By Mark Maynard / Prokickernews.com Editor
BRADENTON, Fla. – Some powerful kickoff legs were on display Saturday during the second summer camp for the Prokicker.com Ray Guy kicking Academy at Manatee High School.
Top prospects Sean Covington and Nick Tankersley unleashed kickoffs of 76 and 75 yards and Mark Grant nailed a 70-yard kickoff during competition.
Covington, 16, is a junior-to-be at St. Petersburg (Fla.) High School, who has spent most of his life on a soccer field. He started playing football in seventh grade and has been a combo kicker for his high school since ninth grade.
“I’ve been going to camps since I was a freshman,” he said. “I’ve been to the Ray Guy Pro kicker camp three times.”
Covington (6-2, 188) is one of the top-ranked kickers in the class of 2013 and he’s also a highly ranked goalie in soccer.
“I like football but have been playing soccer my whole life,” he said. “I’m starting to like football a little more than soccer.”
Top instruction
Tankersley, 17, is a senior-to-be at Manatee High School, where last weekend’s Prokicker.com camp took place. He blasted a 75-yard kickoff but said that was far from his best all-time effort. Tankersley said he boomed a kickoff for 82 yards earlier last week.
“You can’t turn down a camp of this caliber,” he said. “I’ll come out anytime they’re in this area. Being out here with the caliber of guys (instructors) they have can only make you better.”
Among the instructors at the camp were NFL players Graham Gano, the kicker for the Washington Redskins and Brandon Fields, the punter and placeholder for the Miami Dolphins.
Tankersley (6-1, 155) said he has been blessed with good leg speed, which has aided his long kickoffs. He’s also a combo player who punts for Manatee.
“I played soccer as far as it could take me and my soccer background is starting to pay off,” he said.
Tankersley said he played safety as a freshman but broke his arm on his first tackle. Then it was back to punting and kicking. He said the pressure of competition is where he thrives.
“I feed off that,” he said.
The Prokicker.com camp has been a confidence booster for Tankersley as well. “I wish we could have this every weekend,” he said. “The week after this I’m always at my best. I’m like ‘I want them back.’’’
'Strong leg for kickoffs'
Grant, 17 and a senior-to-be, had a 70-yard kickoff with a 4.19 hang time. He is from Panama City, Fla., where he plays for Mosely High School.
He wants to play college football. “I sent out 55 to 60 recruiting packets throughout the southeast,” he said. “I’ve had a couple of responses.”
Grant has been playing behind a Division I kicker who is now at LSU. He will be Mosley’s kicker this fall.
“I’ve been on the varsity since I was a sophomore,” he said. “I feel like my strength is either punting or kickoff. I can be fairly accurate (on field goals). I’ve got a strong leg for kickoffs.”
Grant said the Prokicker.com camps have made him a better player. This is his fourth camp with Prokicker.com.
“I think my favorite thing about the camp is the personal attention that I get,” he said. “If I do something wrong, a coach is right there telling me what I’m doing. If I miss a field goal, I need to be able to correct it myself.”
Grant said he has learned from experience the value of a good punter. In one game last season, he unleashed punts of 52 and 65 yards to turn around field position.
