Transfer Kicker a Perfect Fit for N.C. State

By JOEDY McCREARY
AP Sports Writer

RALEIGH, N.C. — For N.C. State's Steven Hauschka, kicking field goals is like pulling teeth.

The soon-to-be dental student is the only starting kicker in the Atlantic Coast Conference who hasn't missed a field goal and is the only one in the Bowl Subdivision who's perfect on both field goals and extra points.

Not bad for a graduate student who transferred from Division III Middlebury and joined the Wolfpack so late that he's not even pictured in the media guide.

"I knew I was a pretty good kicker from my days at Middlebury, and I thought my biggest challenge would be adjusting to the crowd," Hauschka said. "I was really nervous the first game, worried how I'd perform under pressure, because 60,000 people watching you kick (is) a whole lot different than a couple thousand, mostly parents. But after the first-game jitters, after I got those out of the way, I was really proud of the way I performed."

Hauschka's journey from a tiny liberal arts college in Vermont to the upper level of Division I began at the end of last season when he contacted then-Boston College coach Tom O'Brien, who was looking for help for his team's kickoff unit.

They remained in touch during O'Brien's transition to N.C. State, and he took advantage of the now-rescinded rule that allowed a player who earned his degree to transfer and enroll in a graduate program at another school and immediately exhaust his remaining eligibility.

He is 19-for-19 on extra points and 10-for-10 on field goals, and has proven himself as a worthy successor to John Deraney, who from 2003-2006 made a school-record 76 extra points.

"If we gave (Hauschka) more opportunities early, maybe we'd have a winner," O'Brien said.

Hauschka, who will miss a practice next week to interview at Tufts' dental school, is the latest of O'Brien's kickers with a unique story. He follows Steve Aponavicius, a walk-on at BC who went from face-painting fan to starter nicknamed "Sid Vicious."

"I did come out of nowhere," Hauschka said. "That was a fun thing, too, to not even see my name in the media guide. Guess that shows what hard work can do


http://www.wral.com/sports/football/ncaa/story/1990173/

11/2/2007 8:13:52 AM

thx for the article

whats our story with our punters? have we used the same one all season or did we bench/get rid of the guy who kept kicking 30 yarders?

11/2/2007 8:23:01 AM

^you answered your own question

11/2/2007 8:24:50 AM

so its the latter then?

11/2/2007 8:30:37 AM

I don't understand the need to post WRAL articles in a thread. And I read this on WRAL on Monday so it is old as fuck.

11/2/2007 8:39:59 AM

who the fuck cares what you think
this forum isnt about you, asshole

if you dont like it, fuck off and dont click the thread
simple as that

11/2/2007 8:41:53 AM

^^fuck him.

Thanks for the article. I enjoyed it.

[Edited on November 2, 2007 at 8:42 AM. Reason : .]

11/2/2007 8:42:22 AM

I personally don't keep up with wral, so I appreciate the wolfpack specific articles being posted.

11/2/2007 8:47:22 AM

Quote :

"I personally don't keep up with wral, so I appreciate the wolfpack specific articles being posted. "

and ncsucharlie is the poorest excuse for a troll in the history of tww.

it's pretty laughable

11/2/2007 8:54:08 AM

Good thread and good read.

^lots Fuck that guy

11/2/2007 8:59:02 AM

so your telling me I can post any article about NC State athletics in a separate thread?

11/2/2007 9:05:37 AM

We need Danny Deskevich back

he was 100% too

11/2/2007 9:12:43 AM

I think it was a gopack or a packpride article that I saw a very brief mention of "nfl scouts' attention." Anybody know if there is any substance to that? What are everyone's thoughts about Hauschka being an NFL caliber kicker? Damn I wish we had him for 3 more years, he's been awesome.

[Edited on November 2, 2007 at 9:56 AM. Reason : s]

11/2/2007 9:55:55 AM

Anyone kicking 100% this late in the season is going to get a look or two. Now if that translates to anything is a whole 'nuther matter.

11/2/2007 10:03:37 AM

I agree. And he has a decent leg to boot. He puts a lot of airtime into his kickoffs. Isn't his long FG from 49? I am sure he is good up to 50, beyond that I don't know. Any kicker with his accuracy will get a NFL tryout at least. I think one reason he is doing so well is he can concentrate on just FGs where we had Deraney doing everything.

11/2/2007 11:07:09 AM

So why is he a graduate student in PRT here if he's planning on going to dental school?

11/2/2007 12:36:07 PM

thx for the jinx WRAL

11/2/2007 12:44:50 PM

^^he's gotta study something while he's here

11/2/2007 12:45:38 PM

Yep - and if he plays his cards right he'll pick up an extra master's degree in the process. Not a bad deal.

11/2/2007 12:48:01 PM

Quote :

"The soon-to-be dental student is the only starting kicker in the Atlantic Coast Conference who hasn't missed a field goal and is the only one in the Bowl Subdivision who's perfect on both field goals and extra points."

Cashed.

11/3/2007 12:29:01 PM

Jinx

11/3/2007 12:49:49 PM

Quote :

"thx for the jinx WRAL"

11/3/2007 2:08:02 PM

he's getting laid tonight

11/3/2007 2:39:48 PM

11/3/2007 2:40:15 PM

wooooooooooooooo

11/3/2007 2:40:58 PM

O'BRIEN/HAUSCHKA 08'

11/3/2007 2:43:17 PM

4 reaz. go ahead and postpone your dental school plans, MR. NFL!!!

11/3/2007 2:45:32 PM

if need be, i'll let Hauschka have me for the night!

11/3/2007 2:46:12 PM

Quote :

"Sex : M"

Seriously how money was he today? 14/15 on the year from FGs and perfect on PATs. ALL-ACC 1st team without a doubt right now and he improved his NFL looks even more today. What is funny is most people didn't even know his name before this week.

11/4/2007 1:26:51 AM

Quote :

"We sittin’ here, I supposed to be the franchise player, and we in here talkin’ about a kicker. I mean, listen, we talkin’ about a kicker. Not a game, not a game, not a game…we talkin’ about a kicker. Not a game. Not a, not a, not the game that I go out there and, and die for and play every game like it’s my last. Not the game. We talkin’ about a kicker, man. I mean how silly is that? Man, we talkin’ about a kicker. I know I supposed to be there. I know I supposed to lead by example. I know that. And I’m not, I’m not shoving it aside, you know, like it don’t mean anything. I know it’s important. I do. I honestly do. But we talkin’ about a kicker man. What are we talkin’ about? A kicker? We talkin’ about a kicker man. (laughter from members of the press) We tal…we talkin’ about a kicker. We talkin’ about a kicker. We ain’t talkin’ about the game. We talkin’ about a kicker man."

11/4/2007 2:00:51 AM

i c wut u did thar

11/4/2007 2:01:49 AM