No easy fix for honing kicks.

Byline: Rob Moseley The Register-Guard

As daylight dimmed on Oregon football practice Monday evening, UO strength coach Jim Radcliffe lingered in the west end zone of Autzen Stadium.

Radcliffe was waiting to launch post-practice punts to the Ducks' returners, using a Jugs machine. But at the moment, the device was being bogarted by a team manager rifling balls toward the midsection of a player standing some 10 yards away.

"Three more," Radcliffe said as another ball was fired at the player, UO punter Josh Syria.

"I was waiting for you to kick me off," a smiling Syria said, before catching yet another ball aimed just below his waist.

"Well this is your last one," Radcliffe said, as Syria fielded one final "snap" from the machine.

And then, Oregon's Energizer bunny of a punter was left to find another means of occupying himself.

Syria, a 6-foot-3, 232-pound junior transfer from Wofford by way of Central Washington, is charged this fall with giving the Ducks a consistency they haven't had at punter since Jose Arroyo averaged 42.2 yards per kick in 2002. If his level of activity at practice each day is any indication, Syria won't rest until he does so.

One of the biggest challenges for a kicker is keeping himself busy during a typical practice, which usually has the bulk of its time devoted to offensive and defensive drills. It's not unusual to see special teams players lingering together in the shade, waiting for their unit's practice time to begin.

Syria has been a notable exception. When he's not in kicking drills with the rest of the team, he'll spend time alone practicing dropping the ball to his kicking foot, or using a pole-and-elastic-band contraption to hone his footwork.

"You could just sit there all practice and spend two hours not doing anything," Syria said. "I like to get out there and work on things. There's always something to work on, no matter how good you are."

After joining the Ducks last year and redshirting, Syria had an impressive spring. He has a powerful leg and a quick "get-off" time on his kicks. He's big enough to be mistaken for a linebacker, above the knees at least. Only the kicking cleats and lack of heavy ankle tape betray his true position.

This fall, Syria has been less consistent. He's still getting impressive hang time, and his directional kicking has been fairly consistent. But he hasn't "turned over" balls as frequently, getting the tight spiral that can lead to five or 10 extra yards of distance.

"It hasn't felt real good yet," Syria said. "I think I've hit about 100 balls (in live drills), and turned maybe 10 of them over."

The lack of consistency bothers Syria, and his punting coach at Oregon, head coach Mike Bellotti. Syria has lots of ideas about how to get himself back on track, though Bellotti hinted the punter might need to simplify things.

"At some point, I've got to tone him down a little bit," Bellotti said. "He's just bouncing from this idea to that idea, whatever is going to make him good."

Indeed, Bellotti has never encountered a punter so eager to consult with him.

"I think I kind of annoy him sometimes," Syria laughed. But, he added, "I don't really have anybody to talk about it with, and I never have. Now I've got coach there, and that's nice. I would think that would be comforting to him."

Since tinkering with Syria's stepping pattern - the line he takes after receiving the snap - the Ducks are comfortable with his technique. Now it's a matter of honing, and Syria seems unable to sit still until he gets things just right. Recently, he's worked to make sure he doesn't lose sight of the ball during his drop.

Even when he finally gets comfortable, Syria said, he'll keep working through his routine. He'll be better prepared, in that case, to overcome any errors that may crop up down the road, he believes.

His is a routine settled into after consulting as many resources as possible, be it talking with other punters or watching video tapes on his craft.

"I've got a lot of notes," Syria said.

He thinks he knows how to fix the errors he's committing this fall. And he's trying to employ those fixes in such a way that they're applicable not just in his own practice sessions, but in full-speed team drills.

"I feel like I know what I've got to do," Syria said. "I just have to start doing it and applying it."

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