There’s 97 days until kickoff and, oh man, Matt Gay, you’re missed. That’s not to say everyone should be in a full blown panic, because the University of Utah does have a kicker that shook some rust off in the spring, after taking a year off of football. That would be new no. 97, Jadon Redding, and while no one will mistake him for the Utes’ Lou Groza Award winner, no school in the country would be able to easily replace Gay.

Shortly after the conclusion of spring ball, Redding was the only kicker on the roster after spring camp, due to Chayden Johnston choosing to step away from football. During spring, Redding showed that he didn’t quite have the same leg strength as Johnston, but he actually outperformed Johnston on shorter kicks, proving to have better accuracy from inside 40 yards. However, Redding’s performance wasn’t good enough for the coaches to be comfortable in naming him the outright starter at kicker, so they brought in another walkon, UCLA graduate transfer kicker Andrew Strauch, to compete for the job.

If Redding can improve his leg strength within the coming months, he'll have an excellent shot at being the Utes' starting kicker in 2019. If not... well let’s just think positive as it’s a crucial position for a team that has the potential to compete for a Pac-12 championship and more.

Golden Whetman’s Take

I see a ton of potential in Redding, based on the few kicks that I’ve seen on video as well as the spring. He has a great inside-out swing and natural slide step with his plant foot, which is a great sign for accuracy. One thing to fix is that he does tend to drop his head and crunch down towards the ball on impact, which takes away power from his swing. With a little coaching on his technique, kicking with his chest a little bit higher at impact, he would get another 5 to 10 yards distance on every single kick.

Something to keep in mind, when comparing him to all of the previous kickers that the Utes have had these past few years, Redding is by far the youngest to be in his first season. If you recall, Andy Phillips, Matt Gay and the others prior to him, all were a little bit older and more mature from serving religious missions among other things.

Overall, I really like this kids potential watching his technique. A little bit of fine tuning on his mechanics when he compresses his body towards the ball instead of through the ball, and I can see him having a great career.

Editor’s Note:

During spring camp, Golden told us that just from watching technique of the two kickers that he fully expected Redding to ultimately win the job. Despite the fact that Johnston ultimately decided to hang up his cleats, the argument could be made that Redding had taken the lead for the starting spot.

Alex Remembers Redding’s Recruitment

Although he came to Utah as a walkon, Redding was a well-respected kicker in the 2018 class, even holding a reported offer from Maryland. Despite his accolades, he took a year off to focus on his academics and eventually tripped Utah and made his announcement shortly after.

If he wins the 2019 starting job, don’t expect him to be a walkon for long.