From an Australian perspective the specialisation in the American game seems extreme. For sure in Aussie Rules Football there are specialised players but all players have to be able to do everything, at any time on the run as it is a free-flowing game with few stops and starts and a lot of shifting positions spontaneously. Every Aussie rules player punts...every game... from set positions but importantly on the run from every angle. The American game is a series of plays and set pieces where the coaches designate who does what a lot of the time. In Aussie Rules the players determine their own plays individually and through a hive-mind. The play just keeps on rolling. The American style of playing and coaching may develop punt specialists but they will rarely have the flexibility and the kinetic intuitions that players raised in the Australian game have. This is not meant to be an insult. It is just a recognition of the different types of game players are raised in.
I randomly turned on an Aussie Footy game 2 years ago and got addicted. If you are watching this channel, you should give it a shot when the next session starts. Its on the fox sportd channels but the AFL posts games for free after they air and they won't get spoiled in the USA.
@@ExampleName-j2n you should consider Geelong - the only small town club, beautiful jerseys, & we try to win the premiership every year instead of having depressing rebuild eras
@@baileyfry7031 I'm Australian and have supported Geelong my whole life, which was passed down through family generations. No way are we like the Celtics. If you want an American sports comparison, the Packers are the closest - small team, run extremely well, have had modern success but haven't got over the last hurdles a lot.
As a kid, my family spent a few years in a suburb of Dallas. Across the street from us was an Australian family. They ended up moving back to Australia after a few years and my family would also move to another state a couple years after that. They would continue to send Christmas cards every year though, and that's how we found out the son who I used to play with as a child ended up getting drafted in the first round of AFL. Pretty cool stuff. Unfortunately, he had a lot of injury issues and his career never took off, after being a highly touted prospect. Before all of this happened, I had already taken to watching AFL highlights as a teenager because the local Fox Sports network had a show every Friday night where they would play them. Still enjoy watching it to this day when I come across it.
Aussie here. The ‘drop punt’ is the AFL’s normal kick. In AFL if you kick what we call a torpedo (what you call a traditional punt) it may go further and the crowd will love it but it has a lower efficiency percentage. So, if you kick a torpedo that doesn’t come off you look like a fool and the coach will go off at you. Some of the best kicks of all time in the AFL are torpedo’s kicked after the siren from a set kick where the ‘thorp’ goes 80m for a goal and the win. TH-cam ‘Malcom Blight’s 1976 Massive Torp’ The team mate that walked past Blighty said to him before the kick ‘I know it’s impossible but do it anyway.’
@GEB-yy3ud i watched Malcolm Blight kick that goal, it went 110 yards through the goals the another 20 yards into the crowd, i mentioned yards because we had not changed to metric at that stage.
Chatting with one of the ProKick folks here in Melbourne the other day, and it was interesting that their primary focus is to get these guys a free US college education, and if they then go NFL, that’s just a bonus. Full ride sports scholarships aren’t a thing here (our universities focus on education, not sports revenue), so a nice niche to get 50+ dudes free school every year by just kicking a footy is a good deal
I mean, we've got HECS, college scholarships aren't really a big thing here when kids don't really pay for university. I think most kids see it as a free holiday to America and the guys who actually have a chance to make it in the AFL, like you know the kids who can actually kick a football focus on trying to get drafted.
@@saberintAnd you'll only pay it when you earn more than an amount and it essentially inflates away, while leaving the moment you die. It's more or less the best possible form of debt. Still sucks though.
Most football scholarships are for private high schools like Xavier, Geelong Grammar, etc. Most AFL athletes are identified at Junior level and go through private schools and the under 18s academy's. By the time they are old enough for college, they're already on an AFL list.
Never forget the Aussie Punting GOAT Brad Wing, who faked a punt, ran all the way to the end zone, and got flagged for taunting before he got in, negating the TD. (LSU v Florida 2011)
@@chrisoakey9841youre missing the point completely, its not like americans have no idea how to kick a ball, they dont know what a snap or a banana is, they call torps spirals and the checkside kick they would just wonder why.. im aussie too, played footy but there were always people that could just kick it better, further and more accurate, surely you understand this.
Hahahaha omg Aussie here I thought this was a video about some sort of betting scam! We call gamblers “punters” ie having a bet at something (particularly horse racing) is having a punt at it.. so punters I thought referred to how Aussie gamblers broke college football .. oops.. still I’ll subscribe was a great vid cheers 😂l ❤ 🇦🇺
What makes Aussies better is the accuracy. Australian punters have been kicking footballs into players hands at 30-50 metres since age 12. Getting in inside the 10 yard line is easy by comparison
@eddiegagliardi7660 yes I know. I was saying that we don't start hitting players on the run from 30m until age 12, that's when we start getting accurate at those distances
I have to admit, I’m a little disappointed when the topic ISN’T special teams! A million channels are dedicated to analyzing offence and defence. Issac’s focus on special teams is what keeps me coming back here.
