UGA's All-American Place-Kicker in Upcoming Bowl Leads U.S. Kicking Surge, says Popular Kicking Guru

Dec. 29, 2010 - PRLog -- Fort Lauderdale, Fla. – December 29, 2010 – The rapid improvement of place-kicking in the nation over the past decade is due to specialized instruction, according to one of the nation’s most prolific place-kicking coaches, Nick Gancitano, who trained All-American and Lou Groza Finalist Blair Walsh.

“Blair is very centered and focused, so he kicks with power and precision” said Gancitano. “He always resorts to the basic mechanics and is very strong and technically sound.”

Gancitano of The Kicking Academy has produced some of the nation’s top collegiate place-kickers for nearly 25 years and has observed the increase in high school, collegiate and professional kicking accuracy over the past decade.

University of Georgia All-American Blair Walsh says, “Nick spent countless hours refining both the physical and mental aspects of kicking with me and taught me awesome technical skills.” Boca Raton’s Walsh continued, “I was recruited by over 60 colleges, so I worked hard, but none of my accomplishments would have been possible without the instruction and inspiration of Nick Gancitano.”

In recent years, the number of specialized kicking coaches has quadrupled. Experts believe this specialized coaching trend will increase with all sports, particularly those with specialty positions.

Gancitano said that a large percentage of place-kickers are destined to emerge from South Florida in years to come, favoring those place-kickers who receive specialized instruction. Gancitano points out that the skill of place-kicking is now sophisticated and highly refined at the higher levels. “It’s as specialized as a golf swing, which requires the watchful eye of a golf pro to tweak the kinks out of a swing and provide that competitive edge,” he said.

“Place-kickers and football coaches know that if they need work with their kicker or punter, Gancitano is the man to come to,” said former All-American Brian Kopka. “With plenty of kicking schools around the country it doesn’t matter, because The Kicking Academy polishes up even the top kickers. The kickers are never disappointed, so they always come back to him for regular training or occasional adjustments,” added Kopka, also a South Florida resident.

Gancitano is the sole trainer at the Kicking Academy, which is open most weekdays and weekends, except when he is lecturing or traveling to universities nationwide.

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Nick Gancitano's Kicking Academy specializes in 1-on-1 instruction, state-of-the-art qualitative video analysis, biomechanics and biofeedback, which Nick personally uses to fine-tune kickers and maximize their potential from anywhere in the country.