By Mark Maynard / Prokickernews.com

MISSION VIEJO, Calif. - Throughout Brendan Rowland’s four years of high school, there was only one punting camp he wanted to attend.

Rowland, who graduated from Mater Dei High School in Mission Viejo, Calif., in 2009, said he still “lives and dies” with what he learned at the Ray Guy Prokicker.com camps throughout his high school years. Being around some of the best in the business helped him hone his punting game.

After two years as the punter at Saddleback Community College, where he was one of the league’s best, Rowland visited Conference USA member East Carolina last weekend and signed a scholarship to play for the Pirates. Last year, 22 out of his 55 punts ended up inside the opponent’s 20-yard line with no going into the end zone for a touchback. He averaged 39.9 but mostly because of his penchant for pinning opponents on a short field.

Kirk Doll, who recruits the West Coast area, saw a find in Rowland and directed him to East Carolina. It turned out to be a perfect fit.

“It’s a beautiful part of the country and the town supports it,” Rowland said. “I’m excited to be going to East Carolina. They’ve had some good punters come out of there.”

Rowland (6-foot-2 and 170 pounds) figures to be the top candidate as the No. 1 punter for the Pirates. As a sophomore at Saddleback, he punted 55 times for a 39.7 average with a long of 52 yards. He averaged 42.4 per punt as a freshman when he was named all-conference and all-region.

“This year was an eye-opener for me,” he said. “It’s not always about the average although that’s what a lot of people tend to focus on. I tried to help the team with situational punting.”

Sometimes that meant shorter punts but it backed the opponent closer to the goal line and put the defense in a better position.

Rowland, who now works camps for Prokicker.com, said what he learned in high school has carried with him throughout his career. He said rubbing punting feet with the likes of Ray Guy and Rick Sang only further boosts his confidence. Sang’s passion for teaching punting through his camps especially caught Rowland’s attention.

“When you realize he’s driving around the country every year, you realize his heart’s in it,” Rowland said. “They’re 100 percent for it. It means a lot to me.”

Aside from the fundamentals, Rowland said Prokicker.com camps teach the mental side of punting. They also equip you with the tools to make improvements on your own – an important aspect for punters who sometimes return home to little or no coaching in that aspect.

“They teach you things that are going to stay with you,” he said. “That’s the reason I chose Prokicker – and only Prokicker – all the way through high school.”

Rowland said it’s also not only what the staff teaches campers on the field but also how to carry yourself off the field. Sang’s speech to campers before each session is filled with passion and advice not only to the players but parents.

“His speech is exactly how I was raised but it’s something kids don’t hear a lot at home these days,” Rowland said. “I love that speech. I always tell everybody about it. Everybody needs to hear it.”

By Pat Miller / Bemidji Pioneer

BEMIDJI – Kyle Fodness grew up kicking a soccer ball but he always dreamed of booting a football for the University of Minnesota.

“My grandfather and my dad are both Gopher fans and kicking for the Gophers was a life-long dream,” Fodness said. “But that dream died a little when I went with soccer instead of football.”

Last fall, however, the prospects of kicking for the Maroon and Gold resurfaced when fate enabled Fodness to play both soccer and football.

Lumberjacks kicker Jon Henry injured his knee prior to the season and the football team was looking for someone to handle the place kicking duties.

Fodness volunteered and his ability to boot the football was among the reasons Bemidji advanced to the Class 4A championship game.

As fate would have it, the Gophers were looking for a future kicker and they considered Fodness a candidate.

Gophers officials watched and instructed Fodness during a couple of kicking camps and also viewed videos of Fodness in action.

Those officials were impressed with what they saw and in late April Fodness received a phone call from Gopher coach Jerry Kill.

“Coach Kill called to say that he wanted me to come to Minnesota,” Fodness said. “I’m very excited to kick for the Gophers but it’s a bittersweet moment because I am ending my soccer career.

“But I also am going to kick for a great program.”

Fodness expects to red-shirt his first year and hopes to challenge for the starting kicking job in 2013.

The Cal Poly football team held its final spring practice on Monday. At the conclusion of spring camp, head coach Tim Walsh named Stephen Pyle the team's starting kicker.

Pyle came to Cal Poly last year to play soccer. He competed this spring with walk-on Marco Tavecchio and punter Paul Hundley for the team's field goal and extra point duties. Walsh says Pyle's performance this spring won the job. "I thought Stephen did a pretty good job on Saturday, but did an excellent job this morning and really kind of earned the spot. The competition part of it, the ability to handle disappointment, I think Stephen was just further along that way," said Walsh on Monday afternoon.

In high school, Pyle was an All-State kicker in Texas. He helped his high school football team win the Class 4A Division 1 title in 2009 and 2010.

Pyle is also a defender on the Cal Poly soccer team.

The Mustangs were scrambling for a kicker after last season's starter James Langford surprisingly transferred to Cal.

Houston got its fourth commitment of the 2013 recruiting class in the form of a kicker: Ty Cummings.

Cummings, who plays at Southlake Carroll, verbally committed to the Cougars on Monday, according to the Houston Chronicle.

The 5-foot-11, 180-pound Cummings attended Houston’s junior day on March 31. Cummings received interest from Auburn, Boston College, LSU, Oregon and Southern Illinois but Houston was the first and only team to offer him.

The Cougars’ aggressiveness in the recruiting process won Cummings over.

“Coach (Tony) Levine has been a great person to deal with throughout the recruiting process,” Cummings told the newspaper. “He invited me down to junior day and I was the only kicker they invited there so that made feel good about the whole situation.

“A few weeks ago they offered me and that was the pinnacle of it all. I had a couple of weeks to think it over and here we are.”

Cummings joins Bellaire running back Denzell Evans, Shreveport (La.) Evangel Christian tackle Josh Thomas and Baton Rouge (La.) Redemptorist receiver Donald Gage in Houston’s 2013 recruiting class. Cummings is one of three kickers at Southlake Carroll. They all split duties: Cummings handled kickoffs last year since he has the strongest leg, while teammate Drew Brown (younger brother of former Houston Texans kicker and Southlake Carroll product Kris Brown) handled field goals and Sam Downey handled punts.

“He’s a great young man, smart, hard-worker, very attentive to detail,” Southlake Carroll coach Hal Wasson said. “He has a great leg, he handled all the kickoffs and he’s really good on onsides and directional kicks. He has a strong leg and very consistent at putting the ball deep.”

Verbal commitments are non-binding. The first day prospects in the 2013 class can sign a national letter of intent is Feb. 6, 2013.