Gonzales Gets Comfortable At PSU, And The Field Goals Come
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When sophomore kicker Jonathan Gonzales nailed a 53-yard field goal early in the Vikings' 23-14 win over UC Davis on Oct. 4, there were at least two people in the stadium who weren't surprised—special teams coach Michael Casco and Gonzales.
Most people in the stadium hadn't paid attention to Gonzales' pedigree because he was a summer addition to the team. But, at San Bernardino Valley Community College last season, the 6'2" 210-pounder made three of five field goals from more than 50 yards.
Gonzalez earned a number of awards for his kicking efforts at Apple Valley High School in Apple Valley, CA, in the high desert 90 minutes east of Los Angeles.
"I came from a really small high school in the high desert. It's not a powerhouse school noted for churning out good football players. We don't get a lot of attention from college coaches," Gonzales said.
When he attracted little attention as a senior "my coaches said to go to a juco for a year and they'd see to it I got out of there."
At San Bernardino, Gonzales earned first team All-Conference, first team All-Region and CCCFCA All-American. He went 14 for 17, including the three 50-plus yarders as a freshman and still attracted notice from only a few schools.
"My kicking coach called me one day and said PSU was looking for a kicker," Gonzales recalled.
As it turned out, the Vikings had signed a kicker last spring who decided not to return, "which meant we had to come up with something fast," said Casco. Viking senior kicker Nick Fernandez shared the same kicking coach as Gonzales, so PSU had developed a relationship with Hugo Castellanos of Snap Hold Kick during their pursuit of Fernandez.
Still, Gonzales had a rough patch as he began his career as a Viking. His first attempt as a Viking was at Oregon State. It was wide, and it took a couple of games for him to hit his stride.
"He had a slow start. His first kick was from the hash at OSU. It was a big stadium, a big crowd, not great weather…lots of factors that made it difficult. It was a 42-yarder and anything over 40 yards in college isn't a given," Casco said.
Gonzales admits he may have been a bit nervous.
"I was used to playing in a small town, then at a small junior college where we had maybe 2,000 at a game. I went from that to OSU and may have been a bit nervous. Then, I had a couple of games where I didn't hit my stride. Last game I did and I just want to build on that.
Casco decided to go for the 53-yard attempt after watching warmups before the UC Davis game.
"Kicking is like golf. Some days it goes well and some days it doesn't. I always watch how they're kicking in the warmup and that helps me know how their doing. That day he had it," said Casco. He hit it just right. You want that end over end spiral exactly perpendicular so it won't shear off right or left."
Warmup that Saturday felt good to Gonzales, too.
"During warmup, I felt really good. It was a great day. The weather was perfect. It was my first time in stadium. I just knew it was going to be a good day…and sure enough, 3 for 4," Gonzales said.
And he didn't just make it, said Casco. "He had room to spare."
Gonzales' goal is to build from there. "You watch game film to see what went wrong on the missed field goal. You're not likely to get them all…even in the NFL, there has only been one perfect season. I just want to get as many as I can."
He and Casco point out that making any field goal…but particularly long ones…requires near perfection from several areas.
"The snap has to be good, so a lot of credit goes to the snapper. Then, at that distance, the ball starts out lower and the line has to do a good job blocking. And the hold has to be perfect. The kicker gets all the glory, but the other facets have to be near perfect," Casco said.
Gonzales said he's particularly enjoyed working with junior long snapper Kameron Canaday, who came to the Vikings touted as one of the best long snappers in the nation.
"I love working with Kameron and (holder) Josh (Kraght). They make sure the laces are up every time and it gets there with very good speed. Kameron is a good snapper, much different from my junior college snapper who was reliable at getting it there, but it wasn't the same," he said.
Gonzales loves Portland and credits punter Kyle Loomis with helping him acclimate.
"I arrived late and Kyle took me under his wing. I've learned a lot from him," he said.
Casco feels he got lucky with Gonzales.