The solution for more US bred skilled punters is to have them play Aussie Rules football from childhood too! It's a winter sport*, so the season can start after the US football season ends. _*(Aussie rules football (AFL) was initiated to keep cricket players fit in the off season winter (there's a lot of running to keep warm in the cold))_
There are a lot of money hungry AFL suits like Eddie 'Turd with ears' McGuire (who coincidentally has a son who is a punter in the US) who will get a boner over your idea. That'll be a huge money maker.
A key little-discussed comparison…. In the States, kids/friends will ‘Pass the Pigskin’ and throw the football back & forth (so a good QB/WR experience) in the yard, at school, at the park etc. In Australia, kids might play ‘Kick-to-Kick’ which is literally standing a decent distance apart and kicking the football to each other (since we don’t have sports that naturally require QB ‘above shoulder, pass forward of body’ throwing mechanics). You’ll practice big kicks, spiralling kicks, grubber kicks along the ground. Basically a Punter/ Punt Reception experience. A child who then plays Australian Rules or Rugby has then at least learn a skill that IS applicable in either sport (even if the kicking share in Aussie Rules is far higher).
We used to start out passing it back and forth rugby style and as the gaps slowly widen it would switch to grubber kicks and chip kicks. Full on punts and drop kicks off the ground were less common because you needed the space so you might do it if you were early to training or after school and had most of a field to yourselves.
I wandered into an American-style sports bar in the Valley in Brisbane years ago - mostly for the free peanuts - and they had an NFL game on screen. By all the gods you care to name, it was the most tedious thing I've ever seen. I was their for about half an hour, and it was the middle of the game. I think there was about three minutes of actual play in all that time. It was literally just executing one "play" that consisted of about three movements of the ball. And then stop. No one had scored, no one got tackled, there was no foul. And then it went to absolutely mind-numbing colour commentary, endless stat BS, those stupid graphics that they love showing - I guess you have to make it interesting somehow - and footage of the coaches planning the next play like they were Cyril Clowes plotting out Milne Bay. Absolute lobotomy.
There's a comment below suggesting getting Aussie rugby league players too. You wouldn't go far wrong. Some of the good guys put up 'bombs' with huge hang times that are near impossible to catch. And they give the added benefit of being able to tackle a runaway truck. Only problem might be getting them to pass any of their study subjects.
Rugby union has even more punt focused players and both rugby codes have the benefit of being about kicking to an opposition like NFL instead of kicking to pass to a teammate like AFL. The ball is a much less similar shape though.
League players go to afl players to learn how to kick. So just stick with afl we can 60 yards on the run no problem. Every nfl team will have a Aussie punter soon enough
I played with a guy back in the 90s. He just returned from the US. He was there as an exchange program from the Australian Uni. He met with the college football team, the punter showed him how they did it, he rwpaonded with a footy screw-punt and the coach replaced the punter on the spot. The Americans were shocked he could hit and take a hit too.
Aussie punters best edge is being able to scramble as a punter, like having a QB that can break out of their pocket and still pass is naturally better, so being able to punt off a step or around another player means better opportunities to draw out a defender and pass it off or get it right down to the corner at the 1
Funny how such a basic skill for us is a game changer in another code. Being able to kick on the run and accurately hit a target is a core part of our game. The best can do it like a QB throwing deep to a wide receiver, they aren't kicking to a stationary target but where someone will be. Guys that can do this on the run at 40 to 65 yards are very highly valued here as there are 36 players on the ground and to be able to pinpoint one in all the congestion is a game breaker. So yeah hitting a stationary target or a zone with no one tackling you is pretty basic. We wish we could import more Americans for your skills to play AFL but you get paid WAY WAY WAY too well to even consider it. We get the odd one who can't make a college team for basketball but that's about it.
So funny how what is considered a very basic skill in one game can make you an elite player and change the game in another code. I'm not saying all us Aussies can kick it like Rocca, man was a freak and one of the biggest kicks ever, but being able to kick on the run is a very basic skill most of us have down at about age 10. There would be roughly around 100 guys playing AFL who can regularly kick it accurately to a target, while running, between 45 to 60 yards. If you want to see what an absolute freak can do with an oval ball look up Peter Daicos highlights, or the highlights of any indigenous player, those lads are magicians with the ball.
Given the fact that Australian Rules Football (AFL) has been around since the 1860s its prety wild that this never happened before now.... Its one of the most obvious cheat codes to ever exist in the game.
the internet has really helped colleges find these guys (as well as Prokick Australia). You think a scout in Iowa was flying to Australia in the 1950s to find a punter?
I never understood why American kickers just stood there and kicked instead of taking a run. I thought it must have been against the rules. I have realised it's because what we were brought up with in Australian rules, that a person kicking the ball would take some steps before kicking it.
Did some work for NFL Europe, and whenever rugby guys would try out andstart with a run-up, the coaches told them to stop and step into the punts. Thirty years later, here we are.
what's interesting is that the people that are going to America to punt, are, by and large, the guys that can't cut it in Aussie Rules. They simply don't have the skills required here, but in America they're being seen as breathing new life into punting.
