in my abilities. The other factor that was distracting was that if I answered "yes" I felt the responsibility to have to make the kick.

I would have preferred for him to just make that decision and have supreme confidence in me. During my high school years I remember attempting field goals that I would have thought might be too far of a kick but I believed I could do it because my coach trusted me to try it.

Mutual respect and trust are very important in the relationship between a kicker and a coach. It always makes me laugh when a high school coach comes up to a kicker at the end of the game to tell him something inspirational before a game winning attempt. Most of the time the coach hasn't spoken two words to the kicker all year and how is asking him to save the day. This just doesn't add up.

Coach Saban took the time to get to know his kicker this time around and it led to winning a National Championship. I know that some coaches will shy away from kickers but honestly you just have to respect them and show your trust.

You may go through some ups and downs with your kicker but it will pay off in the end. It is a great feeling at the end of the game to know that you have the belief of your coaches. It gives you a chance to achieve things you and your coach may never knew were possible!

Visit: www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

Top 10 Wishes for Kicking in 2012

2012-01-03T10:24:00.001-07:00

As we conclude 2011 I felt it was time to look back at what was accomplished for kickers across the country and in the state of Tennessee. Lots of great things have been accomplished this year while I do have a few wishes for 2012.

The state of Tennessee has had a fantastic year for kicking specialists in high school. Kickers like Landon Foster (Kentucky commitment), Henrique Ribeiro (TN Kicker of the Year), and George Bullock (Tennessee commitment) have brought great notoriety and success for the kickers in the state of Tennessee.

There have been quite a few kicking specialists who hit long field goals this season including:

Henrique Ribeiro (Baylor): hitting 57, 52, and 50 yard field goals and winning the Mr. Football Kicker of the Year
Ben Ogle (Greeneville): kicking a 57 yard field goal
Jonathan King (Farragut): hitting 4 field goals past 50 yards

Even with all the success of kickers in the state, I can see that in the next few years there are even more talented kickers on the horizon. I look forward to seeing the opportunities increase for kicking specialists in Tennessee and I will do everything I can to help highlight these talented kickers.

Even after all the successes there have been for kickers this year, I have a few wishes for 2012

For kickers to stay healthy throughout the season by using an organized workout plan
For there to be continued improvements in scholarships for kickers in Tennessee
For fans to understand that the game is not decided by just a field goal. There were approximately 100 more plays that also determined the outcome.
For kicking specialists to put more importance on weight training
For High School and College coaches to put more of an emphasis on the kicking game
For kickers to earn more respect by being more involved in the weight room and team activities. Football has changed...you can't stroll off the soccer field anymore and expect the respect of your teammates.
For kicking specialists to put more emphasis on the mental game. Mental training isn’t just for the “big kick”. Mental training will help you the entire season.
For kickers to focus on making the field goals inside 40 yards instead of worrying about the "long ball".
· For coaches, fans, and teammates to understand that kickers decide close games…ask Alabama, Oregon, and Oklahoma State. It is the hidden yardage in games...whether it is punts, kickoffs, or a field goal.
10. For Tennessee’s kickers to improve and for Alabama’s kickers to stay the same (just kidding)

Overall is has been a wonderful 2011 for football kickers in Tennessee . I want to thank everyone who has made my life so incredible including my family, my friends, my little dog Honey, and my kicking clients. All of you have made this my best year so far in my life and I hope 2012 is even better!

Visit: www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

Michael Husted-College Senior Pro Camp

2011-12-29T17:22:00.001-07:00

During my Path to Pro Football I have learned quite a bit about how to get signed to an NFL team. Being a rookie kicker, free agent kicker and also a kicking coach gives me a unique perspective on the free agent process.

The most important thing I have learned during this phase of my life is "you only get one chance to make a first impression!" This applies to kicking and in life and I highly recommend any graduating senior kicking specialist to attend Michael Husted's College Senior Pro Camp.

When I graduated from the U. of Tennessee I had all sorts of ideas of what the NFL was like for a rookie kicker, but I had more questions than answers. What I truly learned is that the NFL is not a place for "on the job training". You don't go to an NFL team expecting to be coached or development. It is important to go to a camp like Husted's to get the proper training and information.

Michael Husted is one of the best in the business and after being an NFL kicker for 9 years he knows what it takes to make it in the league and he knows the best path for YOU to get there.

For potential punters he has former NFL star punter Darren Bennett (pictured below). He was one of the first Aussie punters in the NFL and is the founder of the Aussie Drop Punt. Learning from someone like him will certainly be a treat for potential NFL punters!

Over two days at Coach Husted's Camp you will:

Be Put Through an NFL Style Workout
Be Analyzed by State of the Art Biomechanics Testing
Learn how to Properly Train Physically with Coach Ryan Flaherty
Guidance on Agent Selection
Secrets and Tips on How to Position Yourself with NFL Teams

Here is the link for more information on the camp Husted's College Senior Pro Camp .

As I look back on my time as a graduating senior in college I wish I had the opportunity to have learned what NFL Special Teams Coaches were looking for and how I could make myself more marketable as an NFL kicker.

The truth is that there will probably be approximately 12-14 kickers in NFL camp next year and probably no more than 2-3 rookie kickers that make an NFL team. The big question is "what are you going to do to maximize that opportunity?"

Visit: www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

Best Kicker in Tennessee-Henrique Ribeiro

2011-12-15T15:41:00.004-07:00

Over the past few years I have been all over the state doing kicking lessons in Tennessee and during that time I have not seen a more talented kicker than Chattanooga Baylor's Henrique Ribeiro.

Moving here from Brazil, Henrique has exploded on the kicking scene this season. He showed incredible leg strength and accuracy this year and won the Tennessee Mr. Football Kicker of the Year Award.

I had heard about Henrique from quite a few people across the state and about two months ago I decided to drive to Chattanooga and see what all the fuss was about.

During my visit to Baylor, I spoke with Henrique for about 20 minutes before practice and was very impressed with his demeanor. Having a Masters in Sport Psychology, I was very impressed with how he handled himself and the way he went about his kicking. He had just been named a finalist for the Mr. Football Award but he was still very humble and appreciative of the honor.

After our conversation I attended practice and watched him go through warm ups and practice. He started his warm ups from the extra point area and preceded to go all the way back to 55 yard field goals. He had plenty of room to spare on his kicks and he definitely had that "pop" that I look for when evaluating a kicker's college potential.

Henrique and I stayed in touch over the next two months and just this week I conducted private kicking lessons with Henrique and his talented sophomore teammated Rafael Gaglianone.

During the lessons I challenged both kickers to try a few new techniques and they learned them very quickly. Both kickers are natural athletes and had a willingness to learn. These are two of my favorite traits in kickers!

Henrique is a big kid with a natural gift to strike a ball. In my opinion he has the most pure "talent" of any kicker in the entire state including a few other kickers that have committed to other top universities.

Even with the incredible year that Henrique has had he is still a little behind in the recruiting scene. Most top football kickers in the state of Tennessee went to numerous kicking camps this Summer to gain exposure, but unfortunately Henrique was not aware of these camps.

It is important to be prepared for the recruiting process, but I believe because of his unique talent, he still has an excellent chance to get a scholarship offer. A major university would be lucky to have him!

This is a kicker that certainly has high Division I potential and some day (with some hard work) we might even be watching him play on Sundays!

Visit: www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

State of SEC Kicking

2011-12-12T09:41:00.001-07:00

The 2011 All SEC Team was announced just recently and after watching SEC football all season and doing some research on the stats of these kickers I believe that the most talented kickers in the SEC are actually a couple of younger kicking specialists. One thing that I believe is not valued enough by the media is a kicker's value as a kickoff specialist.

This year the frontrunner for the All SEC award would have been Georgia's kicker Blair Walsh (pictured above), but the first and second team kickers actually went to Caleb Sturgis (Florida) and Drew Alleman (LSU).

Going into his senior season I felt that Blair Walsh had a legitimate chance to get drafted, but after a shaky senior season he might be lucky to get a priority free agent spot. Caleb Sturgis really benefited from Walsh's misfortune and he took his place as the top kicker in the SEC.

Sturgis had a fantastic season and deserved the first team honors after making 21-25 field goal attempts including a long of 55 yards. He was the unanimous 1st team selection and he really had a very nice year after recovering from an injury in 2010.

The kicker that I believe got snubbed from being on the All SEC team was Zach Hocker from Arkansas. He was 18-24 on field goals but where he truly shined was his kickoffs. Arkansas was a high scoring team and Hocker hit a whopping 36 touchbacks on his kickoffs this year!

Drew Alleman (LSU) had a great season but only 2 of his 18 field goal attempts were from past 42 yards and James Hairston handled the team's kickoffs this season. Alleman helped his team all season, but was just not given the same responsibilities as Hocker from Arkansas.

A kicker to be aware of for the next few years will be Auburn's Cody Parkey. I believe that he and Hocker have legitimate chances to be NFL kickers when they graduate in a few years.

Parkey was just a freshman this season but he kicked 34 kickoffs for touchbacks with a team that didn't score as much as teams like LSU and Arkansas. His field goals can improve but the majority of his misses were from outside 40 yards except for one 32 yard miss against Samford.

The future is certainly bright in the kicking game for teams like LSU, Auburn, and Arkansas. Teams like Alabama, Tennessee, and Mississippi State will be looking for improved production by either improvement in their current kickers or by an influx of new talent.

It will be interesting to see next year how the State of SEC Kicking has changed in just a year!

Visit: www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

Season is Over But Real Work Is Just Beginning

2011-12-05T10:06:00.001-07:00

I know that most high school and college football kickers in Tennessee are taking a big sigh of relief that the long football season is over. Everyone has their typical aches and pains and it can also be mentally exhausting dealing with the pressure each week during the football season. It is now time to take a break from being a kicker right??? Well that is not exactly the case....

The football kicking landscape has changed so much over the past 10 years. When I was a high school senior in 2001 most kickers were smaller soccer guys that just had a natural kicking motion, but the landscape of kicking training and weight lifting have changed kickers forever.

I like what Bobby Knight was quoted as saying " The key is not the "will to win" - everybody has that. It is the will to prepare to win that is important." Kickers are preparing that much harder in the offseason for the possibility of a scholarship.

The average size of an SEC starting kicker/kickoff specialist is 5'11 1/2 and 193 lbs. That is nothing compared to the average position player in the SEC but there is certainly a trend of bigger kickers. NFL kickers are even bigger and the emphasis on the weight room has dramatically increased.

U. of Tennessee's current kicking commitment George Bullock (pictured below) is approximately 6'1 195 lbs. and Kentucky commitment Landon Foster is 6'2 180 lbs. This extra size and weight gives them more leverage into their kick and helps them add additional distance on their kicks and punts.

I have witnessed George Bullock's hard work personally over the years I trained him and I saw that he rarely missed a workout with the team. This has certainly paid dividends as he has one of the strongest legs in the 2012 kicking class.

Outside of weight training there are other things that can be done to help a kicker's chances of earning a scholarship like additional technique training. Kicking off the ground can be a tough transition for a lot of kicker's that have improper technique.

Coming out of high school I didn't have any private kicking training and it took me close to 6-8 months to learn how to successfully kick off the ground. Most of the kickers that I have trained for 2 years or more will not have much of a transition at all when losing the tee because they are using a fundamentally sound technique.

This coming Summer high school kickers in Tennessee will be looking to gain a scholarship by their performance at university camps and showcase camps. It is important for these kickers to understand that they will not have the use of a tee at the camps. There success will solely be on their ability to kick off the ground and to kick off with a one inch kickoff tee.

In closing, you don't have to be the size of Sebastian Janikowski to get a kicking scholarship out of high school, but high school kickers do have to understand that from December-March is an important time to focus on lifting weights and building explosion in their lower body and core muscles.

Very few (if any) kickers who are looking for a scholarship have the ability to not kick a football or lift all offseason and then try to pick it up in May. The football kicking landscape is changing and it is important to make sure you are not left behind!

Visit: www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

Wilhoit's Top Sr Kicking Specialists in Tennessee

2011-10-07T07:25:00.001-07:00

Landon Foster (Committed to U. of Kentucky)

Over the past two years of doing football kicking lessons in Tennessee I have seen an increase in overall talent of kicking specialists in the state.