"We got him because he had the grades so he didn't need another year of community college. If he'd had another year at that level, he wouldn't have been available," he said.
http://www.goviks.com/news/2014/10/10/FB_1010142757.aspx" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
When sophomore kicker Jonathan Gonzales nailed a 53-yard field goal early in the Vikings' 23-14 win over UC Davis on Oct. 4, there were at least two people in the stadium who weren't surprised—special teams coach Michael Casco and Gonzales.
Most people in the stadium hadn't paid attention to Gonzales' pedigree because he was a summer addition to the team. But, at San Bernardino Valley Community College last season, the 6'2" 210-pounder made three of five field goals from more than 50 yards.
Gonzalez earned a number of awards for his kicking efforts at Apple Valley High School in Apple Valley, CA, in the high desert 90 minutes east of Los Angeles.
"I came from a really small high school in the high desert. It's not a powerhouse school noted for churning out good football players. We don't get a lot of attention from college coaches," Gonzales said.
When he attracted little attention as a senior "my coaches said to go to a juco for a year and they'd see to it I got out of there."
At San Bernardino, Gonzales earned first team All-Conference, first team All-Region and CCCFCA All-American. He went 14 for 17, including the three 50-plus yarders as a freshman and still attracted notice from only a few schools.
"My kicking coach called me one day and said PSU was looking for a kicker," Gonzales recalled.
As it turned out, the Vikings had signed a kicker last spring who decided not to return, "which meant we had to come up with something fast," said Casco. Viking senior kicker Nick Fernandez shared the same kicking coach as Gonzales, so PSU had developed a relationship with Hugo Castellanos of Snap Hold Kick during their pursuit of Fernandez.
Still, Gonzales had a rough patch as he began his career as a Viking. His first attempt as a Viking was at Oregon State. It was wide, and it took a couple of games for him to hit his stride.
"He had a slow start. His first kick was from the hash at OSU. It was a big stadium, a big crowd, not great weather…lots of factors that made it difficult. It was a 42-yarder and anything over 40 yards in college isn't a given," Casco said.
Gonzales admits he may have been a bit nervous.
"I was used to playing in a small town, then at a small junior college where we had maybe 2,000 at a game. I went from that to OSU and may have been a bit nervous. Then, I had a couple of games where I didn't hit my stride. Last game I did and I just want to build on that.
Casco decided to go for the 53-yard attempt after watching warmups before the UC Davis game.
"Kicking is like golf. Some days it goes well and some days it doesn't. I always watch how they're kicking in the warmup and that helps me know how their doing. That day he had it," said Casco. He hit it just right. You want that end over end spiral exactly perpendicular so it won't shear off right or left."
Warmup that Saturday felt good to Gonzales, too.
"During warmup, I felt really good. It was a great day. The weather was perfect. It was my first time in stadium. I just knew it was going to be a good day…and sure enough, 3 for 4," Gonzales said.
And he didn't just make it, said Casco. "He had room to spare."
Gonzales' goal is to build from there. "You watch game film to see what went wrong on the missed field goal. You're not likely to get them all…even in the NFL, there has only been one perfect season. I just want to get as many as I can."
He and Casco point out that making any field goal…but particularly long ones…requires near perfection from several areas.
"The snap has to be good, so a lot of credit goes to the snapper. Then, at that distance, the ball starts out lower and the line has to do a good job blocking. And the hold has to be perfect. The kicker gets all the glory, but the other facets have to be near perfect," Casco said.
Gonzales said he's particularly enjoyed working with junior long snapper Kameron Canaday, who came to the Vikings touted as one of the best long snappers in the nation.
"I love working with Kameron and (holder) Josh (Kraght). They make sure the laces are up every time and it gets there with very good speed. Kameron is a good snapper, much different from my junior college snapper who was reliable at getting it there, but it wasn't the same," he said.
Gonzales loves Portland and credits punter Kyle Loomis with helping him acclimate.
"I arrived late and Kyle took me under his wing. I've learned a lot from him," he said.
Casco feels he got lucky with Gonzales.
"We got him because he had the grades so he didn't need another year of community college. If he'd had another year at that level, he wouldn't have been available," he said.
