Kick Leg Mechanics for Pooches, Onsides and Rugby Style Approaches

By Kristian Stern
Wide Receiver/Kicking Coach
Westwood High School (TX)
Twitter: @CoachKStern

Kicking is one of the most important and overlooked aspects of football. A kicker / punter can make or break a game just on one kick. When coaching a kicker, it’s important that you only give them one thing at a time to work on. Too many coaching points at once could make your special teams practice go bad in a hurry. For instance, if they have a hard time getting their toe pointed, all they should work on that day is pointing their toe. I will go over what to look for at practice to help your kicker improve as well as your overall special teams. Here are the fundamentals of kicking and punting as well as things you should be looking for in practice.

Field Goal Technique

1. The set up (all steps listed are for a right footed kicker; left footed kicker would be opposite):
2. Place plant foot (left foot) one-foot length away from the ball (use right foot to measure)

Plant foot depth:

1. 2-inch tee: toe even with nose of the ball
2. 1-inch tee: middle of foot even with nose of the ball
3. Off the ground: ankle even with nose of the ball

Alignment:

1. After plant foot is aligned, take 3 casual steps back no more than 3 yards
2. After 3 steps back, align kicking foot through the tee through your target
3. Take 2 steps to the left (steps are shoulder width or slightly inside)
4. Steps over are at a perfect 90-degree angle
5. After 2 steps over, left foot is aligned with where you originally measured your plant foot
6. Right foot toe is aligned with heel of left foot
7. Pick small target to hit in-between the middle of the uprights
8. Small lean forward with a big chest

The approach:

1. Eyes on the ball
2. First step is a jab step with left foot (small step an inch forward)
3. After second step, land plant foot next to ball just like you first aligned it
4. Head should stay on a straight line and not bob up and down as you approach the ball

The Finish:

1. Toe pointed
2. Plant foot pointing at your target
3. Leg locked before contact
4. Make contact with the ball an inch below the middle of it
5. Toe and leg locked through contact
6. Leg parallel to ground after contact
7. Crunch with left arm to counter your leg swing
8. Everything finishes towards your target
9. Eyes up after you finish the full kick