Two years ago it was kickers like Corey Acosta (Southern Miss) and Brian Davis (Arkansas St.) who were able to gain scholarships after their high school season.

Last year was an even better year as Nathan Renfro (Maryland), Spencer Roth (Baylor), Zach Sharp (TN Tech), and Jackson Redditt (UT-Martin) all had their schooling paid for by their kicking or punting skills.

If someone is looking for a kicking scholarship it is important to have a solid plan going into your senior year. Lots of kickers and parents believe that scholarships are based on ability and that is mostly correct, but it is also vital to market yourself.

George Bullock (U. of Tennessee)

The kicking talent in the state of Tennessee is strong this year as we have two kicking specialists committed to SEC schools already as Landon Foster is headed to Kentucky and George Bullock is committed to kick at Tennessee.

Greeneville Kicker Ben Ogle

Usually having two kicking specialists at SEC schools would be a great year alone for kicking specialists in the state but there is plenty more talent in the state this year.

In Chattanooga there is an extremely talented kicker that has exploded on the scene in Henrique Ribeiro of Chattanooga Baylor. This year he has hit field goals of 57 and 52 yards.

Check out this article on Henrique Ribeiro . I hope to make a trip to Chattanooga this season to meet him and watch him kick. He is really an incredible story.

Ben Ogle of Greeneville High School is a talented kicker who should find a scholarship by the end of the season.

Ogle (pictured below) has hit numerous kickoffs out the back of the endzone and just recently hit a 57 yard field goal! Hitting long field goals have a way of getting college coaches' attention!

Brentwood punter Ryan Ault

The best pure punter that is not committed to a school is Brentwood High punter Ryan Ault. He also handles the kickoffs for the Bruins.

What separates him from most punters is his ability to hit a consistent spirals without having the most ideal snaps. His best football is ahead of him and I certainly see him as a scholarship punter. He is technically sound and has great hang time on his punts.

I am excited to see where he ends up and to see his increased success with advantage of a college snapper and more time in the weight room.

Maryville kicker Evan Toby

The final kicker that I want to highlight is Maryville High School kicker Evan Toby. Evan took over the kicking duties from Tennessee Mr. Football Kicker of the Year Zach Sharp.

Evan has the leg strength to be a college kicker and is just now getting the experience. Kicking at a big school like Maryville puts him in the spotlight almost every week and he compared favorably with Tennessee commitment George Bullock when their prospective schools faced off this year.

Being a football kicking coach in Tennessee I have worked with or seen the majority kicking talent in Tennessee. Here are my top senior kicking specialists from the state of Tennessee in alphabetical order.

Ryan Ault- Punter (Brentwood High)
Toby Baker-Punter (MUS)
Shawn Bowerman- Kicker (Hendersonville High)
George Bullock-KO Specialist (Knoxville West)
Landon Foster-Punter/Kicker (Independence High)
Chris Harris- Kicker (Columbia High)
Benjamin Ogle- Kicker (Greeneville)
Henrique Ribeiro- Kicker (Chattanooga Baylor)
Evan Toby- Kicker (Maryville High)

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Wilhoit Kickers Mid Season Update

2011-10-03T15:02:00.000-07:00

We are now at the midpoint of the football season and Wilhoit kicking students are having another very successful year so far in college and in high school.

It was a great Summer doing football kicking lessons in Tennessee and numerous kicking specialists are reaping the rewards of all the hard work they did in the offseason.

Some of the standouts so far from the college kickers are Stephen Stansell (Austin Peay) and Brian Davis (Arkansas St.), while high school kickers Shawn Bowerman (Hendersonville High) and Greeneville kicker Ben Ogle are having breakthrough years.

Stephen Stansell (pictured above) has had a solid season so far after having some injury concerns in the preseason. He hit the go ahead 35 yard field goal to beat Tennessee State last weekend and was named Ohio Valley Special Teams Player of the Week.

Click here to read the article Stansell Ohio Valley Player of the Week.

Brian Davis (pictured above) is having a great season this year for Arkansas State. In the first game of the season he kicked a 47 yard field goal against Illinois and last week he kicked a Sun Belt Record 6 field goals against Central Arkansas.

Brian was named one of the three Lou Groza Stars of the Week and was the Sun Belt Special Teams Player of the week!

In the high school ranks there have been quite a few guys with impressive seasons. I am very proud of Shawn Bowerman, who plays for my alma mater, Hendersonville High School. Last week Shawn hit field goals of 48, 47, and 26 yards in 23-6 win over rival Beech High School.

Shawn is 6 for 8 on the season with 3 kicks of 45 yards or more. Also, he has done an excellent job on kickoffs with over 65% of his kickoffs for touchbacks.

Ben Ogle of Greeneville High School has had another solid season. The past two years he has been the All State kicker for 4A football and he is making a case for a third year!

Ben hit a 57 yard field goal last week against West Greene (video below). He has a big leg and should get some good looks from colleges across the South.

While Ogle's field goal was impressive...there are some other Wilhoit Varsity kickers across the state that are having great seasons including...

Sr punter/kicker Landon Foster (Independence)
Sr kickoff specialist George Bullock (Knox West)
Sr punter Ryan Ault (Brentwood)
Sr kicker Chris Harris (Columbia)
Sr kicker Evan Toby (Maryville)
Jr kicker Alex Sigmon (Tennessee High)
Jr kicker Ryan Jenkins (Mt. Juliet)
Jr kicker Matt Forstoff (Columbia Central)
Soph kicker Gary Wunderlich (Memphis U. School)
Soph kicker Aaron Medley (Marshall Co.)

-Check out my blog on www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com later in the week as I will be writing about the top kickers and punters in the state of Tennessee .

-There are already two kicking specialists committed to SEC schools and there will be many more commitments over the coming months

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Seeing Dreams Come True- Kicking with Nick Novak

2011-09-14T17:08:00.000-07:00

For the last year, I have been pursuing my dream of getting signed to an NFL team. This last weekend, I got to live that experience through Nick Novak, who just yesterday signed a two year contract with the San Diego Chargers.

I went to San Diego to kick for former NFL kicker and kicking coach, Michael Husted. Husted and Louie Aguiar run one of the top Free Agent kicking combines in all of the country (which I attended this last year) and Michael has both NFL experience and is a well-respected kicking coach.

My goal was to show Michael how much my kicking skills had improved since his combine. And, I also wanted to get his ‘professional’ evaluation on where I stood regarding in terms of being an NFL kicker.

If anyone could give me a ‘reality’ check, it would be Michael.

To my surprise, it turned out I would not I would only got an ‘evaluation’ on my skills and ability, but I would also get the ultimate ‘reality’ check of my NFL kicking skills. It turned out that Michael had invited former Redskins and Chiefs kicker Nick Novak to kick with me.

Nick has played on numerous NFL teams and was just recently released by the New York Jets after pushing Nick Folk during the preseason.

Nick lives in San Diego, so it wasn’t a stretch for Michael to invite him out for an afternoon of kicking in the San Diego sun. However it is my suspicion that Michael asked Nick to come and kick with me so he could see how I would kick under the pressure of kicking against an NFL kicker.

And this makes total sense. I asked Michael for a ‘professional’ evaluation, and kicking under ‘pressure’ is certainly part of the game!

Once I got on the field with Nick, I was very impressed with his consistency and professionalism. He hits the same kick every time and I could see why he is usually one of the top three or four individuals called when an NFL team is looking for a new kicker.

We kicked approximately 25 field goals with a snap and hold & 10-12 kickoffs. I was very pleased with how I performed and the kicking session just confirmed the confidence I have in my ability to be on an NFL roster. Michael said that after watching me kick, he shared my confidence as well.

After finishing the workout, I talked with Nick about the life of a Free Agent Kicker and what his experiences have been through the years. I really appreciated his openness with me and I learned a few things that will help me in my efforts to get signed to a Pro team.

But the day’s surprises were not over yet.

As we were leaving the field, I had the pleasure of meeting former NFL kicking great John Carney (pictured below) who was just coming on to the field to work out. Carney is the Chargers all-time leading scorer and he played in the NFL for 22 years! He is 46 years old now and is still in great shape. He is certainly an inspiration to any ‘young’ kicker just getting into the game.

And just when you thought there couldn’t be ANY more surprises…there was still one to go.

With the day finally winding down, a few of us decided to grab something to eat and watch the NFL games. Ironically, the moment we walked in the door of the restaurant, we see that the Chargers kicker, Nate Kaeding, has gone down with a leg injury.

And I say ‘ironically’ because just a few minutes before I was talking with Nick about his missed opportunity with the Chargers last year. That came when he was about to sign with the Chargers last year when Kaeding was injured, but unfortunately he was still under contract in the UFL.

So the first thing that Michael Husted did was call Nick to let him know of the injury. About five minutes later Nick walked in the door of the restaurant to learn more about Kaeding’s injury.

And about 24 hours later he signed a two-year deal with the Chargers!

Well, this was just quite the day.

My original goal was to come to San Diego to meet with Michael Husted and a get a sense of my potential as an NFL kicker. But it turned out I got so much more.

Yes, I am now quite comfortable and confident in my ability to play for an NFL team. But now, I am also more experienced how quickly –and unexpectedly- things can happen for a kicker.

None of us were even remotely thinking that Nick would get signed to an NFL team within 24 hours of our working out on that high school field in San Diego. But he did. And that is how quickly it can happen. And that is inspiring.

I want to thank Michael Husted for setting up this workout with Nick. He could have just had me come to the field, watched me kick, gave me his opinion and left it at that. However Michael went the extra step to ensure that his evaluation of my NFL ‘potential’ was going to be a ‘real’ evaluation.

I also want thank Nick for coming out to kick with me. That’s not something he had to do. And I want to wish him the best of luck this weekend when the Chargers play at New England this Sunday to play the Patriots!

He’s a great guy and I hope he has a great career.

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Wilhoit Kickers Having Success On Field

2011-09-09T08:59:00.000-07:00

After a long Summer of kicking lessons in Tennessee, it is now time to watch my kicking clients perform this season. The financial investment it takes to do lessons can come back ten fold when the season starts.

Many high school and college kickers from the state of Tennessee are having lots of success this season. Brian Davis, a Brentwood High School graduate and current Arkansas State kicker, started the season of with a bang by hitting a 47 yard field goal at Illinois.

Corey Acosta (pictured above) had a great showing last weekend against Louisiana Tech. He stepped in for a starting kicker Danny Hrapmann and kicked field goals of 42 and 27 yards in a 19-17 victory. Corey stepped in during some adverse conditions and that is what being a field goal kicker is all about!

J.J. Jerman of Seymour High School has captured the starting kicking job for the Varsity as a freshman. He has been successful on all his extra points and has hit his only field goal attempt (30 yards). Also, he has had 3 successful onside kicks!

Finally, junior kicker Alex Sigmon (Tennessee High) has had the highlight of the year in the state of Tennessee by hitting a 60 yard free kick! Alex is having a fantastic season and this is the type of kick that could put him on a coaches radar.

These are just a few success stories of kickers that I have worked with this Summer. There are many other kickers out there that have attended my kicking camps in Tennessee or Tennessee kicking lessons.

I look forward to helping kicking specialists who need help during the season and I especially love to hear the many success stories!

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George Bullock Commits to Vols

2011-08-03T12:10:00.000-07:00

Congrats to George Bullock for his recent verbal commitment to kick for the University of Tennessee. George plays over at Knoxville West High School and will be brought in to take over the kickoff duties for the Vols and possibly challenge for the field goal duties with Michael Palardy.

I started working with George in 2007 when he was in the 8th grade. He was the third kicker I ever trained with the other two being Southern Miss kicker Corey Acosta and UAB kicker Ty Long.

George always had a very strong leg even as an 8th grader and I worked with him on his kicking fundamentals. We worked together up until last August and I would do approximately 4-5 lessons each Summer with him. He was always a hard worker and I am very excited that he has earned this opportunity for himself.

