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| Matt Wile |
Height: 6'2"
Weight: 208 lbs.
High school: San Diego (CA) Francis Parker
Position: Kicker, punter
Class: Sophomore
Jersey number: #45
Last year: I ranked Wile #28 and said he would be the starting placekicker and backup kickoff specialist. He kicked off 79 times for 5,054 yards (64 yards per kick). He also punted 17 times for 707 yards (41.6 yards per punt) and landed 4 of them inside the 20-yard line.
My prediction for Wile was essentially backward, because Wile was the starting kickoff guy, a backup punter, and wasn't used as a placekicker. So goes the life of a kicker. Brendan Gibbons took a monumental leap forward from 2010 and held onto the placekicking job all season, so Wile was not needed there. He did, however, do a good job with kickoffs and was named to the Freshman All-Big Ten unit. It's a little strange that Wile didn't hold onto the punting job, because his average punt was 5.6 yards longer than starter Will Hagerup. And while Hagerup seemed to have uncharacteristic struggles for some reason (perhaps his off-the-field activities, for which he was suspended, had something to do with it), it seemed somewhat apparent to me that Wile should have been giving more opportunities to punt. Hagerup's 36.0 yards per attempt was pretty paltry.
As I admitted last year, I know very little about the mechanics of kicking. And kickers are often prone to being streaky. Hagerup could go back to booming punts like he did as a freshman and Gibbons could go back to missing the majority of his field goals. But one thing that seems to remain pretty consistent is kickoffs. Wile is the best kickoff guy of the bunch, so at the very least, he should hold onto that spot for 2012. If Hagerup doesn't step up his game, Wile ought to take over that position, too. As for field goals, let's hope Gibbons continues to be solid.
Prediction: Starting kickoff specialist, backup punter
If Wile takes over punts full time, will Haggerups scholarship be stripped?
ReplyDeleteNope. Hagerup is a junior. He'll get at least four years to make an impact.
ReplyDeleteI remember watching the pregame activities at the '10 MSU game (Big House) in a nest of Spartan fans (the horror). They were blown away by Hagerup, who was kicking the $h1t out of the ball. It was pretty spectacular. Hopefully he can get back to that in games.
ReplyDeleteWhat do you think about red shirting Wile? That would put two years between him and both Hagerup and Gibbons, thus giving him two years of eleigibility after they graduate to be the kicker, punter or both. Seems a waste a year of eligibility just for kickoffs, and if one of the others does not perform well you can always take off the redshirt and play him this year.
ReplyDeleteI do not like the idea of having four scholarships devoted to special teamers, and there will be five next year (Gibbons, Wile, Hagerup, Sypniewski, Norfleet). It seems superfluous to have one guy placekicking, one guy kicking off, and one guy punting. That being said...if Hagerup, Gibbons, or a walk-on can do the job just as well as Wile or Hagerup, then I wouldn't have a problem redshirting one of them.
ReplyDelete