TEE IT UP: EMMENDORFER OUT TO PROVE CONSISTENCY AFTER HIS 58-YARD FIELD GOAL LAST SEASON

Sometimes one play can define an athlete.

Take Kirk Gibson, Ricky Proehl or poor ol' Bill Buckner for instance.

For Cape Central senior Brian Emmendorfer, it was the second longest field goal in state history.

That 58-yarder on Oct. 15 last year officially put Emmendorfer on the recruiting map. Without that single feat (He was 13-of-16 in extra-point attempts and 4-for-7 in field goal attempts) it's doubtful that Emmendorfer would have received letters from the University of Missouri and Arkansas to this point.

At the time, head coach Lawrence Brookins said "That kick has scholarship written all over it."

Though he may not have received an actual scholarship offer yet, Emmendorfer is determined to prove that his eye-popping boot was not a fluke.

"I haven't practiced so much on my length as much as I have being consistent," said Emmendorfer of his preparation for this upcoming season. "I've been doing a lot of repetition on field goals and kickoffs and punting. To be perfect is a dream, but I could live with two or three misses but not too many more than that I hope."

"He's been working on his own and we're counting on him quite a bit," said Brookins.

And as the team will be counting on Emmendorfer, he likewise will be counting on them to give him more opportunities than he got a year ago.

"I was thinking about that the other day," said Emmendorfer. "(Derek) Kutz is up there at St. Vincent and of course he'll have better stats because his team gave him more chances. Hopefully, with the team we have this year, we'll get more chances to kick."

Emmendorfer attended a kicking camp in Kansas City this past summer and said it was a successful one. He said he competed well against the other high school kickers in attendance.

As far as preseason training, Emmendorfer said he practiced with his dad nearly every day in the summer, usually after an eight-hour shift at work.

Emmendorfer is also making a case for getting more snaps on offense as a receiver and defense as a cornerback this year, too. Brookins said the 5-foot-11, 170-pounder runs the 40-yard dash in about 4.7 seconds.

"Hopefully, he won't just be a kicker," Brookins said. "We'll want to use him more on the field as well. He's got decent speed, good football speed."

"I'm looking forward to it," said Emmendorfer of his additional responsibilities this year. I'm fighting for a starting spot on defense and I'll probably be running in plays on offense. So I'll be busy."

Still, Emmendorfer's biggest role will likely come in the field position department.

"Pinning them deep and not giving them a return opportunity is huge," said Brookins. "There's a lot of individual athletes that are so talented. If they catch the ball on the fly, they're immediate threats to score."

As far as the recruiters go, Emmendorfer will definitely draw more interest this season.

"Brian's got a lot of mail," said Brookins. "We've got his name out as much as we can. Hopefully around November he'll be getting some mail and calls that are real serious, but even the mail he has been getting is optimistic. If he continues to work, there's no doubt he can play at the next level."

Meanwhile, Emmendorfer will just be ready when his number is called.

Is there another 58-yarder in his future?

"Everybody's been asking if I can do it again this year," he said. "And I just say we'll see how it goes."