This Spring and Summer he took the initiative to get the necessary exposure to get a scholarship by attending the Kohl's and Sailer Kicking Camps and a few other places for exposure. Both Jamie Kohl and Chris Sailer are excellent kicking coaches but what they are best known for is their exposure camps.

Chris Sailer ranked George as the 29th best kicker in the country and Jamie Kohl ranked George as the 18th best kicker with a 5 star ranking on kickoffs. Click here for his profile on Kohl's website http://kohlskicking.com/profile/george-bullock/2421/ .

I believe that Jamie Kohl's evaluation of George is very accurate. He has one of the strongest legs of anyone in the 2012 kicking class and I believe he will be an immediate upgrade for Tennessee on kickoffs. He might need a few years to develop as a field goal kicker while he transitions to kicking off the ground for college.

Most Vol fans should temper their expectations a bit for George next year and not expect touchbacks every time. Right now he is kicking his kickoffs 70-75 yards with an older worn in football. He will be using a newer Wilson GST football for Tennessee which will reduce some distance on his kicks. I think it is fair to believe he can kick his kickoffs inside the 5 yard line with 3.9-4.1 hang time next year.

We will see if George can exceed my expectations...

I have so many great memories of kicking in Neyland Stadium for the Vols and I am proud to have played a part in George reaching his dream of playing at Tennessee.

Just like former Vol kicking great Jeff Hall was a great resource to me during my career, I hope to help George in any way I can!

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2011 Wilhoit HS Skills Camps

2011-07-31T16:53:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago I hosted a very successful College Skills Camps and the next weekend I conducted a HS Freshman Skills Camp and an Underclassman Skills Camp.

These camps are designed for my kicking students to meet each other and see how their kicking skills match up with other kickers of similar talent.

The Freshman Skills Camp was conducted on Saturday July 16th and the Underclassman Skills Camp was conducted the next day.

I decided to do a Freshman Skills Camp because of all the talented freshman that I am working with at this time. I was excited about the group that attended the camp and I am eager to see what sort of progress they make over the next few years.

Hayes Foster (pictured above) won the field goal contest with a kick of 46 yards! He easily had the distance to hit a 48 or even a 50 yarder. Hayes will be competing for playing time this year at Siegel High School in Murfreesboro.

JJ Jerman (pictured above) of Seymour High School won the skills competition and is on target to be the starting Varsity kicker for his high school this season.

The Underclassman Skills Camp featured quite a few talented kickers including Brentwood Academy kicker Ben Boatright, who won the skills competition, Alex Sigmon, and Trey Ralph.

Even with all the talent on the field, Robby Strachan (pictured above), stole the show. He kicked some towering kickoffs and won the field goal competition with a 53 yard field goal.

A few of the other kickers were in awe of how big Robby is for just a sophomore. He will compete with a few other of my kicking clients to be one of the top kickers in the state and possibly the country!

Last but not least is Bryce DeGuira from Hendersonville (my alma mater). Bryce is entering is freshman year in high school and due to a soccer competition he was not able to make my Freshman Skills Camp.

He decided to come to the Underclassman Skills Camp the next day and really impressed. He hit a 49 yard field goal in the competition and I believe the Commandos are in good shape for the next few years at the kicking position.

Overall the Wilhoit Kicking Skills Camps were a huge success. I enjoyed giving the guys a place to compete and to see how much they had learned over the Summer doing One on One Lessons.

I look forward to doing the camps again next year and I expect to make there to be even more competition as the kickers continue to improve in the state of Tennessee.

Check out this video from Fox News 17 in Nashville about the kicking talent in Tennessee

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Exposure for Tennessee Kickers

2011-07-14T08:29:00.000-07:00

Last weekend was the first annual James Wilhoit College Skills Camp. This camp was designed to make sure each college kicker I work with is prepared for their college season.

I am very proud of all the college kickers I train and excited for the exposure that the kickers in the state of Tennessee have been getting the past few years.

Pictured (above) are the college kickers at the camp but there are still plenty of other college kickers that I train that couldn't make it including Paulo Henriques (Memphis), Andrew Fletcher (Louisville), Tim Donegan (Bethel University), and Stephen Stansell (Austin Peay).

Fox 17 news in Nashville did a great two part series on the increase in college kickers in the state of Tennessee in the past few years.

Link to Fox 17 Video

I have worked really hard to help train the college kickers in the state of Tennessee and assist in the transition for kids going from high school to college.

During my college career at Tennessee there was never anyone there to coach me. I played with both Dustin and Britton Colquitt in college and they had their father (former Steelers punter Craig Colquitt) there to coach them. It made me angry that there wasn't anyone qualified to coach me.

I am glad to be a resource to the college kickers in the state of Tennessee and give them the coaching that I never received!

On a side note...I just made James Wilhoit Kicking T-shirts. The shirts have my new logo on it and they are Nike Moisture Management Shirts. These shirts breath really well and are perfect for the hot Summer that we are having!

I gave these shirts to all the participants at my College Skills Camp and will also give them to the kickers at my Freshman Skills Camp and High School Underclassman Skills Camp this weekend.

I am excited for the future of kickers in the state of Tennessee. Check out this testimonial (above) from John Acosta, who is the father of Corey Acosta. Corey will be the starting kicker at Southern Miss next year and was my first kicking client that I got to college.

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2011 Wilhoit College Skills Camp

2011-07-11T09:00:00.003-07:00

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On Saturday I had the first annual James Wilhoit College Skills Camp. This camp consisted of only kickers that I have worked with consistently over the past year.

The camp was three hours long and was a test of each kicker's ability to master his control of kicking a football. This was a time for each kicker to get a chance to see where they stand at this point of the Summer and to determine of they react under pressure.

I am very proud of my kicking clients as they performed very well during the camp. I had 5 college kickers from MTSU, Southern Miss, Arkansas St., Carson Newman, and UT-Martin along with a few underclassman kickers that have a chance to play in college very soon.

The first part of the camp was a skills test. The kicking test was inspired by the different kicking drills that I teach the kicking specialists throughout the year. The kicker's did numerous drills to test their balance and control into the ball.

Almost every kicker performed well during the challenge with Corey Acosta (pictured above) scoring an astounding 28/30 points in the challenge. He had the best kickoff of the day with a 72 yard 4.22 hang time!

One of the best all around kickers of the day was Alan Gendreau (MTSU). Alan scored very well at the skill test and showed exceptional leg strength. He hit the 53 yard field goal in the skills test and he placed in the top group in the field goal competition.

The top 2 kickers in the field goal competition were Carlos Lopez of Carson Newman (pictured above) and Jackson Redditt of UT-Martin. Carlos was a perfect 9 for 9 on field goals and hit a 56 yard field goal to barely defeat Jackson in the competition.

Honestly there were no winners or losers in the competition because everyone performed very well throughout the day. It makes me proud to coach these guys and I look forward to seeing each kicker's progress throughout the season.

Finally I want to thank Dave Foster of Fox 17 for covering the event. They did a great job with their coverage on Saturday and Sunday night. It was great to see more visibility for kickers across the state of Tennessee.

Overall it was a great day for kicking specialists in the state of Tennessee and I am looking forward to making this event even bigger next year after another year of high school seniors receiving college scholarships!

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Memphis Kicking Lessons in June

2011-06-28T06:26:00.001-07:00

This past weekend was a busy time for kicking lessons in Memphis. I have worked with a lot of talented kicking specialists in Tennessee and doing kicking lessons in Memphis is no exception!

I worked with Logan Cooke from Kokimo, Mississippi, who will be a rising sophomore this year. He plays quarterback on the football team and is also a very talented basketball player.

Logan and I have worked together for the past year and I have seen dramatic progress in his technique. He showed up and performed very well at the Mississippi State and Alabama kicking camps.

I am excited to see where Logan ends up playing in a few years!

The next kicking specialists I worked with was University of Memphis kicker Paulo Henriques. Paulo is entering his junior year at Memphis after having an impressive sophomore year going 14 of 18 on field goals.

He came to me because he was looking to get some additional technique work before the season. I was very impressed with the "pop" he had in his leg. He is a naturally gifted kicker and he was a good listener, which makes for a winning combination.

Paulo and I worked extensively on his technique and he agreed that the ball was going farther and more accurate than ever before. These new adjustments will take a 6 to 8 weeks to become permanent but I know this will really help Paulo stay healthy and become an even better kicker.

Corey Acosta is graduate of Christian Brothers High School and is on scholarship at Southern Miss as a field goal kicker. I have worked with Corey for the past three years and he was my first kicking client.

I have given Corey a few things to fine tune this offseason and he has really improved. He was always an exceptional kicker but my goal for Corey is to be competing for All Conference honors and possibly an NFL Training Camp over the next few years.

Corey kicked with me the other day in Memphis and I was extremely impressed. His range has increased by at least 5 yards since last year and I am excited to see how he fares against the starting kicker Danny Hrapmann, who is a preseason All American.

I had a great time working with kickers in Memphis. I enjoy helping kicking specialists improve, seeing old friends, and I can't forget the barbecue!

I look forward to coming back to Memphis on July 19-20 to work with kicking specialists again...

Nashville Kicking Lessons

2011-06-07T07:48:00.000-07:00

On Friday and Saturday I did kicking lessons in Nashville and I was certainly impressed with the results. I worked with one of the top junior kickers in the state of Tennessee and quite possibly the best sophomore kicker in the state.

Overall it was a great weekend of lessons despite the fact that temperatures rose to the high 90's. And even though the temperatures were rising, it was the kickers and punters that were heating up.

Ryan Jenkins (Mt. Juliet High School) is a rising junior and had a very successful season last year. He went 8 for 8 on field goals as a sophomore and shared Region Special Teams Player of the Year honors with UT-Martin signee Jackson Redditt.

Ryan just started kicking last year and he is just now hitting his stride. I am excited to see how he does this year after a full year of following my training program. He definitely has a chance to earn All State honors this year and with some hard work he could be in line for a kicking scholarship.

Next up is Aaron Medley (Marshall Co.). Aaron is entering his sophomore year and is quite a talent. He is tall and slender (approx. 6'3 170 lbs) right now but has an unbelievable ability to strike the ball.

We went through a kicking workout during the lesson where he made all his field goals from 30-50 yards. After a field goal workout we went over kickoffs. He was hitting the ball 62-67 yards consistently with anywhere from 3.8-3.9 hang time.

Remember Aaron's name because you will be hearing it on Saturday's in the Fall in a few years!

Andrew Hays of Sycamore High School has been in my training program since this past January and certainly impressed me this past weekend.

We had been working mainly on his kicking but just recently I have noticed that his true talent is as a punter. I worked with him on the basic fundamentals of punting and I saw a huge difference in his performance.

He was hitting spirals consistently on his punts and hitting them high and long. I am really excited for Andrew and look forward to seeing his progress!

Last but not least was John Ingrum of Oakland High School. John is entering his freshman year at Murfreesboro Oakland and was great size and athleticism.

The kicking talent in "The Boro" has been lacking over the past few years at Riverdale and Oakland High School and I believe that John has a chance to change that trend.

I worked with him on his ball contact and I believe that he has a lot of upside!

Tomorrow I do more Nashville kicking lessons and stay tuned for another update on more kicking lessons...

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Knoxville Kicking Lessons

2011-06-02T06:45:00.001-07:00

This past weekend I was at Carter High School doing kicking lessons in Knoxville. Throughout the year most of my kickers and punters in Knoxville have traveled to Nashville for kicking lessons and it was now time for me to return the favor.

There is a lot of talent in the Knoxville area with kickers and punters and it was a great weekend for kicking! One of my longest running clients in Knoxville is Carlos Lopez, who is the kicker at Carson Newman. Carlos is an extremely talented kicker who missed the 2010 season because of an injury. It was great to see Carlos this weekend in top form and back to 100%!

I work with kickers of all ages and all skill levels and some of my favorite guys to work with are younger kickers. Alex Rinella is entering his freshman year at Science Hill in Johnson City, Tennessee. He worked with me this winter and I have seen major improvement.

Alex, like most freshman, is constantly growing and with a size 12 1/2 shoe I certainly think he is going to be a big boy! I expect big things from Alex in the future.

