As June began, I realized it was going to be a busy summer. First Camp was at Ohio University where I ran the kicking, punting and long snapping portion of their camp for the OU staff. I met some really talented young men there and was assisted by Spencer Benton as he was still in town. From there I went to the University of Cincinnati where I ran the kicking portion of their camp. This was my second year doing this for Mike Elston. There were nearly 50 kickers at this camp and I saw some young men such as Ryan Ullrich from Indianapolis, Drew Basil from Chillicothe, Anthony Cimanello of Columbus Academy really step up their game. Later Drew Basil would get an offer from UC. Later that evening I attended the Dayton North South All Star Game at Welcome Stadium where I was able to observe Josh Couch of Carlisle punt extremely well. Josh is headed to the University of Akron on a Full Scholarship. He will be gray shirted so he will not enter school until the winter of 2010. The middle of June we were headed to the University of Illinois to run their Specialist Camp. Chip King headed up the long snapping portion of the camp while Jake Rogers of the University of Cincinnati and myself switched back and forth between the kicking and punting. That is always a great camp as I get to reunite with one of my former coaches Ron Zook. I have a lot of respect for Coach Zook as he was the coach that recruited me to The Ohio State University. I am forever indebted to him as he along with Steve Woods, Coach Zook's GA at that time and now Ass't Coach at Franklin High School, changed my life and gave me an opportunity of a life time. Of course Head Coach John Cooper made that final decision but it was those two guys that vouched for me. So yes, I am also a very big John Cooper fan! Speaking of Ohio State, I traveled from Illinois straight to Columbus, Ohio to work the OSU camp. There, I head up the combo portion of the camp. Combos are those that kick and punt. I have worked that camp under the direction of Steve Woods for 16 years now. This particular one was the one that stuck out the most. I was honored at that camp to have had the opportunity to spend quite a bit of time with the top performers. Guys like Carey Spear of Mayfield HS, Drew Basil of Chillicothe and Nick Robertson of Trinity HS in Louisville. Ultimately, Drew came out of the camp with an offer from OSU. I was elated as this was his dream to play for OSU. He was able to kick off the ground and do it extremely well. I am a firm advocate that it takes a kicker a good year to be able to make the adjustment from the tee to the ground. Having spent so much time during the winter with Drew he was able to stay consistent with his technique and make that adjustment better than anyone I had seen previous. Ryan Ullrich from Indianapolis is the other young man that I felt made this adjustment fairly well, but clearly Drew was a standout at the OSU Camp. When it comes to recruiting kickers I feel that t is not necessary to make them kick off the ground prior to their Senior season as it is a very difficult transition. More so if coaches would take a closer look at the technique while kickers are kicking with a tee, that is a better point of evaluation than making them try it cold turkey. Anyway, enough rambling on that topic! I can go on for hours about that.
As June wrapped up my wife Kristy, daughter Emma Rose and I traveled to Atlanta to attend one of my former campers Cole Chason of Clemson's wedding. We were honored as Miss Emma Rose was the Flower Girl in the ceremony. Cole was introduced to me by Jad Dean. Cole spent quite a bit of time here before he entered his Senior year at Clemson in 2006. He always spent a lot of time with Emma and for that she put Cole on a pedestal. That was a very special time for all of us. He and his bride Laurel are doing very well.
Through the month of June and in between all the camps I also had the opportunity to spend time on a private instruction basis with many talented young men. To name a few that haven't already been mentioned, Keegan Irwin of Bishop Reedy HS, Ryan Luzenske of Kansas City, Taylor Gannon of Northwestern HS, Mark Girton and Clark Melvin of Miami Trace HS, Del Champion of New Jersey, Eric Duale of Duquesne University, Zac Eckert of Monroe HS, Jonathon Treloar of Loveland HS, David Gannon of South Carolina, Caleb Keeton of Waynesville HS, Luke Goshorn of Lebanon HS and Brian Upton of Springboro HS.
I will be updating this again in the very near future. Best of luck to all as training camps wrap up and we head into the first week of the high school season!
