From Hobby to Husker, Larson?s Leg Leads NU

By Jeff Griesch
Lincoln -- The dream usually starts early in Nebraska. Young boys across the state from communities in the eastern part of the state like Lincoln and Omaha, across the central portion of the state through Columbus, Grand Island, Hastings and Kearney, and in western towns such as North Platte and Scottsbluff, all share the dream of playing football for the Cornhuskers.

The dream spans I-80, the smaller highways, country roads and main streets across Nebraska creating a common bond from generation to generation. The Husker Nation celebrates the dream each home football Saturday at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln.

Although one of the current Huskers is living out the dream as Nebraska's punter, Kyle Larson didn't share that dream with other boys across the state when he was younger.

"I honestly didn't ever think about playing football when I was younger," Larson said. "I honestly didn't have dreams about playing football in the NFL, or at Nebraska or even in high school when I was a little kid. I just went out on the farm and liked to kick the ball around. It was more of a hobby to me."

Larson grew up in the heart of Nebraska in the small town of Funk, just a few miles north Holdrege. His family owns nearly 300 acres of farm land and grew corn and soybeans while raising about 500 head of hogs and some cattle.

Helping on the farm was like a full-time job for Larson as a youngster, but he found time to kick the football across the open spaces of a big yard near his home.

"I just enjoyed kicking," Larson said. "I guess I just liked the hobby of it. It was something I did when I had free time. I guess it's something that developed over the years. I just kicked the ball across the yard by myself. My dad would come out every once in a while, but most of the time, it was just me out there kicking around the yard."

Larson continued to pass the time on the farm by punting while he attended elementary and junior high school in Axtell, before attending Kearney High School.

The 6-0, 205-pounder served as a punter, linebacker and a center for Kearney's football team. He also earned four letters in track and field while throwing the shot put and the discus under the direction of his father, Steve, who served as an assistant coach at Kearney.

As a punter, Larson clearly stood out. He averaged more than 40 yards per punt throughout his high school career, including a state-best 46.5 yard average as a senior to earn first-team all-state honors.

"It wasn't until high school that I started thinking more about playing football at the college level," Larson said. "I guess I didn't start dreaming about playing at Nebraska until a little later than a lot of kids. I didn't really watch any punters at all until I was in high school and came down to Lincoln for a spring game and watched Bill Lafleur punt. He was probably the first punter to influence me, because I remember watching how high and how far he punted the ball."

After walking on a Nebraska as a punter in 1999, Larson has spent the past four years writing his name into the legacy of outstanding Husker punters. Although Larson's knowledge of the NU punting tradition originally began with Lafleur, he has since schooled himself on other Husker greats, including Mike Stigge, Jesse Kosch, Darin Erstad and Larson's predecessor, Dan Hadenfeldt.

While Larson's 42.92 career yard-per-punt average ranks second only to Hadenfeldt's 44.54 career punting average, Larson said his name does not belong with the other NU greats.

"I don't think I can measure myself to those guys just yet, because I have another year left," Larson said. "I still have to prove myself this season, and then hopefully at the end of the year I can look back and feel satisfied with what I accomplished."

Larson may also be using the legacy of former Huskers to help motivate him for Nebraska's opener with Oklahoma State, when nearly 1,000 former Huskers are expected to be in attendance for the Husker Nation Celebration.

"Just being out on the field against Oklahoma State with all those other great punters and kickers back here to watch us is going to be an honor," Larson said. "With everyone there watching us, we really want to go out and have a great game and get the season started off right."

Whether the modest Larson will admit it or not, he has earned his place among the elite punters in the nation in 2003. After being chosen as one of 10 semifinalists for the Ray Guy Award in 2002, Larson was projected as the No. 3 punter in the nation by Lindy's and was picked as the No. 4 punter in the nation by The Sporting News.

Larson is a leading contender for the Ray Guy Award again this season, and has a chance to become Nebraska's first All-America punter if he can perform to his own expectations this season.

"I am shooting for a 44-yard average this year," Larson said. "Of course that depends a lot on where we are on the field, but that's a personal goal of mine. I would also like to improve my hang time."

Last season, Larson averaged 43.23 yards per punt, while punting a school-record 73 times. He hit a career-long 71-yard blast against Utah State, and notched 21 punts of 50 yards or more.

Not only is Larson adept at hitting the long ball, he has also demonstrated a flare for burying opponents in the coffin corner. Last season, he pinned the opposition inside its own 20-yard line 23 times to bring his career total to 44 punts inside the 20.

In 2001, Larson averaged a solid 42.52 yards per punt in his first year as a starter. He was a crucial element in NU's wins over Oklahoma and Texas Christian in his sophomore season, burying both teams inside their 20-yard lines on five occasions.

"Wherever we are on the field, whether its hitting the long ball or pooching it, I want to do what is best for the team," Larson said. "The individual stuff is really not that important to me. I just want to help the team, and I want our team to really come together this year. If we work together as a team and get the ultimate work effort out of every guy, then we are going to be successful."

Larson's team-first attitude, unselfishness and coachability were immediately apparent to assistant coach Scott Downing, who is in his first season tutoring the Husker punters.

"My first impression of Kyle was that he was very coachable," Downing said. "He is a great athlete, and there are actually a lot of places that he could play just as a position player, which is a huge plus for a punter. He is a hard, hard worker, and he wants to be good. I loved working with him during the spring. He listens to what you say, and he'll work with you."

Downing, who coached 2001 Ray Guy Award winner Travis Dorsch at Purdue, said Larson's knowledge of himself as a punter was invaluable.

"If he doesn't think what you're telling him is exactly what he needs, he's going to give you feedback," Downing said. "That's great because at this level you need feedback from your players because each player is different. What worked for Travis Dorsch might not work for Kyle Larson."

While Downing is quick to sing the praises of Larson's ability, Larson also embraced Downing's coaching techniques almost immediately.

"Coach Downing has made it really easy to work with him. He's a great coach," Larson said. "He's outgoing, and he has really taught me a lot in the short period of time that we've worked together. He's really helped me improve myself and my kicking technique by giving me some ideas to get the ball off more quickly and get more hangtime."

The Huskers are hoping that the strong relationship between Larson and Downing will help change the momentum of at least few games in Nebraska's favor this season.

Downing said Larson's influence on a game could be crucial.

"No question Kyle can change the momentum of a game for us," Downing said. "He can be huge in field position. Any time he can put them inside the 20, or any time he can turn the field over, he is helping our defense by putting more field behind our defense. You obviously don't want to use him that often, because if don't need him then your defense and offense are doing just fine."

For Larson's part, he's not sure how much influence he can have on momentum, but he is sure he wants to perform his best every game.

"I think I can change field position, but I'm not sure if I can change the flow of the game," Larson said. "Punter is just another position on the team where you have to go out there each time and get the job done."

Larson's level-headed approach has helped him succeed both on and off the field.

Along with earning second-team All-Big 12 honors on the field in 2002, he was a second-team academic All-Big 12 pick in both 2001 and 2002. He is also a six-time member of the Big 12 Commissioner's Honor Roll.

Larson owns a 3.158 grade-point average as a business administration major and is on track to earn his bachelor's degree in December.

"Punting is only going to take you so far," Larson said. "What I am here first and foremost to do is get my education. You can go pretty far with a degree in business administration, so I am hoping I can get a job I enjoy after college. If that job is as an NFL punter then great. If not, I know I have the tools to be successful in other areas of life."