A couple other top freshman to watch this year in Knoxville are Roberto Veljkovic (Karns) and JJ Jerman (Seymour).

Another kicker I worked with this past weekend was Lincoln Taylor from Greeneville High School. Lincoln is entering his junior year at Greeneville and has a nice frame for kicking. He is the backup to Ben Ogle and was able to kick some in blowout victories last year.

Lincoln has quite a bit of upside and showed nice progress during the two days. I look forward to seeing how hard he works and am I think that Greeneville has a nice stable of kickers over there!

Last but not least is Evan Toby (Maryville High School). Evan is entering his senior year at Maryville and is the best kept secret in the state of Tennessee. He backed up Mr. Football kicker Zach Sharp last year and unfortunately for Evan, he would have started for almost anyone else in the Knoxville area!

I was very impressed with Evan's ability and more importantly his willingness to learn. He will continue to improve over the Summer and will be a force to reckon with this season as Maryville looks to win another State Championship!

Overall it was a great weekend for Knoxville kicking lessons and I look forward to coming back from June 20-22 to work with more kickers from the area!

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Tennessee Kickers Headed to Kicking Camps

2011-05-26T12:23:00.001-07:00

As I gear up for kicking lessons in Tennessee this Summer, I wanted to take a look back at all the success of kicking specialists in Tennessee over the past few years.

Last year was a very successful year in the state of Tennessee for kicking specialists and especially for punters. The success of punters in Tennessee was highlighted by Nathan Renfro signing with Maryland and Spencer Roth signing with Baylor. This year the talent in the state of Tennessee leans more towards the kickers.

There are three kickers that highlight the 2012 class of kickers in the state of Tennessee; George Bullock (West High School), Landon Foster (Independence High School), and Ben Ogle (Greeneville).

George Bullock (pictured above) is a kicker from Knoxville that I have worked with since he was in 8th grade. He is a very talented and has the ability to kick off the ground. His hard work has put him in a position for a scholarship.

Landon Foster (pictured above) is the kicker/punter from Independence High School. He was referred to me by Brian Davis, who is now the starting kicker at Arkansas State, and is certainly the best combo kicker in the state of Tennessee and quite possibly the entire country!

I conducted lessons with Landon last Summer and I was extremely impressed with his demeanor and ability to learn. He picked up the instruction I gave him quicker than anyone I coached last Summer.

It will be interesting to see where Landon ends up and I hope he is able to use both his kicking and punting skills at the next level.

Ben Ogle is the kicker at Greeneville High School. Ben is a two time All State kicker and has had an extremely impressive career.

His team scored numerous touchdowns throughout the year on their way to a 4A State Championship, but unfortunately for Ben this limited his field goal opportunities. He was able to kick a 49 yard field goal in the State Championship though and boom numerous kickoffs through the endzone.

Ben's uncle is former Vol kicker Alan Duncan and just last Summer he sat in on my lessons with Ben and got to see my coaching methods.

Below is Alan Duncan's testimonial...

Another kicking specialist that has an opportunity to gain a scholarship is Abraham Haddad (Martin Westview). He has a big leg and is really improving his technique. He is also the starting running back for his school and runs a 4.4 forty yard dash.

I look forward to seeing Abraham's development this Summer and believe he might have the biggest upside of any kicking prospect in the state this year.

My goal of improving kicking specialists in state of Tennessee is certainly working! I look forward to seeing how these kicking specialists perform this Summer at Tennessee kicking camps and other camps across the country.

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UFL-Las Vegas Locomotives Workout

2011-05-24T14:04:00.000-07:00

This past weekend I took a break from coaching to travel to Phoenix, Arizona for the Las Vegas Locomotives workout.

Las Vegas is one of the few UFL teams that doesn't have a designated kicker on their roster and so I thought this would be a great time to perform for the Locomotives Special Teams Coach Larry MacDuff.

As many of you who have followed my blogs know, I have been following Coach Renner's Training Program since December with the goal of playing PRO football. His program certainly works and my performance this weekend is a living testament.

The workout was probably the most efficient one that I have ever witnessed. We had approximately 12 kickers at the tryout and that included former kickers from universities like Oregon St., Northwestern, and USC.

The kickers started with 30 yard field goals and worked our way back to 50 yard kicks. We kicked a total of 9 field goals and I made every single kick! I am really starting to learn from every competition that I am faced with and my confidence continues to grow when testing my technique under pressure.

We ended the workout with 3 kickoffs. My first two kickoffs were from the middle of the field and I averaged 70 yards with 4.1 hang time. My final kick was a directional kick to the right and was 66 yards 4.15 hang and perfectly on the numbers.

It was as close to a perfect day as I could have had! I am excited about the different professional kicking opportunities I might have in the future and eager to share Coach Renner's Training Program with my kickers and punters in Tennessee.

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Memphis Kicking Lessons

2011-05-20T11:33:00.002-07:00

After doing kicking lessons in Nashville the week before, I spent this weekend doing kicking lessons in Memphis.

Memphis is home of Elvis, barbecue, and quite a few talented kickers. Over the years Memphis has produced kicking standouts Courtney Leavitt (South Carolina), Josh Jasper (LSU) and just recently Corey Acosta (Southern Miss).

Corey Acosta is my first kicking client and also a good friend. This past year he was a scholarship kicker at Southern Miss after narrowly missing out on the starting job as a true freshman. He has no reason to hang his head though because the starting kicker, Danny Hrapmann, went on to become a Lou Groza finalist after making 26 of 30 field goals.

This weekend I worked with Corey and quite a few other kicking specialists in Memphis. I think I saw a few prospects that have a chance to be the next Corey Acosta!

Tanner Norman (First Assembly Christian School) is a beginning kicker who is looking to contribute as a freshman this year for his varsity team. As you can see in the picture (above) he is working on his ball to foot contact, which is vital to any younger kicker.

CJ Stafford (Houston High School) is a rising sophomore and is extremely talented. He is headed to a few kicking camps in Tennessee and the surrounding states this Summer. I feel confident that he will turn some heads with his kicking potential.

Finally there is Gary Wunderlich (Memphis University School). Gary is a rising sophomore and took over the kicking duties last year after Mr. Football kicker Christian Kaufmann graduated. Gary is preparing for a big season for MUS and I can tell that he has improved from last year.

Overall it was a great weekend of kicking lessons in Memphis. I look forward to coming back to Memphis on June 24-26 to work with more kicking specialists in the area.

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www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Tomas Silva-Top Canadian Specialist

2011-05-12T06:34:00.014-07:00

Tomas Silva (McGill University) came to Nashville from Canada to improve his punting and kicking fundamentals. This is Tomas' second trip to Nashville and after working with me last year he finished as one of the top university punters in Canada.

Tomas is a bright and articulate guy and he is very dedicated to his craft. We spent four days working on his punting, field goals, and kickoffs. Even though the trip was mainly for working on kicking fundamentals it doesn't mean that he didn't enjoy some of our Southern hospitality!

He arrived last Thursday afternoon from the airport and when I picked him up I ask him if he was interested in going to the Nashville Predators vs. Vancouver Canucks Playoff Game. We went down to Bridgestone Arena and were able to get some great seats for the game. He told me that it would have been near impossible to get seats to a Montreal Canadians game. I convinced him to put on a Predators t-shirt for the game but he still stuck out like a sore thumb when he celebrated each Vancouver goal!

Punting is Tomas' bread and butter so we went over his punting fundamentals on Day 1. I saw that Tomas had certainly improved his technique from last year's visit but there were some things I could tighten up for him.

After finishing with lessons Tomas mentioned that he was craving some BBQ. I explained to him that Memphis has the best BBQ but that Jack's Bar-B-Que on Broadway is the next best thing. He ordered the combo platter, which consisted of barbecue, ribs, and chicken. Lets just say he didn't go home hungry!

Tomas wanted to work some field goals and kickoffs but they are not quite the same necessity as punting because McGill has Gary Anderson's son, Austin, as their kicker. It is difficult to beat out the son of one of the best kickers in NFL history!

I showed him some kicking drills to refine his technique and he could see right away that he felt much more on balance and had better contact on the ball. As his field goal technique improves so will his kickoffs.

(Pictured: Gary Anderson in Arizona)

Tomas has lots of ability and is getting much closer to reaching his potential. He is a legit CFL prospect and he deserves the opportunity to be in a CFL Training Camp. It was great working with Tomas and I look forward to his next trip to get kicking lessons in Tennessee.

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www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

Check out Coach Renner's Training Program

May Kicking Lessons in Nashville

2011-05-10T11:31:00.001-07:00

This weekend I was back doing kicking lessons in Nashville. It is always great to work with kickers and punters that I have worked with before plus working with some new kicking specialists.

Saturday and Sunday were spent working with kicking specialists on their fundamentals. Drill work is vital to improvement and giving specialists a plan for the Summer is equally important.

Brian Davis (pictured above) has been a kicking client for the past three years and just finished his first year at Arkansas State as their starting kicker. He continues to seek coaching each year and is part of a year long Training Program that I have established for kickers and punters.

Hayes Foster is another client that is in the Training Program. He is entering his freshman year at Siegel High School and has a real chance to play as a freshman. In the picture (above) you can see Hayes last year and in a year's time he has made a dramatic improvement.

When you look at the picture of Hayes and I (above) you can see that Hayes has grown but not just in height. His maturity, physical strength, and kicking technique have all improved. This improvement is from hard work and using proper technique and kicking drills to improve.

While I still continue to train for PRO football I will still be available for kicking lessons all Summer unless I sign on with a PRO team. I have weekends of lessons already booked out in Memphis and Knoxville for this month and will be listing my June schedule in the near future.

Last year I worked with over 130 kickers and punters in Tennessee. This year I may not reach the same volume of kicking specialists but I will still be out there on the field helping guys improve.

A lot of exciting things are happening with my business over the next few weeks including the launch of a new website and the unveiling of my logo.

Last but not least...I want to give a big thanks to all the mothers out there. Everyday is Mother's Day but I really want to thank them for all they do!

Check back on the blog Thursday for another blog about my weekend of kicking lessons with another visitor from out of the country.

Visit:

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

Check out Coach Renner's Training Program

UFL-Virginia Destroyers Workout

2011-05-03T09:52:00.001-07:00

This past weekend I had intended on doing kicking lessons in Memphis, Tennessee , but due to some unforeseen circumstances I had to readjust my schedule and I went a UFL workout for the Virginia Destroyers.

The field I typically use for lessons in Memphis (pictured below) was completely underwater due to flooding and so my lessons will be rescheduled till May 14-15. There are still a few openings for that weekend so please contact me ASAP if interested.

So instead of a weekend of kicking lessons I was off to Norfolk, Virginia to kick in front of Coach Stock, who is the Special Teams Coach for the Virginia Destroyers.

It was a really fun weekend cause I got to listen to legendary coach Marty Schottenheimer, who is the Head Coach of the Destroyers.

Coach Schottenheimer had some words for all the players before the workout. He told everyone that "the only thing that anyone could do today was there very best" and that "once your head hits the pillow tonight did you do everything you could do to be better".

I took Coach Schottenheimer's words to heart during the workout and was able to perform very well . Coach Stock had us start the workout by kicking from 6 yards away from the goalpost and see if we could kick the ball high enough to clear the post. Most of the top kickers could clear it and through Coach Renner's training I never had any problems with that challenge.

There were approximately 20 kickers at the workout and we all kicked one kick and rotated. The challenge with a workout like this is to keep your focus on each kick when you could be waiting for 4 to 6 minutes before each kick. The truth is though that when you are a free agent kicker you need to be ready for anything!

Throughout the workout I kicked very well and only missed only a few kicks total, which put me right at the top of the specialists at the workout.

I was fortunate to have Will Batson (pictured right) to hold for me during the workout and I got to compete against Kenny Spencer (pictured left) who I did kicking lessons in Nashville with last Summer. Both Will and Kenny played at North Alabama and are both on the verge of UFL jobs and NFL opportunities.

Overall it was a great weekend and I look forward to seeing what other opportunities come up over the next few months as I continue my training toward PRO football.

