Former D-III kicker catches on with Ravens By Tom Haley It didn't take kicker Steve Hauschka long to be picked up after being released by the Minnesota Vikings. Hauschka was signed by the Baltimore Ravens, one of the two teams most interested in the former Middlebury kicker prior to the 2008 NFL draft. Hauschka set the Middlebury record for field goals in a season with 10 in 2006 and left with a school record 20 field goals. He was a D3football.com All-Region selection. He never played football in high school and, in fact, played JV soccer his freshman year at Middlebury. After being encouraged by his roommates and friends to try football, he donned the Panther winged helmet as a sophomore. The 2007 season he kicked as a graduate student for North Carolina State, making 16 of his 18 field goal attempts and all 25 extra point tries. The highlight of the season was beating Miami with a 42-yard field goal in overtime. The Ravens picked him up to complete the required 53-man roster for the opener against Cincinnati. Steve Wolf, who worked with Hauschka at Middlebury and has been in daily contact with him, said the Vikings wanted to put him on the practice squad and make him part of their future, but the Ravens claimed him off waivers. "He called me Saturday morning and said he was on the Vikings' practice squad and then called me about 10:30 Saturday night and said was in Baltimore. "He might be doing the kickoff for the Ravens and possibly long field goals," Wolf said. The Ravens have Matt Stover, a 19-year veteran, kicking extra points and field goals. | |
| Permalink | Sep 2, 2008 | |
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