It’s not yearly a school soccer staff enters the season with a battle on the punter place.
In 2022, Missouri was in an irregular spot.
The Tigers took to fall camp with graduate scholar Sean Koetting and redshirt freshman Jack Stonehouse vying for the beginning job. The veteran received. Going shot for shot — reasonably, boot for boot — Koetting earned the job till the third Saturday of the season sparked a change.
“I feel simply working towards like I used to be going to play was the one factor that I may do,” Stonehouse stated on his strategy to being named the backup.
Koetting punted thrice in Missouri’s matchup with Abilene Christian, netting 91 yards — a median of 30.3 yards per kick. The Rock Bridge graduate wasn’t as constant as anticipated and handed the reins to Stonehouse for the sport’s ultimate two makes an attempt.
“I used to be advised that I may need an opportunity simply to get in, as a result of if I have been to play, Coach (Eli Drinkwitz) didn’t need my first punt to be in opposition to a extremely massive staff,” Stonehouse stated. “He was like, ‘Simply be prepared,’ after which I stayed warmed up the entire recreation and bought my shot.”
The Camarillo, California, product took benefit of the chance. Stonehouse totaled 100 yards on his two kicks — one in every of which went for 53. Following his first collegiate motion, he was named the starter, with “Stonehouse” gracing the highest of the depth chart the next Tuesday.
“Competitors,” Drinkwitz stated when requested why Stonehouse changed Koetting on Sept. 17. “Positions should not assured. … The competitors was actually shut in fall camp, and we simply felt like after the primary three punts, it wasn’t constant sufficient for us to not let Jack have this chance, and I believed he made essentially the most of it.”
Stonehouse came upon he was the starter after studying the depth chart earlier than the following follow. He made positive to name his father first … then took it like an everyday day.
However punting isn’t something new to the Stonehouse title. Jack comes from a protracted line of collegiate {and professional} punters. His father, John, punted at USC and for the New York Giants.
Uncles Paul and Jeff punted at Stanford and Washington State, respectively. Cousin Ryan punted at Colorado State and now boots for the Tennessee Titans.
Jack described how his household even punts totally different from the norm, dropping the ball from an underhand strategy versus dropping it from the highest. The method will get as detailed as the place his fingers are positioned on the ball.
“Till my junior yr of highschool, I used to be a one-and-a-half step, and now I’m like a two-and-a-half to 3,” Stonehouse stated. “My dad didn’t do three steps, so in some unspecified time in the future you type of need to do what’s snug for you.”
In Stonehouse’s view, the psychological facet performs a bigger half than many anticipate. From catching the ball to creating positive his steps aren’t lengthy to not working into the defend, it’s like clockwork.
“Throughout follow, it’s at all times good to only go over these issues, as a result of when you go on the market, you black out,” Stonehouse stated. “That is what you probably did for the previous eight, 9 years, no matter you’re working towards, then you definitely simply go on the market and it’s type of pure.”
Each Ryan and Jack battled for jobs this summer time, and with Ryan now competing within the NFL, Jack makes positive to name each different week and ask for recommendation on his personal method.
“I don’t actually have as a lot recommendation to offer him as he has to (give) me,” Stonehouse stated. “I’d name him, ask him questions, extra on drops. I’d ship him some movie, my steps and all of that, and he would assist me.”
And all through highschool, Jack watched each recreation of Ryan’s, seeking to enhance his possibilities of becoming a member of the household manner of creating it collegiately. Now, Ryan gives rather more to Jack off the sphere, too, aiding with on a regular basis life questions and the psychological facet of the sport.
“It is simply steering,” Ryan Stonehouse stated. ” keep inside your self and and to just about play your individual recreation, do not play into the opposite particular person’s recreation.”
Punting clearly runs deep within the household tree, however Jack’s youthful brother, Josh, isn’t punting — which Jack joked is the “massive factor” within the household. Nonetheless, athleticism is widespread within the Stonehouse house. Jack’s mother, Sue, performed soccer at UCLA.
“I feel truly lots of the athleticism got here — sorry dad — from my mother’s facet,” Stonehouse laughed. “Lots of her relations performed sports activities. … I feel I bought it from either side.”
Stonehouse performed basketball and volleyball in highschool, too, and he combined in motion at quarterback in his underclassman years. However with the expertise in his household — and together with his dad at all times round as a “free coach 24/7” — Stonehouse turned towards punting.
Freshman yr of highschool is when Stonehouse began to focus primarily on punting. As he started to drop 50-yard kicks, he didn’t attempt for one more position on the gridiron.
Now Missouri’s beginning punter, Stonehouse has heart stage to indicate why he was ranked seventh at his place for the Class of 2021 by Kohl’s Skilled Camps.
With a efficiency to recollect behind him at Auburn — 384 yards on eight makes an attempt, his longest 68 — Stonehouse may collect his ft in comparable order in opposition to Georgia on Saturday.
“I actually need my web to remain at or above 45 (yards),” Stonehouse stated. “I feel that’s an inexpensive aim to remain at, and that’s what I would like. But when it’s not and it’s decrease, I simply have to maintain working.”
Stonehouse joked how getting extra reps in opposition to Auburn was good for him, not for the staff, as a result of he was changing into snug on the place at an SEC stage.
Particular groups coordinator Erik Hyperlink praised Stonehouse on final week’s installment of “Tiger Speak” for his means to step into the beginning position in his second yr with this system.
“For this reason he got here right here, for this chance,” Hyperlink stated. “And he’s carried out a extremely, actually good job, and he’s developed and acquired into the whole lot that we’re doing. I used to be excited to see him go on the market and carry out, and (I’m) excited to see what he can deliver to the desk right here Saturday.”
Stonehouse is the starter on the place indefinitely. Final week, Hyperlink famous that Koetting could possibly be punting for the Tigers once more quickly, including that the Columbia product has the strongest leg he’s ever seen.
Some credit score for Stonehouse’s success goes to Koetting and former Missouri punter Grant McKinniss. Dwelling with Koetting in between rents this summer time, Stonehouse couldn’t thank him sufficient for the concepts and constructive criticism they’ve bounced off one another.
“I feel that that is a precious yr,” Ryan Stonehouse stated about Jack sitting behind McKinniss. “I had that chance with COVID, get that fifth yr … and maximize the whole lot I may, and I feel that that is going to serve him effectively.”
By three video games, Stonehouse has booted seven of his 18 kicks for 50 or extra yards, placing six contained in the 20-yard line.
Missouri hasn’t tried a pretend with both Stonehouse or Koetting this season, however, “I imply, I’d in the event that they advised me to,” Stonehouse chuckled.
Stonehouse’s ultimate play at Chaminade School Preparatory was a pretend punt on which he scrambled for 30-plus yards and a primary down. His finish to his highschool profession was described as “heartbreaking,” because the returner tripped him up.
The No. 1 staff within the nation enters Memorial Stadium on Saturday for Missouri’s SEC house opener. In relation to Stonehouse’s job, Georgia is forcing a median of roughly 5 punts per recreation, giving the fourth-down quarterback extra alternatives to pin the opposing offense contained in the 20-yard line.