By Mark Maynard / Prokickernews.com

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Two top kickers from the 2013 class were part of the Ray Guy Prokicker.com kicking Academy here.

Joesph Pedraza and Matt Flynn, who will both be junior kickers for their high school teams this fall, impressed the staff with some long-range kicking at the two-day Prokicker.com camp.

Pedraza, attending his first Prokicker.com camp, said he’s going away a much better kicker than when he came to the camp.

“It was a lot more than I expected,” he said. “I didn’t think it’d be this nice.”

Pedraza’s big leg easily made him a candidate for the top prospect list at the camp. Long-distance kicking is nothing new to Pedraza, who boomed a 46-yard field goal for Walker High School in Jasper, Ala., last year. But with the additional technique learned through the two-day camp, Pedraza better sees the sky is the limit – literally and figuratively.

“I learned a lot of new things, things that will help me be a better kicker when the season starts,” he said. “I’ve learned about following through on my kicks, keeping my chest up on kickoffs. They taught me so much stuff I didn’t know about kicking. I could tell the improvement from day one.”

Flynn, who will also be a junior this fall, was attending his first Prokicker.com camp. He’s been to others but the technique learned at Prokicker.com turned into immediate success.

“By the end of the day, I was cranking it up,” Flynn said.

He won the competitions for the longest field goal, longest kickoff and best hang time.

“He dominated all the kicks (competitions) here,” said camp director Rick Sang.

Flynn said “It was a good camp and let me work on my technique as a punter.”

Flynn, a combo kicker, is from Loganville, Ga. He’s also an outstanding soccer player and plans on continuing to play that sport in the near future.

Former University of Memphis All-American kicker and punter Matt Reagan said Flynn has an opportunity to play college football

Reagan is a former Prokicker.com camper himself and he’s now on the staff.

“These camps are great for a couple of reasons,” he said. “They’re getting the fundamentals from guys that have been there and been in the heat of battle. It’s different than hearing it from a coach. You also have the talent search aspect of it, like Matt Flynn, who has a good leg and could possibly go on to the next level.”

Reagan came to a Prokicker.com camp when he was a sophomore in high school in Knoxville and also attended a camp at Middle Tennessee State University that Sang’s staff ran. He said those camps made him a better kicker.

“There’s so many things out there right now, guys saying ‘Let me help you get a scholarship,’’’ Reagan said. “But if you don’t have the technique and ability you’re not going to perform. They may have heard of your name but if you don’t have any technique, they’re not going to take you.”

Prokicker.com camps focus on technique and honesty. Reagan said Sang doesn’t sugarcoat it for the campers.

“The thing that separates him is he really cares about the athlete,” Reagan said. “It’s not afraid to get up into him a little bit. Other camps will pat you on your back and tell you how good you are. Rick is telling them what they need to hear.”

Reagan said what Prokicker.com staff members try to do is tweak the good kickers with technical instruction that they can go home with.

“We want to reach them and show them what they’re doing wrong,” he said. “That’s the biggest thing you can do as a coach.”

The next Ray Guy Prokicker.com camp will be in Richmond, Ky., on Saturday and Sunday. Go to Prokicker.com for a complete listing of camps.