By Kevin Turbeville
Sun staff writer
JONESBORO — While high school kickers use a tee on field goals and extra points, those competing at the college level have to kick off the ground. Valley View’s John Gay started making that transition right after the Blazers’ 2009 football season ended.
A Harding University assistant coach saw how much progress Gay has made when the Bisons worked him out recently.
“He didn’t have me kick above 40 to 45 yards,” Gay said. “He just had me kick from hash to hash, and I kicked about 15. I made them all, so I guess that’s what made the decision.”
Gay made his decision official on Monday, signing a letter of intent to play for Harding during a ceremony at Valley View High School.
Accuracy was never an issue for Gay. Despite kicking in muddy conditions more than once, Gay made three of four field goal attempts and every extra point he attempted as a senior according to Valley View coach Shannon Sherman. The only miss came on a field goal attempt of 40-plus yards in the mud against Trumann.
“We knew going into the season that he could do a good job for us on extra points, no doubt, and on field goals we felt comfortable that he could kick anywhere from 42 yards in,” Sherman said. “We knew going into the season that he was going to be a great asset for us.
“We didn’t actually get to use him as much as we wanted to, it was kind of an odd season when you reflect on the season, but it was very reassuring going into each Friday night game knowing we had somebody on the sideline that we knew we could get three points from any time we needed it. That’s kind of rare in high school football.”
Sherman said Gay possesses a strong work ethic as well as a strong leg, putting in extra time after practice as well as plenty of weekend and summer work. He also has strong academic credentials with a grade point average around 3.4.
When the Blazers’ season ended after a playoff loss at Gravette, Gay started kicking without a tee. Sherman said assistant coach Ron Teat worked with Gay, and Valley View coaches made tape of Gay kicking without a tee so they could send footage to various college programs.
“It was tough for about a month or so,” Gay said when asked about the switch. “Then I finally got that muscle memory and it just started picking up. The ball got higher, and I got the hang of it. I still need to work on a few things, but it’s not as difficult as it was.”
Gay won’t get to use a tee on extra points or field goals for Harding, but he won’t have to worry about mud when the Bisons play at home. Harding’s First Security Stadium has a turf playing surface.
“The thing about John that’s different from a lot of kids is he set his mind to what he wanted to accomplish, and he worked very hard to attain that goal,” Sherman said. “I think he will continue that. He’s a strong student academically, his work ethic is second to none, and we know that he’s going to continue that and be a great ambassador for our program. I think his future is very bright.”

kturbeville@jonesborosun.com