Devon Tandberg knows it is impossible to simulate the inevitable pressure that comes with his first college kick. The Montana State redshirt freshman cannot wait for the moment to come.
“I’m very excited for it,” Tandberg said following Monday afternoon’s practice at Bobcat Stadium. “That’s the thing you look forward to. To go out and make a kick in front of 20,000 fans, especially if you are here, you have 20,000 fans behind you and they are like, ‘You got this!’ You also have the 95 true friends on the sideline rooting you on. It’s something you have to be excited for. When you are out there, you will definitely have adrenaline going but nervousness, butterflies makes you more aware and more focused. I can’t wait.”
MSU kicker Devon Tandberg during a kickoff session
Tandberg’s ability to handle pressure packed situations could be a key to Montana State’s 2016 season. Just a few months after new head coach Jeff Choate was hired, Montana State junior kicker Luke Daly suffered a torn ACL during winter conditioning. The injury elevated Tandberg’s position on the Bobcats and the repetitions increased dramatically in the spring.
The timetable for Daly’s return remained uncertain but many thought he might be able to make it back before Big Sky Conference play finished up. Instead, Daly will likely be gone for the 2016 season regardless of his health. The Billings Central product was arrested and charged with partner/family member assault earlier this summer. His arraignment in Yellowstone County Court is not until late September. He is suspended indefinitely until his case is ruled upon.
“Next man up mentality,” Tandberg said. “It’s the same thing as with all the other positions. You just have to be ready to step in and do your job.”
Over the last 16 days, a span filled with 20 practices, Tandberg has been pitted against freshmen Gabe Peppenger and Jered Padmos as MSU tries to find a reliable option to replace Daly. Tandberg is a walk-on from Mountainview High in Auburn, Washington who was Daly’s understudy as Daly hit 8-of-9 field goals, including two from more than 50 yards and a career-long 57-yarder in a win at Idaho State.
“For all the specialists, camp was a very good learning experience,” Tandberg said. “We’ve been thrust into a new thing and none of us have experience in games. But we are learning a bunch of stuff about ourselves, about the team and getting in a position to get into the groove of things.
“They are damn good kickers. They know their stuff. There’s a reason they are here and there’s a reason I’m here as well. They definitely push me and I know I push them too. I think we are all still in competition and we are striving to get better and better each day. We just have to do our jobs and do it to the best of our abilities.”
MSU kicker Jered Padmos during a punting session
Tandberg has mainly battled with Peppenger, a walk-on out of Missoula Sentinel, for the primary field goal kicking duties. Padmos, a former three-sport standout from Jefferson County High in Boulder, is the front-runner to replace Trevor Bolton as Montana State’s punter. All three have taken turns with kickoffs.
“Guys are starting to separate a little bit but at this point, it’s still too close to tell,” MSU special teams coordinator B.J. Robertson said following practice on Sunday evening. “Devon has a little more experience in that group if you count a redshirt year. Peppenger has a strong leg and Padmos is doing a nice job in the punting game and took most of the reps. We are still a long ways off.”
Tandberg showed flashes of his skills, particularly kicking field goals, both during fall practices and during spring drills. Last Friday, he hit a 19-yard field goal to cap Montana State’s two-minute drill during its lone open scrimmage of fall camp. As a high school senior, he hit 8-of-11 field goals with a long of 39 yards. He hit 42-of-43 PATs, notched 31 touchbacks on 66 kickoffs and averaged 29 yards on 32 punts.
Spending a year concentrating solely on kicking helped Tandberg grow as a player.
“With our position, its repetition, repetition, repetition, doing the same thing over and over again to master the craft,” Tandberg said. “Having a full year under my belt and a fall camp with the new guys has been a really big help for all of us.”
“You can tell he’s a lot more comfortable just being around the guys and what we are asking him to do” Robertson said. “He’s not getting used to a new bed and new people like the other two guys. The biggest thing for him was he was here all summer and that really helped a ton for getting a feel for the guys.”
MSU kicker Gabe Peppenger (31) kicking a field goal
Padmos earned a scholarship after a standout career at Class B Boulder. The three-sport athlete — Padmos lettered in golf and basketball as well — was a standout quarterback, defensive back, punter and kicker. He hit 8-of-11 field goals as a senior and 14-of-24 in three years kicking for the varsity with a long of 47 yards as a junior. Last fall, he hit 33-of-38 PATs and connected on 113-of-135 (80 percent) in his varsity career. He averaged 37.8 yards on 26 punts with a long of 66 and eight kicks inside the 20 as a senior. For his career, he averaged 38.9 yards per punt and pinned opponents inside the 20 yard line 14 times. As a kickoff specialist, he totaled 88 touchbacks, including 40 his senior year.
As a junior at Missoula Sentinel, Peppenger earned Class AA second-team all-state honors. As a senior, he earned first-team all-state honors after hitting four field goals of 35 yards or more, including a season-long of 42. He hit 34-of-35 PATs.
“Peppenger has the strongest leg,” Choate said. “Devon is probably a little more accurate and consistent at times. Padmos is probably the most versatile. Now we have to figure out who is ready to perform on game day.”
Photos by Brooks Nuanez. All Rights Reserved.