Visit:

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

Check out Coach Renner's Training Program

Also check out www.tennesseekickinglessons.com

Day 51- Coming Full Circle

2011-04-28T22:13:00.004-07:00

It was approximately nine months ago when I wrote a blog about Choosing the Proper Kicking Footballs http://tinyurl.com/23pl6gd. The purpose of the blog was to point out how kickers at the University of Tennessee were at a competitive disadvantage to other schools in the SEC because they were using an inferior football for kicking.

Having been a kicker at the University of Tennessee, I had strong feelings about this issue and wanted to make people aware of it. I thought if enough attention was generated, perhaps the University would consider changing the balls they use for kicking.

After writing the blog, I was interviewed by Knoxville radio hosts Terry Fair and Dave Hooker. During the interview, Terry Fair questioned whether one ball was superior to another and asked me to come to Knoxville, get on a field and prove my theory.

So the next week I went to Knoxville to put my foot where my mouth was (or in my mouth if I was wrong). After finishing the workout with Terry and Dave I walked away with my opinion about the footballs confirmed; I still believed the balls Tennessee was using for kicking were not as good as other footballs on the market.

Something else I walked away with caught me more by surprise. And that was I realized after this workout I still had the ability to be very good kicker. And in fact, one of the radio hosts asked me why I wasn’t playing professional football!

Two years earlier I had decided to give up on my dream of being a PRO kicker. I was signed by the Ravens, but didn’t make the cut. I always thought I had the ability to be in the NFL, but I felt that I was never coached up to my ability. After having such a great college career, I was pretty discouraged that an NFL career might not be in my future.

After giving up on my dream of playing PRO football, I decided to spend all my time and energy on becoming the best kicking coach I could. My thought was, even though my chance of playing professional may have slipped through my grasp, I could help other specialist’s pursue their dreams of playing PRO football by giving them the coaching I never received.

To improve as a kicking coach, I spent two years in Arizona studying under Gary Zauner (pictured above), a former 13 year NFL Special Teams Coach who coached, or worked with, over 20 Pro Bowlers.

During that time I not only observed Coach Zauner as he worked with some of the top kicking specialists in the NFL, but I also conducted my own kicking lessons each summer in Tennessee and did plenty of independent study on the proper way to kick and punt.

Unbeknownst to me, all of this had the effect of making me a better kicker than I was when I first left Tennessee and tried out for the Ravens.

So then, after testing out the footballs in Knoxville, and realizing my kicking was actually better than it was in previous years, I decided to see what my true kicking potential could be. The truth be known, at that moment, my passion and desire to play PRO football was alive in me again. And I wanted to pursue it.

By this time I was no longer working with Coach Zauner, however ironically, I had the good fortune in meeting Coach Bill Renner. Coach Renner is recognized as one of the most accomplished kicking coaches in the country. And after speaking with him on the phone, I was quite impressed with his approach to teaching specialists and knew if I was going to pursue my NFL dream, he’s the one I wanted coaching me.

Coach Renner had just introduced a Training Program for kickers and punters. I was interested in learning his program and he suggested that the best way to learn the program would be to go through it myself. This was perfect, not only would this be a great way for me to train to compete for an NFL spot, but it would also help me as a kicking coach as well. His program is something I knew would be very beneficial to my kicking clients.

As a way to test my newly developed skills, in April I attended Louie Aguiar and Michael Husted’s Free Agent Camp which was held in Phoenix, Arizona. Although a little nervous at first, I ended up posting numbers which were as good as those kickers ranked in the camp’s Top 10.

So there I was, a coach who hadn’t kicked professionally in three years ending up with stats to compete with some of the top free agents at the entire camp. My performance at this Free Agent Combine helped me secure one of the top sports agents in the NFL, who represents eight current NFL kicking specialists.

Talk about ‘A Specialist’s Path’ (which of course I write about) my Specialist’s Path took me from talking about the University of Tennessee’s footballs to being in contention for a PRO football spot, all in the matter of nine months. That is just amazing!

However, as fate would have it, there was just one thing left to bring me full circle. And it truly came as a surprise to me.

After finishing Aguiar and Husted’s Free Agent Camp, I went back to Tennessee to give some kicking lessons to specialists I have been working with over the last few years.

In the ten days I was home, I was able to reflect on all that I had accomplished in the nine months since I tested out the footballs in Knoxville, and all the new possibilities that were in my future.

I have rediscovered my passion for being a PRO kicker, I am working with someone I consider to be the best kicking coach in the country, I have acquired one of the top sports agents in the NFL and I have also bettered myself as a kicking coach.

But finally, to bring the story full circle (and perhaps the true ‘icing’ on the cake), I recently read the University of Tennessee has decided to try out new footballs for Spring Practice.

Who would have guessed that! It’s just like in the stories you read in books!!!

And now, a new chapter in my book is just beginning. I am continuing my kicking lessons in Tennessee and special teams clinics as I continue training for my opportunity in PRO football. I am excited to see what the future holds on my “Specialists’ Path”.

Visit:

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

Check out Coach Renner's Training Program

Also check out www.tennesseekickinglessons.com

Down Under in Arizona

2011-04-25T22:00:00.005-07:00

After just finishing a Special Teams Clinic with Coach Walters of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, I was able to just recently exchange ideas with a Professional Rugby Kicking Coach from Australia.

Damien Hill (pictured above) is a rugby coach for the Nationial Rugby League (NRL) and decided to travel all the way from the city of Newcastle, Australia to learn more about the professional kicking techniques here in the United States.

In this video (below) one of Coach Hill's players, Benji Marshall, kicks a 50 meter drop goal in a NRL game.

I spent the day with Damien going over the kicking fundamentals of American football and also learning the game of rugby for myself. It was really a lot of fun observing how kicking is involved in the game.

After crossing the goal line in rugby they will attempt a "goal kick" for additional points. These kicks are done from the sideline at an angle and can many times be the difference between winning and losing.

As you will see in the video (above) there are some kicking coaches in Australia teaching all different types of kicking techniques for goal kicks. One of the things I notice about some kicking coaches in Australia and in the United States is that they will tell you to just kick the way you feel comfortable. Having comfort is important but there are fundamentals that are needed to be successful.

Coach Hill spent the day learning the proper drills and techniques to teach his rugby players back in Australia. I was able to show him the benefits of a training program and how to implement it.

Check out Coach Hill's Testimonial

Once we were done with the coaching session we went to see some of my friends for an Easter dinner and pool party. He said that American girls were a lot prettier than he once remembered and I told him that when I was in Australia last year I was equally impressed with the Australian ladies!

Coach Hill said that he plans to do some coaching for some rugby teams in Santa Barbara, California for the next week and then head back to the land "down under". It was great working with him and I look forward to doing some consulting with him in the future.

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Consulting with CFL Winnipeg Blue Bombers

2011-04-18T06:50:00.130-07:00

After finishing up the combine at the beginning of the month I went back to Tennessee to continue my kicking consulting business. During my time back I was able to consult with Coach Kyle Walters of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League (CFL).

Following Coach Renner's Training Program has been invaluable to me not only as a kicker but as a kicking coach. One of Coach Renner's many strengths is the fact that he is not just a special teams guru but a football coach. He leads men and has the ability to teach every position on the football field.

I learned so much from Coach Renner and I have taken that knowledge to conduct Special Teams Clinics for football coaches in a way that is easy for your average football coach to understand.

One of the biggest issues for kicking specialists in the game today is the disconnect between the players and coaches. Most coaches believe that kickers and punters are just off in their own world and can't be coached. This is far from the truth!

If the average football coach is asked to coach a new position like defensive backs or running backs than he simply goes somewhere to find drills to make his players better.

Coaching kickers and punters is not much different than coaching defensive backs. You must follow the proper kicking technique and you need an organized structure of drills to help you improve your skill.

Coach Walters flew from Winnipeg, Canada to further develop his knowledge of the kicking game. I met Coach Walters through a mutual friend, Rob Maver, who is one of the top kickers in the CFL and plays for the Calgary Stampeders.

Coach Walters and I took the morning to sit down in a classroom and go over the fundamentals of kicking. We spent time on the chalkboard talking about all different aspects of the kicking game and I learned quite a bit myself. The CFL rules for special teams are vastly different from the American game.

I gave him a drill set for his specialists and a routine for them to use during practice time. This gives the kicking specialists the ability to use their time productively and not wear out a kicker's leg during two a days.

Also, I spent some time on the mental side of the game with him. There are certain ways that practices can be put together so that the kickers and punters can be challenged mentally The mental reps are so valuable for a kicking specialist and putting pressure on a kicker is vital to his success.

Finally, I went on the field and demonstrated the drills for him. This was a great time for him to ask any questions he might have about the drills and I also explained to him what to look for in his kicking specialists.

I had a wonderful time meeting Coach Walters. It was great working with him and I am excited to conduct similar special teams clinics to college and high school coaches across the Southeast and especially in Tennessee!

Check out Coach Walters' Testimonial About the Special Teams Clinic:

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Day 50- Coach Mike Stock Interview

2011-04-06T06:19:00.017-07:00

***Check my Archived Specialists Path Blogs on YouTube

During the camp I had the fortune of being able to interview Coach Mike Stock. Coach Stock was a Special Teams Coach in the NFL for 18 years including just previously with the Green Bay Packers.

He has assisted some of the best kicking specialists in the game and he is a legend in the NFL community. Check out this fascinating interview with a coach who has been a big part of NFL history when it comes to NFL Special Teams Coaches.

Check out my full interview with Coach Mike Stock on my website.

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Day 49- Michael Husted Interview

2011-04-05T06:19:00.000-07:00

***Check my Archived Specialists Path Blogs on YouTube

After following Coach Renner's Training Program, this past weekend I qualified for Louie Aguiar and Michael Husted's PRO Camp. This camp is for Free Agent and College Senior Kicking Specialists who are looking to play professional football.

Over the years some of the top kicking specialists from this combine have been signed by numerous NFL teams. These type of camps are the best shot for a player to be seen and get an opportunity in PRO football as a kicking specialist.

The camp is run by Aguiar and Husted but they are assisted by an all star staff of coaches in former NFL long snapper Kelly Goodburn and former NFL kicker Mike Hollis, who conducts kicking lessons in Jacksonville, Florida.

This week I was able to interview Louie Aguiar and Michael Husted, former NFL players who host this event, and also Coach Mike Stock. Coach Stock was a Special Teams Coach in the NFL for 18 years including just previously with the Green Bay Packers.

Check out my full interview with Michael Husted on my website.

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Day 48- Louie Aguiar Interview

2011-04-04T11:05:00.001-07:00

***Check my Archived Specialists Path Blogs on YouTube

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Day 47- Back to Tennessee to Coach Kickers

2011-04-01T06:00:00.005-07:00

After finishing three months of intense training in Arizona, I am now on my way back home to work with kickers and punters in Tennessee.

By learning Coach Renner's Training Program I feel that I can take my training of kickers and punters to a whole new level.

I am looking forward to working with all levels of kicking specialists in Tennessee but the most important aspect of each specialist is DESIRE. Being a great kicker doesn't come overnight and good technique training will only take you so far. To take your game to the next level it is important to get out on the field and work on your kicking.

I am looking forward to teaching kicking specialists in Tennessee the proper technique and then having them follow Coach Renner's Training Program so that they have the structure they need to improve everyday.

Over the next few months I plan to travel to Knoxville and Memphis for kicking lessons while continuing my lessons in Nashville. Lesson openings will book up fast so please contact ASAP if you are looking for a spot while I am in Knoxville or Memphis.

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Day 46- Results from Aguiar and Husted Combine

2011-03-31T08:55:00.000-07:00

***Check my Archived Specialists Path Blogs on YouTube

Louie Aguiar and Michael Husted's PRO Camp started last Saturday and concluded yesterday. The camp is for five days and I am extremely pleased with my performance.

On December 4th I started Coach Renner's Training Program and in a little more than 100 days I was able to compete with some of the best kickers in the world.

After the camp was over I had a good sense of where I am at as a kicker. My kickoffs were very solid throughout the week with my average being approximately 3 yards deep in the endzone with a 4 second hang time.

My field goals were solid all week except for a little struggle on Sunday's charting. I came back on Monday though and made 9 of 10 field goals and had a solid last day of the combine.

