by Justin Goodrum
Daily Lobo
Four years ago, Kenny Byrd was playing soccer for St. Pius X High School.
Now, Byrd is the kicker for the UNM football team, and this season he is regarded as one of the best at his position after he was named to the Lou Groza Award Preseason Watch List, which is the award for best placekicker in the nation.
When Byrd walked on to the team in 2002, after former quarterback Casey Kelly recommended Byrd to coaches, the expectations were low. However, special teams coach Dan Dodd said he saw great potential in Byrd.
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"The first time I saw him kick, the ball really jumped off his foot," Dodd said. "He was very raw of course, never having kicked a football that shape before. Obviously he has a strong leg and has grown into being a very accurate kicker as his career has unfolded."
In the 2002 season, Byrd was trying to get used to the transition from soccer to football.
"When he first walked out there, he didn't know how to put his pads on," head coach Rocky Long said. "But you could tell he had a strong leg."
Byrd showed he had an accurate leg as he became a semifinalist for the Lou Groza Award last year, hitting 13 out of 15 field goals in 2005.
Byrd said hard work and off-season conditioning helped him become a better kicker.
"Four years of practice, and anybody is going to improve," Byrd said. "I've had a kicking coach, and he's helped me tremendously, so I think that's probably the biggest thing."
Being on the watch list is an honor, but it may come with some high expectations. Long said his kicker will be able to handle the pressure.
"Guys seem to learn to handle themselves when they're on those things," Long said. "He went through it last year, and it shouldn't be a problem this year."
Dodd said the team's success will depend on how well Byrd plays this season.
"The kicking game is one third of football," Dodd said. "Although it's only 10 percent of your snaps, it's almost half of your total yardage."
Long said although Byrd is a senior, the backups will not get any game experience this season to prepare them for next year.
"Two or three guys are competing for the backup spot," Long said. "As long as Kenny stays healthy, they won't have a chance to kick this year. You won't see them until next year."
For right now, Byrd is focusing on the season opener against Portland State University and making sure that his football team will always win the special teams battle. Byrd said he always looks at the season one kick at a time.
"All I care about is the next kick I'm going to kick," Byrd said. "I don't look past it. I don't look behind it. I don't look at last year. I don't look at the end of this year. I look at the first one I'm going to have against Portland State and nothing else."
