Advanced Coaching Teachniques PEMJ-547 Written Technical Report

Ryan Boyea 12/18/2013

Summary: The purpose of this study is to analyze a high school football kickers technique for kicking field goals and extra points. More specifically, the proper angle in which a kicker should form between his plant foot/leg, to their hip and from their hip to the back swing of their kicking leg. The kicker was filmed multiple times focusing on their footwork and body position prior to making contact with the ball. After research on the subject, studies suggested that the average angle in the position mentioned above is about 80 degrees give or take a few degrees. This angle along with proper form such as an arched back, plant knee bent, and toe pointed all have an impact on the distance and speed in which the football will travel after contact. The more angular you can make your body throughout the whole approach, the more momentum and power will be used and carried out through the ball. The kicker that was observed had a much wider angle, which caused them to not have a great center of gravity and balance leading them to lose a lot of power and momentum.

Introduction: American football is a game that is primarily comprised of repeated maximum intensity bouts of exercise (Hoffman, 2008). The movements in football pertain mostly to linear and lateral maneuvers putting high physical demands on almost every muscle in the body depending on the specific position of the player (Hoffman, 2008). The specific player in this report is the place kicker whose skills might seem far less complicated than most on the field but the slightest miscue can determine the outcome of a kick. The selected skill chosen is the skill of kicking a field goal or extra point. This skill is a three-step skill in a linear movement. The movement consists of taking three steps towards the ball, planting with one foot and swinging the other one back and then forward in order to kick the football. All of these movements have to be made with precise control and balance or there is a greater chance to miss the field goal left, right or short. The general rationale for the analysis comes down to a need to improve the consistency of my current high school football kicker. As mentioned above, kicking is a precise movement and smallest miscue can alter a kick dramatically. This research and study is intended to help aide in that consistency and determine the best approach to kicking a football so that maximum power and momentum is being executed. Whether you are teaching a young player new to the sport or critiquing a player of multiple years having the proper footwork and proper technique is always under concern due to various elements that play a part based on a growing and changing body.

Much of the understanding of the skill came from previous experience as a player at the high school and collegiate levels as well as attending various camps hosted by colleges and former NFL players. Aside from first hand experience, research was done to help find relevant quantitative variables to help aide in the understanding of the skill and how to further improve on it. The quantitative variables consisted of specific angles in which the body should be positioned at to be the most successful at kicking a football for maximum speed and distance. The purpose of this analysis is to determine how to make my kicker more accurate and successful by measuring certain variables throughout his kicking process. The question that needs to be answered is whether or not the angel between his plant foot to his hip joint and his hip joint to the kicking leg when it is swung back, is at the proper degree and if not, what needs to be done in order to do so. By filming and critiquing the step by step process to kicking the football, the hopes are that I can identify these angles, compare them to ideal angles and make adjustments accordingly to help the kicker obtain those angles and be successful.

Methods: The methods employed consisted of filming a subject during their kicking movement and analyzing the angles at which they approached and kicked the ball. The participant is high school varsity football kicker. The student is a 16-year-old male currently attending Montclair Kimberley Academy, in Montclair, NJ. The subject has only been playing football for two seasons, so he is an ideal candidate because he is pretty much starting out fresh and any critiques will be new and beneficial for him. In order to collect data on the subject, an IPhone was used to record his kicks at the point of contact from multiple sessions over the majority of this past football season. All shots were recorded from side angles, from both sides of the kicker, in order to catch the angles at which he was swinging his leg back as he approached the football, ready to kick it. The skills were performed at the beginning of each practice after the subject had stretched and warmed up. The kicker would take their normal steps and proceed to kick the ball from various distances on the field. The subject was put through about 30-recorded trials throughout the season where as the rest of their kicks were just performed freely. Using the Kinovea program, the video files were uploaded and used in a compare and contrast format with still images from professional kickers. By determining the kinematic chains being used during the kicking motion, angles from the subject were noted and placed side by side with the angles of a professional and ideal norm for executing a field goal or extra point. Below are some of the screen shots showing the angular measurements in comparison.

Figure 1. Kick 1

Figure 2. Physics of Field Goals NFL Kicker

Figure 3. Kick 2 Figure 4. Kick 3

As you can see, the variables were analyzed by placing one point of the angular measurement on the ground where the plant foot makes contact, one point on the hip joint and the third, on the knee of the kicking leg. Other angles considered but not shown above consisted of the arch of the back and the bend of the plant knee. Results: The results show a dramatic difference between how a football should be kicked and how my subject kicked the ball. The degrees of difference from the plant foot, to hip joint, to kicking knee vary from kick to kick and all are far greater than that of the ideal angle of 80 degrees. As you can see below, my kickers results are compared to the average for all 30 of his kicks.
160 140 120 100 80 60 40 20 0 Kick 1 Kick 2 Kick 3 Kick 4 Kick 5 Kick 6 Kick 7 Kick 8 Kick 9 Kick 10 Kick 11 Kick 12 Kick 13 Kick 14 Kick 15 Kick 16 Kick 17 Kick 18 Kick 19 Kick 20 Kick 21 Kick 22 Kick 23 Kick 24 Kick 25 Kick 26 Kick 27 Kick 28 Kick 29 Kick 30 Subjects Angle Average Angle

Kicking angle degrees varied from a low of 95 degrees to a high of 138 degrees. The average or ideal angle degree is about 80 degrees. Not only did the

angle at which he swung back to kick the ball changed, but also the angle in which his plant knee was bent varied from kick to kick as well as the arch in his back. When all three elements are not on the same page, it makes it hard to kick the ball successfully with full speed, momentum and accuracy. Findings: Throughout this study, I knew I had a subject that was new to the sport of football but more importantly, new to the position of place kicker. Given his ability to kick the ball without proper instruction, he was the ideal candidate to test these variables on and see how he compares to the norm and what can be done to make him better going forward. As you saw above, he was pretty inconsistent when it came to his final approach to kicking the ball. This caused results like, missed field goals to the left and to the right of the uprights and kicks that landed short due to low trajectory and less power/momentum behind the ball at the point of contact. With more work and a set of drills to practice each day to develop more flexibility, technique and skills, this kicker has the potential to be really good and really successful. It will definitely help with the consistency issue that was mentioned back in the introduction. Being able to affect the slightest movements and techniques makes all the difference when it comes to kicking a football. From someone who use to kick at multiple levels, I know what it takes to be a successful kicker and all the parts that come into play throughout the process. Seeing the results above tells me that as the kicker is approaching the ball and making that final action to kick it, that he is not quite balanced enough nor flexible enough to not have such a wide base when he makes contact. Multiple stretching

and flexibility drills as well as slowing down the process so that he can be more balanced during his approach can improve this. Working on that will allow him to bring more momentum through the ball, allowing it to soar higher and further while also being more accurate from head on and both hash marks.

References: 1. Brancazio, P.J., The Physics of Kicking a Football, in The Physics of Sports . Edited by Armenti, A. Jr. (AIP, NY, 1992) Vol 1, pp 267-271. 2. Hoffman, J. (2008). The applied physiology of American football. International Journal Of Sports Physiology And Performance, 3(3), 387-392.