Like I always tell my kicking students, it is a great idea to get in front of other people and compete. I learned who the talented free agent kickers are and where I stood against them. There is a difference between kicking by yourself and kicking under pressure.

Being a professional kicker is more than just hang times and distances. It is about knowing your craft of kicking and being mentally prepared for every situation possible. This is why it can sometimes take kickers three years out of college before they are ready for PRO football.

The next stage of my Specialists Path is to continue training for PRO football but to start consulting with more kickers and punters in Tennessee. My goal in life is to be in the game of kicking and I believe that this process of training for PRO football as a kicker has made me a better coach and a stronger person.

Check out my video blog on Aguiar and Husted's Combine at:

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Day 45-Aguiar and Husted Combine

2011-03-29T17:51:00.002-07:00

***Check my Archived Specialists Path Blogs on YouTube

This week I was able to interview Louie Aguiar and Michael Husted, former NFL players who host this event, and also Coach Mike Stock. Coach Stock was a Special Teams Coach in the NFL for 18 years including just previously with the Green Bay Packers.

Check out some brief clips of my interviews from Aguiar, Husted, and Stock on my website. Each of their video interviews will be posted in their entirety next week.

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Day 44-Thoughts on NFL Kickoff Change

2011-03-24T21:41:00.002-07:00

***Check my Archived Specialists Path Blogs on YouTube

On Tuesday the NFL decided to change kickoffs from the 30 yard line to the 35 yard line. This has been a well talked about issue over the past few days.

It is amazing to see the different things that have happened on my Specialists Path, but this is certainly an interesting development. The change in the kickoff rule will obviously give kicking specialists a much better opportunity to kick kickoffs for touchbacks.

Last year NFL kickers kicked approximately 16 percent of there kickoffs for touchbacks and there are some early projections that say that statistic should rise to possibly 40 percent.

During my kicking career at Tennessee I kicked from the 35 yard line and after training from the 30 yard line for the past few years it will be a big confidence boost to have those extra 5 yards.

I personally don't believe that the rule will have as much effect as people are projecting. If you would like to hear my thoughts on the rule change than go to my http://www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com/ .

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Day 43- NFL Player's Thoughts

2011-03-24T12:10:00.001-07:00

***Check my Archived Specialists Path Blogs on YouTube

During one of my recent workouts I had a chance to meet current NFL player Dewayne Lewis, who is a cornerback for the Cincinnati Bengals. Dewayne caught some of my kickoffs from my workout and I got a chance to talk with him afterwards.

Being a kicking specialist in the NFL is not just about kicking. It is about handling yourself as a professional and doing the little things to fit in with the team. Dewayne is a first year player for the Bengals and was on injured reserve this past year.

He is one of the fastest players in the NFL as he had a recorded 40 time of 4.28 second here is a link to Dewayne Lewis in Action . In this interview he talks about his experience in the NFL last year and what it takes to be a professional.

I was very fortunate to be able to talk with Dewayne and what he said certainly hit home for me. It reminded me of my time in Baltimore with the Ravens. I learned some valuable lessons from watching Matt Stover and from being around the rest of the team that year.

You never know who might come in your path and I just want to thank Dewayne for his time and insight. This is just another awesome thing that happens when you are on your Specialists Path.

Check out DeWayne Lewis' interview at:

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Day 42- Combine Preparation 2

2011-03-23T08:25:00.001-07:00

***Check my Archived Specialists Path Blogs on YouTube

Yesterday was my 2nd Combine Preparation workout. This weekend will be the qualifying for the Free Agent Kicking Combine and the combine itself will be a week from today.

There are kicking standards that the combine has for qualifying and so right now I am preparing to meet those standards. Kickoffs need to be to the 5 yard line with 3.85 hang time and field goals need to made at a high percentage. Right now the standard in the NFL is above 80% on field goals to just be average.

During my kicking workout yesterday I made all 10 of my field goals that ranged from 38 to 50 yards. Also, I charted 5 kickoffs which all made the necessary standard that is needed for the combine. My best kick was a 77 yard kick with 4.25 hang time.

The rest of the week is about slowing down on the kicking and getting physically and mentally prepared for the combine. This is just one step of many on my Specialists Path.

Check out my 2nd combine preparation workout at:

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Day 41- Combine Preparation

2011-03-22T07:53:00.004-07:00

***Check my Archived Specialists Path Blogs on YouTube

This week is an important week for my training because I am now one week from the Free Agent Kicking Combine. This weekend I will be qualifying for the combine on Wednesday March 30th.

There are kicking standards that the combine has for qualifying and so right now I am preparing to meet those standards. Kickoffs need to be to the 5 yard line with 3.85 hang time and field goals need to made at a high percentage. Right now the standard in the NFL is above 80% on field goals to just be average.

During my kicking workout yesterday I made 14 of 15 field goals that ranged from 35 to 55 yards. My one miss was by a foot from 47 yards. My training from the side angle field goals has really helped me with fine tuning my kicking accuracy.

The rest of the week is all about performing well at the combine. This is just one step of many on my Specialists Path.

Check out my combine preparation workout at:

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Check out Coach Renner's Training Program

Day 40- Trusting My Swing

2011-03-20T22:26:00.001-07:00

As I continue on my training one of the most important parts of the process is TRUST. I have done the proper kicking drills and training for the past few months and now it is about taking it to the field.

Coach Renner challenged me this week to do full approach kicks from a tight angle. This angle can be intimidating at first because it is such a small angle to make a kick but it forced me to focus in on my technique.

The video (above) is from a workout I had with Coach Renner back in December. I have come a long way since that time and I am excited about performing at the combine at the end of the week.

Check out my side angle kicking workout at:

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Day 38- "Back" in Alignment

2011-03-16T22:29:00.001-07:00

***Check my Archived Specialists Path Blogs on YouTube

During my kicking career I have learned some tricks of the trade to stay healthy. I was 2nd All Time at the University of Tennessee for consecutive games started. I never missed a game in 4 seasons at Tennessee as I played in 50 consecutive games.

The team chiropractor at The University of Tennessee is Dr. Michael Petty (pictured above) and he did a fantastic job of keeping me healthy. He also has a general practice in Knoxville and was one of the main reasons I believe in chiropractic care.

Quite a few professional sports stars use chiropractors and massage. As I continue on my goal of being a PRO kicker, I think it is important to use every advantage possible to reach my full potential as a kicker and I believe that chiropractic care is certainly beneficial.

Since I have been in Arizona I was able to connect with the Palmer Center for Healing and Dr. Alan Palmer. He consults with the Arizona Diamondbacks, Phoenix Coyotes, and the San Francisco Giants.

Just today I even ran into Augie Ojeda (pictured above) who has nine years of Major League experience and graduated from the best university in the country...The University of Tennessee! I have run into Augie numerous times when he is getting a chiropractic adjustment along with other Major League players who are here for Spring Training.

Check out my visit for massage and chiropractor care at:

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Day 37- Taking the Right Angle

2011-03-16T08:25:00.001-07:00

***Check my Archived Specialists Path Blogs on YouTube

Coach Renner's Training Program has been unbelievable in my development as a kicker. What I like about the program is that it gives you a drill set that is going to make you better.

Each one of Coach Renner's core kicking drills has a purpose and to execute the drills successfully you have to have the proper kicking technique.

After working with Coach Renner this weekend in Chapel Hill, he suggested I focus on one of his core drills to make some small adjustments to my field goal technique. I worked on Side Angle Field Goals for the entire day yesterday and I could really start to notice the improvement in just one day.

These are drills I teach to each one of my kicking students when I am back doing kicking lessons in Tennessee.

Check out my side angle field goal demonstration at:

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Check out Coach Renner's Training Program

Day 36- Ice Bath for Recovery

2011-03-15T09:13:00.006-07:00

As I continue on my Specialists Path towards my goal of playing PRO football as a kicker, I really want to focus on recovering before each kicking workout.

Sitting in an ice bath is something that can be very beneficial for a kicker's recovery and something that I try to do when I am sore.

This weekend I had a very successful time working with Coach Renner. We did a lot of kicking so that he could make the necessary changes that I need before the Free Agent Combine at the end of the month. Because I kicked so much this past weekend, I needed to use an ice bath to aid in my recovery.

Check out my ice bath video at:

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Check out Coach Renner's Training Program

Day 35- Achieving THE Standard

2011-03-13T15:56:00.009-07:00

***Check my Archived Specialists Path Blogs on YouTube

This weekend I went to Chapel Hill, North Carolina to work with Coach Renner one more time before the Free Agent Combine at the end of the month.

Over the past few months I have been following Coach Renner's Training Program with the goal of being a PRO kicker.

Coach Renner has coached numerous current NFL kickers and punters over his distinguished coaching career and he knows the standards it takes to make an NFL team as a kicker. He explained to me early on that my goal to be a PRO kicker is to average the 5 yard line on kickoffs with 4 second hang time.

After countless reps on kickoffs I am now reaching the standards it takes to be considered for a professional team. This weekend I averaged 1 yard deep in the endzone with a 4.09 hang time.

I am pleased with my progress so far but this is just the first step in the process...the next step is to perform at workouts and to get the proper exposure to make a PRO football team as a kicker.

Check out my brief kickoff video at:

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Check out Coach Renner's Training Program

Day 33- Fountain Hills Bike Tour

2011-03-09T21:34:00.010-07:00

***Check my Archived Specialists Path Blogs on YouTube

Fountain Hills, Arizona is where I am training on my Path to PRO football and it is filled with beautiful scenery including mountains, hills, and holds the world's 4th tallest fountain.

Over the past two years I have been out here working with Coach Zauner and when I decided to train for PRO football as a kicker I couldn't think of a better place to live and train for the Winter.

I want others to see how beautiful it is here so I decided to make a brief video of me touring the area on my bike. Here is a link to the video link .

During this phase of Coach Renner's Training Program , I am kicking 4 days a week and so Wednesday's are my big off day. Over the past few weeks I have experienced a lot of the Phoenix/Scottsdale area.

A few weeks ago I went and played golf in Scottsdale. The greater Phoenix/Scottsdale area has over 250 + golf courses in the area including the famous TPC Scottsdale where the Phoenix Open is held every year.

The Cactus League of Spring Training is going on all around the area including in Mesa, Tempe, Surprise, and Scottsdale. I went to an Angels vs. Rockies game in Tempe just the other day (picture below).

This is the perfect time to be out here in Arizona and even though I am training hard towards my goal...that doesn't mean I can't enjoy myself too!

Check out my video of Fountain Hills at:

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Check out Coach Renner's Training Program

Day 32- Kicking Workout

2011-03-09T07:35:00.004-07:00

***Check my Archived Specialists Path Blogs on YouTube

As I continue on my Specialists Path I am looking to improve on each kicking performance and I certainly feel I am improving.

On Monday I kicked well in winds as high as 35 miles an hour and yesterday I went 13 of 15 on field goals from 40-49 yards.

What I am really focused on is my control of the flight of the ball. I am starting to control ball flight and I am excited for each workout.

Check out my video workout at:

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Check out Coach Renner's Training Program

Day 31- Preparing for Kicking Competition

2011-03-08T08:59:00.006-07:00

***Check my Archived Specialists Path Blogs on YouTube

As I continue on my Specialists Path to become a PRO kicker I have started to really focus on preparing for competition. Coach Renner's Training Program is systematically preparing me to be ready for my chance at a PRO contract.

It is one thing to kick with a mechanical holder on a field all by yourself and it is quite another to be kicking in front of professional coaches with a PRO contract on the line.

Preparing for a kicking competition is something that is vital to success. I have always loved the quote "chance favors the prepared mind" and if you aren't preparing for success than you are preparing for failure.

Some of the things to take into account during a competition are:

1) Format of Competition: How many kicks do you get at the workout whether it is field Goals or kickoffs

2) Preparing for Competition: It is important to compete against someone else before you go to a big workout. It is difficult to replicate competition

3) Conditions of Workout: Is it a grass field or turf field. Have you prepared for windy conditions or rain? All these type of conditions are possible and having practice in them will give you an advantage

Check out my video of preparing for competition at:

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Check out Coach Renner's Training Program

Being Coached and Coaching Others

2011-03-07T08:24:00.014-07:00

***Check my Archived Specialists Path Blogs on YouTube

During my career in kicking I have had a very different perspective than most kickers and kicking coaches because I have had the experience of getting coached and coaching others.

