2024 Kickers Who Don’t Get Enough Credit

<span style="font-weight: 400;">As you have previously read, and probably already know, kickers tend to not get the credit that they deserve a lot of the time. In fact, this occurs within all levels of play within the game of football. Specifically, if you are a young kicker, you tend not to see as much time, as you typically ride the bench, or pitch in with PAT’s every once in a while. Regardless, it is easy to tell when there are kickers who have a lot of potential ahead of them, even if they are just mere sophomores. The proof is in their mechanics, and overall consistency, and timing. Below, we have included some of our favorite 2024 kickers throughout the state of North Carolina. They are certainly worth the watch.</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">[player_tooltip player_id="117961" first="Nolan" last="Hauser"]- Hough</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Not only was he one of the most successful kickers in the state last season, but he was the leading scorer for kickers out of the entire 2024 class. To start, he not only accounted for 130 of his team’s total points by the end of the year, but he also completed a high rate of field goals by the end of his team’s 15 game season. In total, he made 21 field goals, which totals 63 points. In addition to this, due to the fact that his offense was incredibly productive in 2021, he was on the field a great deal to kick extra points. By the end of the year, he made 67 PAT’s, making him one of the more consistent kickers in his class. Look for him to have a great season in 2022.</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Darwin Bonilla- East Duplin</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Outside of Hasuer, there are a few other prospects, including that of Bonilla, who we see a high level of potential in. Last season, as a young 2024 prospect, Bonilla managed to nail a total of 7 field goals in a 13 game span. These successful field goals, paired with the 57 PAT’s he made, made him accountable for 78 total points in 2021. While we believe that he is on a great upward trajectory, we also believe that he has plenty of growth ahead of him. Going into next year, we would like to see him work on the overall timing of his kicks, as well as the arc on some of his balls.</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Charlie Birtwistle- South Point</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">As a sophomore last season, Birtwistle also displayed a high level of potential at the kicker position. Not only is this something for his team to look forward to, but it is also something that his team can expect to be a consistent piece of their overall team efforts for the next 2 seasons. Last year, not only did he hit 5 field goals, but he also managed to average around 4.6 points a game. In addition to this, he also totaled 54 successful PAT’s, meaning that he scored 69 total points by the end of the season. Areas we would like to see him improve in would include his overall follow through on some of his kicks, and the way that he is able to split the crossbars consistently. This, paired with his overall leg strength, is definitely achievable, especially if he takes the time to key in on these things.</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Britt Glover- Jacksonville</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Compared to other players on this list, Glover had a bit less production in terms of the field goals that he managed to hit. By the end of the 2021 season, he had only made 2 FG’s, but he had plenty of success in the PAT category, as he hit 51 PAT’s throughout the duration of the season. Because of this, we would like to see him continue his success within short range situations, but to improve, he should work on his overall leg strength, and accuracy from different hashes. Because of his mechanics, which are decent for his age, we think that this is achievable, but we certainly believe that he is still raw, and has things to work on. </span>