Jeff Banks
Drew Kaser
Josh Lambo
Taylor Bertolet
Texas A&M Football
“Having two good kickers puts me in a tough position to pick who to put out there and it makes it hard to evaluate who is best for the job. We have two great guys who are going to compete and who are going to work hard.”
“Taylor was very consistent last spring but the injury set him back a couple months and he got rusty. Now he’s worked to get back to where it was before and he’s missing very few kicks. He has all the talent in the world, and the more confidence he has in himself the better he will be.”
“We’re working hard to get the special teams better. I was a little disappointed in a few things last season in a couple places, mainly punt return and kick return. We’ve looked at some things and injected some youth to compete with the veterans and I love the competition. We need to gain confidence early and that’s the key.”
“I can’t find a freshman who can’t play for us on special teams in some regard. We have a great collection of talent.”
“Speedy (Noil) was here last spring, so this isn’t new to him. He was a multi-positional player at Edna Karr. He’s electric and can make you miss, but he’s 200 pounds and people will bounce off him.”
“Jamal Jeffery, Speedy, Quiv (Gonzalez), Nick Harvey and De'Vante Harris have all worked hard and are ready to contribute for us in the return game.”
“The rugby uprights are an accuracy thing. We didn’t get a chance to attempt many field goals last year, but in a season like this three points can be major. We need to be above 80 percent at least.”
“We’re trying to make kicking a field goal as hard in practice as it is in games.”
"We’re just trying to get the basics down, the coverage units. On fake field goals, just working on routes. Things go wrong and stuff so that’s where that comes through. With fake punts, it’s just giving me a chance. Last year we didn’t have many chances so we might get a few this year."
"I needed to get my drop better, shorten my steps and get a little more hangtime. That’s the difference between being a good punter and a great one, is the hangtime and allowing your coverage unit to get down there. I’ve got great gunners and protection unit on my punt team. I’m trying to do my part in helping them out with more hangtime. Last year it was probably 4.6-4.7. I’m hoping to get it up to 4.8-4.9. Hopefully I can get there."
"We break down every step from the time I catch the ball to the time it is kicked. As a punter it is all robotic, all mechanical. You want to have the same steps, same repetition. A lot can go wrong if you get a bad snap or your steps are off it can affect your drop, it’s a very critiqued form."
"(Meeting Shane Lechler) was awesome. He had a lot of words for me. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to practice but we text back and forth. I text him and tell him good luck at camp and he does the same to me. He came back for the Vandy game and that was his first time he had been back in a long time."
"Ray Guy was very deserving of (an award named after him). I had the fortune of meeting him down in Orlando when I went down for the Ray Guy award. He’s a great guy, well deserving, one of the best punters of all time. It’s cool to have a punter in the Hall of Fame, opens the door for the rest of us.
"It would be unbelievable (to win the Ray Guy). For myself, the University, my family, it would be a great achievement. Being down there last year was amazing. Just being down there again would be amazing, but winning it would be indescribable."
"Overwhelming still. There was a lot of cameras, lots of reporters. Being able to represent the university to the best of my abilities was awesome."
"Taylor is having a great camp so far. He’s made almost every field goal. Him and Lambo are going to have a great competition whenever he comes back. Lambo had a little tweaked muscle, so when he comes back they’re going to have a great competition. I trust Coach Banks and Coach Sumlin to put the best guy in."
"Taylor is a very good kicker. It's never been anything other than that. I want to focus on what I can do. If I go 1-for-1 on every one of my field goals, which is my goal, it doesn't really matter to me what other people do."
"I kind of look at it as three full-time jobs — husband, student, and athlete, in that order. I take my academics very seriously, because I've had a career taken away from me. I know how short-lived athletics can be. I've got two 4.0's in a row, which I'm very proud of, and football is just kind of a bonus."
"My wife is my number one fan. She's my biggest supporter."
"I love Texas A&M and (transferring) is never a thought that came through my mind."
"I started working with Coach Banks last spring and we went back and looked at film. Two springs ago, that was probably the best I've ever hit. I went back to that time and looked at my form and see what I was doing differently than I was now."
"I feel really confident, comfortable and I feel at home. I've been through my ups and downs and I've learned through my experiences. I feel more mature."
"I had a hernia surgery right before last spring, but I'm over that. It feels a lot better coming into camp knowing you're not hurt."
Banks, special teams leaders forecast the season
Jeff Banks
“Taylor Bertolet finished spring making the last 13 FGs … but having the hernia and other injuries were hard on him and set him back. But he’s worked hard to get better. He looks great and we’re in a great position to have two guys who can kick the ball well.”“Having two good kickers puts me in a tough position to pick who to put out there and it makes it hard to evaluate who is best for the job. We have two great guys who are going to compete and who are going to work hard.”