Tim Williams
Monday, August 17, 2009
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
Eventful Summer
My summer started out very busy and it has been that way ever since. I have had the opportunity to work with some very talented individuals this summer and the first few posts are meant to recap what has happened.
The first weekend of the summer (May 29 - 31) I found myself traveling to Akron to work with three of the most talented kickers in the state of Ohio. I was very excited to have all three of them in the same place at once. The first was Clay Simpkins of Wauseon High School near Toledo, OH. Clay is a special athlete who has already excelled on the world stage in the field of Martial Arts. The second was Carey Spear of Mayfield High School from nearby Akron, OH. Carey is a gifted student carrying a 4.5 GPA and a score of 32 on the ACT. His talent of kicking the football is equally impressive. Third was Drew Basil of Chillicothe High School. Drew is a talented young man and the only one of the three with a verbal commitment to a Division 1 school. Drew has accepted a scholarship offer from Ohio State. He will be attending Ohio State in the Fall of 2010. All three of these young men are heading into their Senior year and all have worked extremely hard to become the best they can be. What a joy it was for me to sit back and see the three of them bond and create a friendship that I hope lasts a long time. Who knows, they may all end up playing against each other in College.
Traveling with me on this trip was a good friend Bill Palmer. Almost everyone I work with knows Palmer. He played Baseball for the Montreal Expos back in the 80's and might be one of the best athletes I have ever met. He really enjoys retrieving footballs for all the kids and getting to know everyone. He is big on mental toughness as am I and Bill really helps drive home how important that aspect is. We then drove to Michigan where I had a mini camp for Clarkston High School and Head Coach Kurt Richardson. My wife and I lived in Michigan from 2001 - 2004 so it is always nice to get back up there and visit some friends from time to time. Actually our oldest daughter Emma Rose was born in Michigan. But, she was born 37 minutes before kickoff of the 2003 Fiesta Bowl when Ohio State defeated Miami for the National Championship. I tell everyone that was to off set the fact that she was actually born in "that state up North". LOL Anyway, that trip was nice and a success. It seemed to set up what has turned out to be my busiest summer yet.
The first five days of June was very enjoyable as I hosted Joe Houston. Joe will be the starting placekicker for the USC Trojans (University of Southern California) this Fall. He came out to work with me due to a huge recommendation from his mentor Kevin Lovell. Kevin and Joe attended the same High School near Los Angeles, played at the same JUCO and then both went to play Division 1 Football. Even though Kevin is three years older, Joe paid close attention to Kevin's every move. When Kevin strongly suggested for Joe to come spend time with me he listened. It paid off for him as he has been able to utilize more of his body into the kick. Joe has stayed in touch all summer and has worked extremely hard to improve all aspects of the kick. It sure will be interesting in September when he and the rest of his team travel to Columbus for the Showdown at "The Shoe"!
As soon as Joe left, Spencer Benton came in. Spencer is the place kicker for the Clemson Tigers. He was red shirted last Fall as a Freshman and is expected to be the starter this Fall. Spencer is a very talented athlete with the potential to be a great offensive weapon for Clemson over the next four years. He was in town four days and kicked exceptionally well. I am expecting big things from him!
The end of May going into the first part of June is always a fun time of the year as College Camps are beginning. We see a lot of young athletes at this time as they are preparing to attend these Camps and hope to become a recruited kicker, punter or snapper. I spent time with several young men around this time such as John Lloyd of CHCA, Drew Basil of Chillicothe HS, Geremie Dart of Clinton Massie HS, Carey Spear of Mayfield HS, Jimmy Turvey of Middletown Fenwick HS, Caleb Noe of Bullet East HS (KY), Nick Dace of Freeport HS (IL), and Caleb Keeton of Waynesville HS. This is just a small number of young men I have had the opportunity to work with.
Keep working hard and in the next post I will cover the Camp Season!
