Collegiate Times

As Frank Beamer and the Virginia Tech football team prepare for a promising 2009 campaign, they won't miss the controversy surrounding a position battle at quarterback.

They will, however, be keeping their eyes on another familiar battle for the job of starting kicker.

For the third straight year, Tech entered spring practices unsure of who will line up on fourth down inside the opponents territory to put three on the board.

Five feet will compete through August to inherit the starting kicker job, held last year by Dustin Keys.

"I think we've got some good candidates," Beamer said. "I think that's one thing we've found here at Virginia Tech. A lot of people send tapes in here, and we usually have good kickers in our program."

This will be the third in as many seasons that the Hokies begin the season with a new starting kicker. In 2007, Jud Dunlevy replaced the reliable Brandon Pace. Dunlevy finished his senior season hitting 21 of 26 field goals and scoring 108 points.

This year's job candidates will compete to replace Dustin Keys, who contributed 101 points to the Hokies' 2008 campaign and was an impressive 17 of 19 on field goals from inside 40 yards.

"I think these kids are good kickers. The one that's most consistent - that's the one that's going to end up being our guy," Beamer said.

Beamer has been holding a kicking competition every practice in order to see which one of the candidate's stands out when it comes to getting the job done every day.

"Bad weather, great weather, if it's snowing, if it's raining, if you're not feeling good that day - No matter what is, you've got to be consistent," redshirt senior Waldron said.

Waldron transferred from Penn State, where he traveled with the Nittany Lions as the No. 2 kicking option in his freshman year of 2006. Prior to playing on the collegiate ranks, he was an all-state kicker at Oakfield-Alabama High in Oakfield, N.Y.  

Justin Myer, a sophomore competing for the starting spot, understands that it's all about focus.

A three-time letterman in soccer and two-time all-star kicker in high school in Manheim, Pa., Myer said, "The most important thing is keeping it in the middle of the uprights every time and being able to hit it over and over again very consistent."

Waldron described kicking as a "science."

"Every kick has got to be the same in order to be consistent, because that's what Coach Beamer preaches - consistency," Waldron said. "He likes you to kick the ball high and be very consistent, so that's what we try and work on, on a daily basis."

"Being able to get the same flight, getting to the ball early and getting a quick get-off time. Getting it right down the middle every time so it's not even a question if it's going to be in or out," Myer said.

With five guys competing for one starting spot, the competition will be intense and every kick important on a daily basis.

"The good thing is that we've got kickers to work with," Beamer said. "I think one of these guys - maybe a couple of them - are going to step up. But, I think they all have the ability to. That's the good part."

Along with Waldron and Myer, sophomore Tim Pisano, who battled for kickoff duties the previous year; junior Chris Hazley, who joined the team last season; and freshman Scott Demler round out the competition.

"It's kind of a special thing," Waldron said. "We're all just kind of battling it out right now."

"It's fun to go out there and compete every day," Myer said," knowing that you're going to have good competition out there with you every day."

Every day, despite the fact that they know it is a battle and only one will triumph, the candidates are even growing to like each other, too.

"I think we're all friends," Waldron said. "When we get on the field, it's business and sometimes when people say things to each other, you get a little angry or heated up, but it's more a brother heated type of thing."

But Waldron said that's different when practice ends.

"When we're off the field, you'll find the five of us kind of in a huddle, hanging out or joking and stuff like that," he said. "I think we're pretty close."

Myer agreed, "It's pretty much our own little specialist group."

"Just look for the little guys," Waldron said.