#1 Kicker by Scouts Inc

[E-3driver]

Kicking Help on the Way???  Got this from ESPN Insider, so posted the whole article.

As national signing day nears, many top prospects have already committed or are shuffling through their offers and taking official visits.

Then there's Michael Taylor, a top-rated player from Booker T. Washington High School in Pensacola Fla. who sits with just one offer. He is not worried, though.

Why? Because Taylor is a kicker, and the recruiting process, like football itself, is a little different for them.

Taylor, the No. 1 ranked kicker, holds only an offer from South Florida at this point, but he is taking the process in stride.

"I should be getting offers around the beginning of January, end of December," he said.

Admittedly, he began to worry about the lack of offers earlier this season, but he was able to get some advice from his coach Chet Bergalowski and other kicker friends that put his mind at ease.

Taylor is friends with Florida State kicker Graham Gano, who went to rival Tate High School, and Troy kicker Greg Whibbs, also from Pensacola. The two have clued in him on the life of a kicker in the recruiting process.

He has been told that offers usually don't come until late, and many schools will try and get you to walk-on. Taylor right now is not interested in walking on anywhere and is patient and optimistic about his offer situation.

Taylor said Whibbs told him, "'Don't worry about it, don't commit early because you don't want to commit early to somewhere you don't want to go and then someone comes and offers later that you like better.'"

That advice is something that Taylor has used to formulate his plan for the remainder of the recruiting season.

"I am waiting until toward the end so I can figure out who is really serious about recruiting me before I make all my official visits," Taylor said.

The fact that Taylor is even at this point can be a little surprising, considering the first time he kicked a football was in the ninth grade. Like many kickers, Taylor's background was in soccer, and that is the game he has been playing since he was four years old.

An opportunity came along though as he entered the ninth grade to give football a try. Taylor's mother, Holly Lohr, went to school with the daughter of the freshman coach, and knowing the family, he asked Michael if he would come out and kick for the freshman team, offering him a deal he couldn't refuse.

"He said all I had to do was kick and I could leave," he remembers.

With the blessing of his mother, he went out for the team. Taylor's football career got off to a rough start as the first two times he kicked the ball he hit his offensive line. His soccer background taught him to drive the ball low, but he quickly realized he would have to make adjustments to his kicking motion.

"When you play soccer, you want to strike the ball in the middle, but with a football, you are trying to get it high and get a slow rotation, so you have to get a little further under it," explained Taylor.

Despite the rough start, he quickly made the adjustments and was much better by the second day. Varsity linebacker coach Frank Williamson was a punter at Alabama, and Taylor spent time with him to work on his kicking technique. By the time he was a sophomore, he was kicking with the varsity and getting better.

All the while, Taylor continued to play soccer, which in Florida is in a different season than football. Every year in high school, he has been the team's leading scorer. He has found the switching of kicking styles from one season to the next to be tough, but he has been able to adjust quickly.

He gets support from his soccer coach Alex Golodko, who at one time had a son who also kicked for the school. While his soccer coach understood playing both sports, he was not able to actually give Taylor any advice on kicking a football. "He was all into soccer; he was a big soccer guy," said Taylor.

It is not unusual for kickers to regularly attend kicking camps in the off-season to work on their craft. Taylor began attending some camps this past off-season and found the Carol White kicking camp at Auburn to be very helpful.

"She helped a lot with technique," he said about the experience, saying that she was able to help with things like where the plant foot goes and steps.

The work has paid off for him, and now he waits for more offers to come in. As a kicker though, he's used to pressure, so waiting on an offer does not bother him. "It is tough knowing you can go into the game and either be the guy who wins it for the team or loses it for them."

Taylor has risen to the pressure before though, as he has kicked a game winner in each of the last two seasons.

"After you make it, it is the greatest feeling. There is no better feeling."

Wait until he gets that offer.

Taylor Q&A

Scouts Inc.: Favorite NFL team?

Taylor: Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Scouts Inc.: Who is your favorite player?

Taylor: Derrick Brooks, because he went to my school. He visits all the time always donates money and gives back to the community.

Scouts Inc.: Do you use anyone's play as a model?

Taylor: I've always liked Martin Gramatica. He was my favorite when I was small and I would watch football. I didn't really watch his technique much, I just liked watching him kick. I liked how small he was and how far he could kick it. I like the way Adam Vinatieri kicks, because he is a clutch kicker. I enjoy watching him kick.

Scouts Inc.: What is about playing your position that you love?

Taylor: I like the pressure situations. I do like when the game is on the line and I get to have a chance at kicking a game-winner.

Scouts Inc.: Favorite subject in school?

Taylor: College Algebra, because my teacher is so good at teaching it.

Scouts Inc.: Should college football have a playoff?

Taylor: I think I would like to see them go a playoff. I think it would make it where most people can't complain about how it is going.

[bulls96go]

he has a scholie from us... if he doesn't commit pull it?

or is he worth the wait?

what or who is he waiting on?

[E.T.]

We seem to be a perfect fit for him  8-)

[Guest]

So the only offer he has right now is from USF ??

[E.T.]

Yes, only USF has offered.

[SANJAY]

In short, he is waiting for something better and we are his fallback.

[dabull80]

Sounds that way to me.  Don't like this at all.  Scew him.

[TKBlue]

Guys, easy. Virtually every player on the USF roster had us as a backup to other Big Three schools. If we can land the top kicker in the country, getem any way they will come. I feel good about this kid.

[Guest]

UF needs a kicker as bad as we do... and I think Miami could use one as well.

The difference is that CJL was the first to offer a real scholarship, while the other schools may try to get him to walk-on.

[BigShoop]

Taylor Q&A

Scouts Inc.: Favorite NFL team?

Taylor: Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Scouts Inc.: Who is your favorite player?

Taylor: Derrick Brooks, because he went to my school. He visits all the time always donates money and gives back to the community.

Scouts Inc.: Do you use anyone's play as a model?

Taylor: I've always liked Martin Gramatica. He was my favorite when I was small and I would watch football. I didn't really watch his technique much, I just liked watching him kick. I liked how small he was and how far he could kick it. I like the way Adam Vinatieri kicks, because he is a clutch kicker. I enjoy watching him kick.

cmon kid! you can play in their stadium!