It has really been interesting for me because after my career at the University of Tennessee and my first attempt at PRO football I had given up my career as a kicker. I had decided that I was destined to be a coach and I was more than happy with that path.

What made me give PRO football a second thought was because of the experience I had received from coaching and the ability to have Coach Renner has my personal coach. This was a very unique situation and a once in a lifetime opportunity.

Everyone needs a coach. Even the best golfers in the world rely on Butch Harmon and Hank Haney to keep their swing in check. This is no different for kickers and punters.

As I continue on my Specialists Path I will be pursuing my dream of being a PRO kicker, but I haven't forgotten about my kicking business in Tennessee.

I love to help kickers and punters reach their goals of being successful at kicking. After I finish the free agent combine at the end of the month I will be coming directly back to do kicking lessons in Tennessee the next two weekends.

I am not sure how my path will go, but coaching will never be far away from my heart. If I was fortunate enough to play 10 years in the NFL I would still want to come back to Tennessee and do kicking lessons.

So as I chase my dream of suiting up for a PRO football team I still love the idea of coaching others on their path to that same dream!

Check out my video of being coached and coaching others:

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

Follow me on Twitter and Facebook

Check out Coach Renner's Training Program

Day 29- Uncertainty in NFL

2011-03-03T22:53:00.008-07:00

***Check my Archived Specialists Path Blogs on YouTube

As I started this journey of training for PRO football as a kicker I knew that there would be some bumps on the road and the possible NFL Lockout is one of those bumps.

The NFL players and NFL owners are taking a 24 hour extension to try and get a deal done before the owners "lock out" the players.

Respected NFL sports writer Adam Shefter says "that the two sides are roughly $25 million apart per team, which comes out to a $750-800 million gap that must be closed."

I will briefly be following the situation, but the truth is that I can only control what I have control over which is my training.

The UFL and CFL are two great football leagues and are other paths to professional football. I will be looking to attend a free agent combine at the end of the month and then see what my options will be for the future.

Until I get signed by a professional team I will continue doing my other passion, which is coaching kickers and punters.

Check my thoughts about the NFL Lockout at:

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Check out Coach Renner's Training Program

Day 28- Much Needed Day Off

2011-03-02T23:30:00.007-07:00

***Check my Archived Specialists Path Blogs on YouTube

Coach Renner's Training Program pushes you physically and mentally to be the best kicking specialists you can be. I know how hard I have worked over the past few months and that is why I take advantage of my off days.

Last week I went and played golf and this week I took a more relaxing option. I went and got an hour massage. I started getting massages while I was at Tennessee. A message well help get blood flow into the muscles to promote a quicker recovery.

After finishing my massage I went over to my condos pool and hot tub. It was 75 degrees here in Arizona. Sorry if I am teasing anyone who is in cold weather right now!

Finally, I ended the night by going to a friends' house and watching American Idol. I have really started to enjoy watching the talent on the show and it is fun playing a few games of pool after the show is over.

It is certainly important to work hard when training for PRO football as a kicker, but it is always important to enjoy your days off.

Check my video of my day off at:

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Check out Coach Renner's Training Program

Day 27- Kicking Workout

2011-03-02T00:48:00.008-07:00

***Check my Archived Specialists Path Blogs on YouTube

As I continue to follow Coach Renner's Training Program I am set with new challenges.

Last week was my first time to be back on field goal posts and my kicks were from 30-39 yards. Out of 75 charted kicks I made 66 of them for an 88 % rate.

Hitting a good percentage is great to see on paper but more importantly I am searching for the correct field goal swing. This next week will be important for me to fine tune my swing and work on the smaller details.

Yesterday started my new workout which was from 40-49 yards. I was pleased with the result of making 12 of 15 but I am always striving to improve. I look to improve that position and get close to mastering the flight of the ball.

Take a look at the workout and see what you think...

Check my video at:

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Check out Coach Renner's Training Program

Day 26- Getting in Kicking Shape

2011-02-28T21:58:00.008-07:00

As I continue to follow Coach Renner's Training Program I have seen unbelievable results. I thought it would be fun to show some video of my progress to this point.

The video clip (above) is from a December 4th workout with Coach Renner in the snow. The conditions were obviously difficult but more than anything I wasn't in the proper kicking shape to perform at my best.

This next video (above) is from my workout with Coach Renner in Hendersonville, Tennessee on December 27th. You can see that my body had gotten in much better condition after only a month.

Coach Renner's son is a quarterback for the University of North Carolina and he was in Nashville to see the Tar Heels play the Volunteers in the Music City Bowl. We worked together twice while he was in town.

BTW...we haven't discussed the outcome of the bowl game or the fact that the Vols were robbed!

The final video is a clip from my February 12th workout in Chapel Hill, North Carolina with Coach Renner.

As I continue on my path my conditioning will be vital to getting signed to professional team and to staying healthy once I get there.

Check my video about getting in kicking shape at:

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

Check out Past Specialists Path Blogs from the beginning on my YouTube Channel

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Check out Coach Renner's Training Program

Day 25- Goal Setting

2011-02-27T23:16:00.004-07:00

As I continue towards my goal of playing PRO football as a kicker, I believe that goal setting is very important.

I have had a lot of experience with setting goals during my career. Every year in high school and college I would sit down and write down what my goals were. I would look at those goals everyday and it would motivate me to improve as a player and a person.

During high school I made my goal to be the kicker at the University of Tennessee . I cut out an article of a kicker who had committed to Tennessee in 1999 and I put it on my wall (picture above). I grew up watching Andy Kelly, Peyton Manning, and my favorite kicker was Jeff Hall, who was the National Championship kicker for the Vols. I was able to reach my goal but more importantly the pursuit of that goal made me a better kicker and a better person.

Coach Renner's Training Program is all about charting kicks and setting goals. His workout manual has field goal and punting workouts that can help people chart their progress.

Check out my thoughts on goal setting and how it applies to my pursuit of playing PRO football.

Check out this video at:

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Check out Coach Renner's Training Program

Day 24 Flexibility

2011-02-25T00:22:00.005-07:00

As I continue on my Specialists Path, one of the factors that I think really works in my favor is my flexibility.

Flexibility is a vital aspect to a successful kicker or punter. Coach Renner emphasizes flexibility in his Training Program and I really love his Dynamic Flexibility.

Dynamic Flexibility is much different than just sitting on the ground and stretching. It forces you to work on balance and a much more active stretch.

As I do my kicking lessons in Tennessee, I make sure that each kicking specialist has flexibility. Just like a golfer it is important to go through the full range of motion on a swing.

I believe that if you are stretching four days a week you are maintaining flexibility. Anything less than that is losing some and any more than that will help you gain more flexibility.

Check out this video at:

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Check out Coach Renner's Training Program

Day 23 Golf as Mental Training

2011-02-24T09:26:00.004-07:00

One of the great things about training for PRO Football in Arizona is the beautiful weather and the greater Phoenix area is mecca for golf. There are over 200 golf courses in the greater Phoenix area and I plan to play almost all of them at some point!

Coach Renner is an avid golfer and I believe he won't be too bothered with me taking in a few rounds on my off days. He has told me on quite a few occasions about how he enjoys going to the driving range or hitting balls into his golf net at home.

Golf is great as a mental training tool and I use it to sharpen up my skills as a kicker. I am certainly not as good a golfer as I am a kicker, but I enjoy the game and love the fact that I am in control of how the ball flies.

Check out this brief clip of me putting at the end of my round of golf and go to my website to see the full video.

Check out this video at:

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Check out Coach Renner's Training Program

Day 22 Kicking & Progress Update

2011-02-23T09:43:00.009-07:00

Over the next 5 weeks I will be preparing for a Free Agent Combine out in Arizona. This is a great opportunity for me to gain some much needed exposure and get in front of Special Teams Coaches in Professional Football.

I started Coach Renner's Training Program officially in December when I met with Coach Renner in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Over the past 2-3 months I have been in "training mode". I have been focusing on changing my body and readjusting my kicking motion to be more efficient.

The next step for me is "performance mode". These next 5 weeks I will be using field goal charts from Coach Renner's program to chart my progress. Coach Renner has various field goal and kickoff workouts to prepare me for the Free Agent Combine.

On Monday I made 14 of 15 fields goals and in yesterday's workout I went 13 of 15. I am happy that I am feeling good and kicking the ball well, but I have things I still need to work on to be ready for the combine. I guess that is what practice is for!

Check out my video from yesterday to see my performance.

Check out this video at:

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Check out Coach Renner's Training Program

Day 21 Blog & Kicking Lessons in Nashville

2011-02-21T23:09:00.011-07:00

This week I continued my training for PRO Football in my hometown of Hendersonville, Tennessee and did kicking lessons all weekend.

I might be training for PRO Football but I am never too far away from my kicking students. I plan on doing lessons at the end of March and I always look forward to training kickers and punters.

I conducted my lessons at an indoor baseball facility in town and it has been a perfect place to teach the proper kicking technique.

It was really fun training kickers and punters from Tennessee but also kicking specialists from all over the Southeast.

Stephen Brauchle and his father traveled 11 hours from Gulfport, Mississippi for lessons. Stephen's cousin, Sean, was the kicker at Mississippi State last year and I can certainly see similar potential in Stephen.

Carlos Lopez is the starting kicker at Carson Newman and is just recovering from season ending back surgery.

I have worked with Carlos for three years now and I always look forward to seeing working with him. He is recovering nicely from surgery and I expect big things from him this year.

It was a great weekend for kicking lessons in Tennessee. I worked with many kickers from all over the state of Tennessee including Johnson City, Knoxville, Jackson, and Memphis.

Most parents would stay for the lessons to observe like in the picture (above) with Streator Ward and his father.

Overall it was great to be home as I got to see my girlfriend, my parents, and my dog Honey.

Check out my video on my website as I transition into "performance mode" to prepare for the next 5 weeks leading up to the combine.

Check out this video at:

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

Follow me on Twitter and Facebook

Check out Coach Renner's Training Program

Coach Renner on The Mental Game

2011-02-18T08:10:00.006-07:00

After having over 30 years of experience in football as a coach and a player, Coach Renner has a wealth of experience with training young men for performing on the football field.

Coach Renner sat down with me and discussed the mental aspect of the kicking game.

In my opinion one of Coach Renner's biggest strengths as a coach is his ability to relate with kicking specialists and help them with preparing to perform at there maximum ability.

Check out Coach Renner's thoughts on what it takes to prepare mentally for professional football.

Check out this video at:

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Check out Coach Renner's Training Program

Coach Renner on NFL Exposure

2011-02-17T07:17:00.006-07:00

Have you ever wondered why one kicker makes it in the NFL rather than another? It is not always talent. Strategy and persistence are a vital part of making an NFL team as a kicking specialist.

My kicking coach, Bill Renner, has coached numerous NFL kickers and punters and talks about what it takes to get on an NFL roster.

Check out this five minute conversation I had with Coach Renner about how to get noticed by the NFL. This is be valuable information for High School and College kickers that are looking to get noticed.

Check out this video at:

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Check out Coach Renner's Training Program

Working w/ Coach Renner Part 2

2011-02-12T20:51:00.008-07:00

This week my blogs will be about my trip to Chapel Hill this past weekend to work with Coach Renner.

Tomorrow I will be showing my interview with Coach Renner on what it takes to get signed to an NFL team.

Today's video is my second day working with Coach Renner. We worked on kickoffs and field goals and at the end of the workout Coach Renner challenged me to kick the same field goal that Scott Norwood missed in the Super Bowl against the Giants.

Check out my website to see the video of me working with Coach Renner.

Visit:

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Check out Coach Renner's Training Program

Working w/ Coach Renner Part 1

2011-02-12T20:48:00.006-07:00

After spending the past month in Arizona, I will be spending the week continuing my training and also training kickers and punters in Tennessee.

