No student section wants to see their team punt, but when it is inevitable, it is always good to have a strong-legged punter like redshirt sophomore Drew Kaser on the team.
Kaser is aware his position doesn’t come with the glamour of a quarterback or receiver, but limited playing time due to an effective offense isn’t all bad, he said.
“Well, you know, maybe a few games I’ll go to Johnny and say, ‘Throw a few more incompletions,'” Kaser said. “But it comes with the job and the offense. What can I say? With such a high-powered offense and such a great team, I can’t really complain.”
Standing at 6’3″ and 205 pounds, Kaser was the fourth-ranked punter in the nation coming out of high school. He averaged 46 yards per punt during his senior season at Walsh Jesuit High School in Strongsville, Ohio, enough to earn him Cleveland Plain-Dealer All-Star Honors. With a little help from his recruiting coach, it was an easy choice for Kaser to settle on College Station.
“My recruiting coach at the time was from Strongsville, Ohio, which is my hometown,” Kaser said. “He called me up and we just had a great connection ever since then. I came down here for a visit in January and basically just fell in love with the place. The coaching staff, the players down here, I just loved the whole atmosphere.”
Kaser struggled early in his career as an Aggie. One of his biggest struggles dealt with consistency when it comes to the amount of yards per punt. During his freshman year in 2011, Kaser saw action in one game, punting twice against the Idaho Vandals. During that game, he recorded a season-high 68-yard punt, but his other punt of the game only traveled 23 yards. After that game, an injury prevented Kaser from seeing playing time in any other game.
Kaser came back his sophomore year ready to snatch the starting punting job and not let go. But once again, consistency became an issue during spring and fall practices and he was beaten out by senior Ryan Epperson and redshirted. Once Epperson graduated after the 2012 season, the starting punter job became available.
“It’s definitely been a process,” Kaser said. “My freshman year, being injured and not being able to play, last year looking like I was going to be able to play, so this year has been a blessing. I’ve been able to progress my punting, my technique and really get my consistency down.”
Kaser did not disappoint in his season debut against the Rice Owls. In three opportunities, Kaser averaged 62.7 yards per punt, including a net punt of 77 yards that was caught in the air and returned for a short amount of yardage.
“There are things [Kaser can do] other people just can’t do,” said special teams coach Jeff Banks. “He is hitting 68, 70-yard punts out here on the regular. My challenge is, how are we going to cover that far. That’s a good challenge, but he’s that good right now.”