Tim
The first weekend of the summer (May 29 - 31) I found myself traveling to Akron to work with three of the most talented kickers in the state of Ohio. I was very excited to have all three of them in the same place at once. The first was Clay Simpkins of Wauseon High School near Toledo, OH. Clay is a special athlete who has already excelled on the world stage in the field of Martial Arts. The second was Carey Spear of Mayfield High School from nearby Akron, OH. Carey is a gifted student carrying a 4.5 GPA and a score of 32 on the ACT. His talent of kicking the football is equally impressive. Third was Drew Basil of Chillicothe High School. Drew is a talented young man and the only one of the three with a verbal commitment to a Division 1 school. Drew has accepted a scholarship offer from Ohio State. He will be attending Ohio State in the Fall of 2010. All three of these young men are heading into their Senior year and all have worked extremely hard to become the best they can be. What a joy it was for me to sit back and see the three of them bond and create a friendship that I hope lasts a long time. Who knows, they may all end up playing against each other in College.
Traveling with me on this trip was a good friend Bill Palmer. Almost everyone I work with knows Palmer. He played Baseball for the Montreal Expos back in the 80's and might be one of the best athletes I have ever met. He really enjoys retrieving footballs for all the kids and getting to know everyone. He is big on mental toughness as am I and Bill really helps drive home how important that aspect is. We then drove to Michigan where I had a mini camp for Clarkston High School and Head Coach Kurt Richardson. My wife and I lived in Michigan from 2001 - 2004 so it is always nice to get back up there and visit some friends from time to time. Actually our oldest daughter Emma Rose was born in Michigan. But, she was born 37 minutes before kickoff of the 2003 Fiesta Bowl when Ohio State defeated Miami for the National Championship. I tell everyone that was to off set the fact that she was actually born in "that state up North". LOL Anyway, that trip was nice and a success. It seemed to set up what has turned out to be my busiest summer yet.
The first five days of June was very enjoyable as I hosted Joe Houston. Joe will be the starting placekicker for the USC Trojans (University of Southern California) this Fall. He came out to work with me due to a huge recommendation from his mentor Kevin Lovell. Kevin and Joe attended the same High School near Los Angeles, played at the same JUCO and then both went to play Division 1 Football. Even though Kevin is three years older, Joe paid close attention to Kevin's every move. When Kevin strongly suggested for Joe to come spend time with me he listened. It paid off for him as he has been able to utilize more of his body into the kick. Joe has stayed in touch all summer and has worked extremely hard to improve all aspects of the kick. It sure will be interesting in September when he and the rest of his team travel to Columbus for the Showdown at "The Shoe"!
As soon as Joe left, Spencer Benton came in. Spencer is the place kicker for the Clemson Tigers. He was red shirted last Fall as a Freshman and is expected to be the starter this Fall. Spencer is a very talented athlete with the potential to be a great offensive weapon for Clemson over the next four years. He was in town four days and kicked exceptionally well. I am expecting big things from him!
The end of May going into the first part of June is always a fun time of the year as College Camps are beginning. We see a lot of young athletes at this time as they are preparing to attend these Camps and hope to become a recruited kicker, punter or snapper. I spent time with several young men around this time such as John Lloyd of CHCA, Drew Basil of Chillicothe HS, Geremie Dart of Clinton Massie HS, Carey Spear of Mayfield HS, Jimmy Turvey of Middletown Fenwick HS, Caleb Noe of Bullet East HS (KY), Nick Dace of Freeport HS (IL), and Caleb Keeton of Waynesville HS. This is just a small number of young men I have had the opportunity to work with.
Keep working hard and in the next post I will cover the Camp Season!
Tim
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Welcome To My Blog
Hello and welcome to my new blog...
My name is Tim Williams and over the years I've spent a lot of time in the game of football.
My talent to kick a football has allowed me to enjoy playing the game of football from high school (Waynesville, Ohio), in college at Ohio State and even in the NFL and other pro leagues.
Since finishing my playing days I've worked hard to help other kickers and punters take their game to the next level by teaching them the basics I've used to help me find success.
You can follow what I'm doing now on this blog and also by visiting my website at http://www.upandthrough.com/
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