This past weekend I traveled to Chapel Hill, North Carolina to work with Coach Renner. I worked at the UNC practice facility with last year's UNC punter Grant Shallock and redshirt freshman kicker Thomas Moore.

Throughout the week I will be posting videos from my weekend with Coach Renner. Check out Part I of my workout with Coach Renner here.

Visit:

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Check out Coach Renner's Training Program

Day 15- Week 3 Review

2011-02-12T07:00:00.001-07:00

Week 3 is now in the books on my journey towards PRO football. I am on my way to Chapel Hill, North Carolina this weekend to work with Coach Renner.

Check out my video reviewing the week and also my encounter with a young Chicago Bears fan.

Visit:

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Check out Coach Renner's Training Program

Day 14-The Florida Kick

2011-02-11T09:00:00.003-07:00

The Mental Game is something that is vital to any kicking specialists. Last week I talked about my experience with Sport Psychology and that I received a Master's in Sport Psychology.

This week I decided to show one of the most challenging kicks I have ever had in my career. I kicked a 50 yard field goal to beat Florida with .06 seconds left on the clock.

Check out this video and my thoughts on the kick.

Visit:

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Check out Coach Renner's Training Program

Day 13- Dry Run Kicks

2011-02-10T11:50:00.004-07:00

As I continue on my goal towards professional football I am working on many different aspects of my game. One of those aspects is having the proper kicking technique.

Coach Renner has taught me the value of using Dry Run Kicks to reinforce the proper kicking mechanics. I do them every time I kick as I follow Coach Renner's Training Program.

In this blog on my website you will see me working on my Dry Run Kicks and also I add in a few field goals from the end of my training. Enjoy!

Visit:

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Check out Coach Renner's Training Program

Day 12-More Physical Training

2011-02-09T09:04:00.002-07:00

Well they say that kickers aren't athletes...that still may be the case, but it doesn't mean we don't train like them!

Coach Renner's Training Program is pushing me physically to be the best I can be. In this video you can see me do power cleans, which I haven't done since sophomore year at Hendersonville High School!

Check out my blog on my website as I did my workout over at Peaks Fitness in Fountain Hills, Arizona.

Visit:

www.jamewilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Check out Coach Renner's Training Program

Day 11-Training New NFL Balls

2011-02-08T08:20:00.005-07:00

As I continue on my goal of playing PRO football it is important for me to use the proper strategy in my training.

One part of that strategy is using the proper equipment that I will use in competition.

The NFL uses brand new NFL-K Balls in an NFL game. The seams of these balls are much more stiff than a ball that has been kicked and broken in. To prepare for this I will be purchasing brand new balls every month so I get use to the feel of the new footballs.

Check out my video on my website

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Signing Day for Wilhoit Specialists

2011-02-06T20:07:00.002-07:00

Wednesday February 2, 2011 was a great day for many kicking specialists across the country and that included at least four of my kicking clients: Nathan Renfro, Jackson Redditt, Greg Colquitt, and Phillip Houston.

Nathan Renfro, pictured with his parents (above), signed a full scholarship to the University of Maryland.

National Signing Day has been a wild ride for the Renfro family and I am couldn't be more pleased with how it all worked out for Nathan.

I remember talking with Nathan's mom, Mitzi, back in May of last year. We talked about Nathan getting lessons that Summer, but I also explained to her a little bit about the recruiting process for kicking specialists. We talked about a game plan for Nathan as far as university camps and scholarship camps.

He was able to have lots of success at the kicking camps across the country, which set him up with many opportunities going into the Fall.

At one point he had offers from Northwestern, Central Michigan, Maryland, and Tennessee Tech.

Nathan took Official Visits to Maryland and Florida State. After taking his visits, Nathan decided to make a commitment for a preferred walk on spot at Florida State University. Once he made the commitment to Florida State then Maryland came back with a scholarship offer.

It didn't take Nathan long to respectfully decommit from Florida State and accept the scholarship offer from Maryland. He will be competing to be the starting punter at Maryland in the Fall.

Jackson Redditt, pictured with his parents and coaches (above), also went through some drama this recruiting season before signing with UT-Martin on National Signing Day.

I started working with Jackson in May of last year and I have helped guide them through the recruiting process.

This Summer Jackson went through the kicking camp circuit and performed well. He followed the summer of kicking camps up with a great senior season at Wilson Central.

He made the most of his opportunities in high school. Unfortunately it was tough for him to get a lot of notoriety because his team was not very successful, which means a limited number of field goal attempts and kickoffs.

Even with limited opportunities he was named one of the top kickers in Tennessee and was selected to the Tennessean's All Midstate 1st Team. He hit field goals of 56, 50, and 47 this season and kicked 18 of 22 kickoffs into the endzone for touchbacks.

This month Tusculum and UT-Martin started to heavily recruit him and Jackson was torn between going to a Division I FCS School or accept a walk on spot at MTSU.

Jackson decided on the night before Signing Day to take the scholarship offer at UT-Martin and he will be competing for the kickoff and field goal jobs this upcoming season.

Next up is Greg Colquitt. I have known and worked with Greg for the past two years and I have played with both his cousins, Dustin and Britton, in college at the University of Tennessee.

It is fortuitous that just last May I went to Maryville High School to work with Greg and the Special Teams Coach from Clemson came to the school to work him out. Greg performed very well in front of the coach and almost 9 months later he accepted a priority walk on spot over at Clemson.

Originally Greg had committed to Tennessee Tech, but he decided on going to a bigger school and to attempt to earn a scholarship as a walk on.

He comes from a great family and I am very excited to see what Greg does in the near future for the Clemson Tigers.

Finally there is Phillip Houston. I met and worked with Phillip the past two Summer's while doing kicking lessons in Memphis.

Coincidentally Phillip goes to Harding Academy and on National Signing Day he signed papers to go to Harding University.
He came to Hendersonville, TN to get some follow up lessons in December before his workout at Harding University and he did exceptional at the workout!

Phillip is a very polite and hard working guy and I couldn't be more pleased that he has this opportunity to continue doing something that he loves at the next level.

Even though I am out in Arizona training for PRO football, I am never too far away from my kicking clients. I am ecstatic with the success of this class of kickers in Tennessee and I look forward to seeing what opportunities kicking and punters in Tennessee will have next year.

Visit: www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Day 9- Physical Training

2011-02-04T10:22:00.000-07:00

As I continue to train towards my goal of playing PRO football, the physical training that I do will go a long way towards my success.

I work out over at Peaks Fitness in Fountain Hills, Arizona. In this video here I show some of the lifts that I am doing to get my body in proper condition.

Coach Renner believes in training kickers and punters with explosiveness. Here is a sample of what I did in my workout, but I excluded leg extensions, leg curls, and lat pulls.

Check out this video on my website www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Link to Coach Renner's Training Books

Day 8- Kicking Training Tip

2011-02-03T08:32:00.005-07:00

Part of training for PRO football is to use the proper strategy. Coach Renner gave me a really solid tip for reducing injuries and adding a couple extra yards on kicks.

The tip is that it is something under my clothes...go to my website to discover the answer.

Visit: www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Link to Coach Renner's Training Books

Day 7- New Training Starts

2011-02-02T09:21:00.007-07:00

Over the weekend I received my new workout from Coach Renner for the month of February. I am starting to kick on goalposts now and doing different drills to prepare me for competition.

In this video here I go through the different parts of my training. I will be increasing my kicking over the next three weeks. This is an important time for me because I am gaining the strength and endurance that it takes to not only get signed to an NFL team but to also handle the rigors of Mini Camp, Training Camp, and probably an 18 game NFL season.

After my workout I got the chance to speak with soccer players on the Fountain Hills Middle School Soccer Team. It was fun seeing their thoughts on kicking and who are there favorite kickers in the NFL.

Check out this interview and my workout on www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

*Also, I have had quite a few emails from people wanting to find Coach Renner's Training Program.

Here is the link to Coach Renner's Training Programs www.billrennerfootball.com

Day 6- Mental Game

2011-02-01T09:30:00.004-07:00

On Day 6 of my Specialists Path I talk about the Mental Side of the Game. This is what separates the good kickers from the great kickers.

I have had extensive experience with this as I met with Dr. Craig Wrisberg, Professor of Sport Psychology, throughout my entire career at the University of Tennessee.

I also added even more experience on this aspect of the game when I got my Masters Degree in Sport Psychology.

Check out this video on my website as I talk about the Mental Game.

Visit: www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Day 5 Path-Right Hash Kicks

2011-01-29T07:52:00.005-07:00

On Day 5 of my Specialists Path I worked on kicking from the right hash on field goals.

Coach Renner has stressed to me the importance of kicking from this hash because of the tendency of right footed kicker to come across his body to try and make this kick.

A few weeks ago Coach Renner sent me a text message after one of the NFL Playoff games when David Akers, Philadelphia Eagles kicker, missed two medium range field goals from the left hash.
Since Akers is left footed he has more trouble from the left hash and unfortunately his two missed field goals factored in to the Eagles loss to the Packers.

Check out my video of kicking from the right hash at:

www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Day 4 Path-Finding A Bike

2011-01-27T22:54:00.004-07:00

On Day 4 on my Specialists Path I did a running and lifting workout in the morning and then focused on finding a bike in the afternoon.

Arizona is filled with beautiful mountains, hills, and trails. Riding a bike is a perfect way to cross train and also enjoy the beautiful weather and landscape.

One example of a great bike trail is at McDowell Mountain Park. This park is just a short ride from my condo and makes for a great ride.

Check out my video on purchasing my bike at: www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Day 3 Path-One Step Drill

2011-01-26T23:57:00.004-07:00

Today I did a kicking workout on my Specialists Path. I did the full workout that Coach Renner has instructed me to do. The workout consisted of dry run swings, kicking drills, and full approach kicks.

As you can see in the picture (above) Coach Renner has instructed me to aim at a light pole as opposed to kicking at goalpost. The reason for doing this is because he believes that to fully challenge me I will need to focus on a smaller target.

Check out my brief kicking workout on my website www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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Day 2 Path- Physical Training

2011-01-25T12:35:00.007-07:00

On Day 2 Specialists Path I focused on physical training. I am working out over at Peaks Fitness in Fountain Hills, Arizona.

Coach Renner has built a Training Program that is specifically designed for me to be more explosive in the kicking motion.

Also, I did some agility training to work on my quickness. Here is a picture of the mini ladders that I use for my training.

Quick out Day 2 Video Blog here:

Day 2 Video

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Mental Strategy for Training

2011-01-24T23:07:00.004-07:00

I am out here in beautiful Fountain Hills, Arizona on my Path to Pro Football. In this video blog I talk about the importance to getting the proper mindset to be an "elite" athlete.

In this video on my website www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com you can see what Coach Renner has to say about developing the mindset it takes to become a professional kicking specialist.

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Wilhoit & Renner Post Workout

2011-01-22T08:43:00.006-07:00

On December 4th I conducted my first workout with Coach Bill Renner in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.

Coach Renner and I sat down and discussed the results of the workout and what it would take for me to be a professional kicker.

Since December I have been following Bill's very specific kicking and lifting program as I go towards my goal.

That weekend in North Carolina was a catalyst to starting that training and giving me the confidence to give professional football one more try.

To watch this discussion go to www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

Wilhoit & Renner 1st Workout

2011-01-20T22:15:00.006-07:00

December 4th was the first day that I kicked for Coach Bill Renner on my "Path to Pro Football".

This was the first time I had met Coach Renner in person and of course my first kicking workout with him happened to be in the snow!

Check out the workout on my website. It was really a lot of fun kicking in all that snow. It made me feel like a young Adam Vinatieri trying to kick a game winning kick against the Raiders in the NFL Playoffs.

Enjoy this workout at: www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

Wilhoit & Renner Discussion Part 2

2011-01-19T14:53:00.011-07:00

Here is the conclusion to my pre interview with Bill Renner. Part 2 describes the mental part of his training program and what it takes to become an "elite" kicker.

For the full conversation can be viewed at www.jameswilhoitkickingcoach.com

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*Tommorrow's video will be of my first workout with Bill Renner. This workout was conducted in the snow in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.