“Taylor was very consistent last spring but the injury set him back a couple months and he got rusty. Now he’s worked to get back to where it was before and he’s missing very few kicks. He has all the talent in the world, and the more confidence he has in himself the better he will be.”
“We’re working hard to get the special teams better. I was a little disappointed in a few things last season in a couple places, mainly punt return and kick return. We’ve looked at some things and injected some youth to compete with the veterans and I love the competition. We need to gain confidence early and that’s the key.”
“I can’t find a freshman who can’t play for us on special teams in some regard. We have a great collection of talent.”
“Speedy (Noil) was here last spring, so this isn’t new to him. He was a multi-positional player at Edna Karr. He’s electric and can make you miss, but he’s 200 pounds and people will bounce off him.”
“Jamal Jeffery, Speedy, Quiv (Gonzalez), Nick Harvey and De'Vante Harris have all worked hard and are ready to contribute for us in the return game.”
“The rugby uprights are an accuracy thing. We didn’t get a chance to attempt many field goals last year, but in a season like this three points can be major. We need to be above 80 percent at least.”
“We’re trying to make kicking a field goal as hard in practice as it is in games.”
Drew Kaser
"Got the (Heisman) t-shirts going, I’ve had a few guys come up to me and want to join the campaign. I’m all for it. A few fake punts, fake field goals, get my touchdowns up there. I was the highest rated QB last year so maybe I can keep that up this year as well.""We’re just trying to get the basics down, the coverage units. On fake field goals, just working on routes. Things go wrong and stuff so that’s where that comes through. With fake punts, it’s just giving me a chance. Last year we didn’t have many chances so we might get a few this year."
"I needed to get my drop better, shorten my steps and get a little more hangtime. That’s the difference between being a good punter and a great one, is the hangtime and allowing your coverage unit to get down there. I’ve got great gunners and protection unit on my punt team. I’m trying to do my part in helping them out with more hangtime. Last year it was probably 4.6-4.7. I’m hoping to get it up to 4.8-4.9. Hopefully I can get there."
"We break down every step from the time I catch the ball to the time it is kicked. As a punter it is all robotic, all mechanical. You want to have the same steps, same repetition. A lot can go wrong if you get a bad snap or your steps are off it can affect your drop, it’s a very critiqued form."
"(Meeting Shane Lechler) was awesome. He had a lot of words for me. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to practice but we text back and forth. I text him and tell him good luck at camp and he does the same to me. He came back for the Vandy game and that was his first time he had been back in a long time."
"Ray Guy was very deserving of (an award named after him). I had the fortune of meeting him down in Orlando when I went down for the Ray Guy award. He’s a great guy, well deserving, one of the best punters of all time. It’s cool to have a punter in the Hall of Fame, opens the door for the rest of us.
"It would be unbelievable (to win the Ray Guy). For myself, the University, my family, it would be a great achievement. Being down there last year was amazing. Just being down there again would be amazing, but winning it would be indescribable."
"Overwhelming still. There was a lot of cameras, lots of reporters. Being able to represent the university to the best of my abilities was awesome."
"Taylor is having a great camp so far. He’s made almost every field goal. Him and Lambo are going to have a great competition whenever he comes back. Lambo had a little tweaked muscle, so when he comes back they’re going to have a great competition. I trust Coach Banks and Coach Sumlin to put the best guy in."
Josh Lambo
"Nursing a tweaked groin. I'm slowly coming back and making sure everything is 100 percent. I don't want any setbacks. I'm feeling really good and feeling like I'm close to getting back 100 percent.""Taylor is a very good kicker. It's never been anything other than that. I want to focus on what I can do. If I go 1-for-1 on every one of my field goals, which is my goal, it doesn't really matter to me what other people do."
"I kind of look at it as three full-time jobs — husband, student, and athlete, in that order. I take my academics very seriously, because I've had a career taken away from me. I know how short-lived athletics can be. I've got two 4.0's in a row, which I'm very proud of, and football is just kind of a bonus."
"My wife is my number one fan. She's my biggest supporter."
Taylor Bertolet
"If you're a kicker, you're going to have to deal with these kind of things. If you're not mentally tough and can't persevere through it, then this job isn't for you. Thankfully, I've had a good support group around me. I've learned through this and it's made me better.""I love Texas A&M and (transferring) is never a thought that came through my mind."
"I started working with Coach Banks last spring and we went back and looked at film. Two springs ago, that was probably the best I've ever hit. I went back to that time and looked at my form and see what I was doing differently than I was now."
"I feel really confident, comfortable and I feel at home. I've been through my ups and downs and I've learned through my experiences. I feel more mature."
"I had a hernia surgery right before last spring, but I'm over that. It feels a lot better coming into camp knowing you're not hurt."
Never miss the latest news from TexAgs!
Join our free email list