No offense to the College football teams but the Australian punters they are recruiting in Australia aren't even that good of punters to begin with the best guys who can punt 75+ yards stay in Australia and play in the AFL the dudes they're recruitng are like the bottom of the barrel guys who wouldn't make it as a professional athlete in Australia so they try their luck in America. The dudes who played in the NFL like Sav Rocca only made the move because his career in the AFL was basically over because he lost a lot of his athletic ability at his peak he probably could've added another 10-15 yards a punt.
Today's AFL players can't kick the ball as far as players in the past. To begin with, a number of them can't even hold the ball correctly when kicking. It's a joke that when a behind is scored, today's players need to run out from the goal square because they can't kick the ball very far.
@@kenchristie9214 wah wah wah "when I were a lad". Good onya grandpa. I'm 64, I'd say the modern AFL, Rugby League or Union player is 10 times fitter and twice a skilled in all aspects of the game than "When I were a lad"
That’s true (ie max duffy who was mentioned in the video played like 3 games for freo in 2014 before being cut and any all-Aus level player would be better) but to be fair to them all they took a chance and it paid off, just bc he wouldn’t be the best doesn’t diminish their achievements
Didn’t he create a sensation by absolutely FLATTENING a returner once? It was like “Wait, what, a punter that tackles? What’s with THAT???” as though it was against the rules or something.
It’s cool to see my fellow countrymen go to the US and actually have a bit of an influence over there. The kick (drop punt) is integral to our game. We actually use it as an accurate pass. Gotta say though, the American kickers are impressive with their spiral punts. We call that a torpedo punt here. It is used, but not a lot. It used to be pretty common.
You know what's even more wild? AFL isn't exactly ubiquitous in Australia, throughout NSW and QLD it plays second fiddle to rugby union/league and we still have time to punch above our weight in basically every other sport.
I'm an Aussie and we have thousands of guys that could walk straight in to college football it's in our DNA. Wait till they start to kick the ball around corners making the ball move in the air one way and end up moving back the other way. Impossible to read in flight . Don't know if they are trying it or not but it will come . Sort of kick it inside out.
We call the spiral kick a torpedo or a torp. Peter Daicos was the best at it. After that the coaches told the players not to do it which is a shame. Interestingly enough a similar revolution has been going on with Gaelic footballers introducing the snap shot set kick which used to get some really funny comments and looks.
I'm curious about what happens when these Aussies get onto an NFL team with a crazy coaching staff and figures out how to run a RPPO (Run, Pass, Punt, Option). The guy is already rolling out to kick, right? The guy has played Aussie Rules and at least 2 years of college ball, and he's 30. Why not let him read the coverage? Defense sends 7? Gunner is going full Go...but wait...breaks Curl? Pass! Defense drops to set up return? Continue to roll with TE, gunners, and pulling line to block? Run! Defense has some discipline? Just kick it with some wicked knuckle and get the muff. ST coverage is going to give coaches ulcers.
Plenty of the AFL boys have cricket skills as it is the summer Oval game, many have great throwing and hand eye coordination. Cross sport code experience is everywhere in Oz as the pressure to specialise is not as high. Kick, Run, Pass options will be awesome to see
@@kevincurtis1468 Throwing a football is a very different skill to throwing a cricket ball, the lack of throwing skill is definitely the reason it doesn't happen often, if you float the throw even slightly it can go haywire very quickly. The mobility is definitely a huge advantage though, so is having an extra guy who can generally tackle pretty well in coverage. Some guys will definitely develop it though, a positive of having 20 years of kicking training already in the bag when you show up means you can afford to learn some of the other skills a bit more.
Minimal gap in quality between FBS and FCS punters reminds me of NFL and UFL kickers, Brandon Aubrey and Jake Bates have been two of the biggest successes coming out of spring football to hit the big time
Don't forget about Younghoe Koo in the short-lived AAF. He's arguably the one that started this trend and is easily the biggest success story from that league
wont work aussie rules is all abt running and boncing now- sure they could start a low tier league but their skills would have translated better in the late 2010s when richmond and west coast 's kick and pass game was on top
It may work in the states but youd absolutely get slaughtered in the actual AFL. People dont comprehend how insanely athletic you gotta be to play at that level. You have to have the endurance +20% of a MLS player + the strength of a rugby player + know understand the elite play of AFL. The sport aint fking about.
I've watched a number of AFL players attempt torpedoes and fail miserably. I'm surprised at how many don't even hold the ball correctly for the torpedo.
@@davecollins1753 How hard is it to teach a person how to hold a ball. In 1964 I learnt how to drop kick from a photo sequence of Barry Cable in the newspaper.
Another reason why Aussies are quite comfortable to be NCAA punters is that it combines a lot of good ‘whole of life’ experiences. * Travel to another part of the world. * It can act as a ‘Gap Year/Period’ where you’re just young and having fun. * Potential full scholarships (even partials are fine), which I can’t highlight enough. We know we’re unlikely to go pro. BUT if you get any portion of a college degree for free, in the long run, having that degree can be massive with real-world employment, and so punters want to be career guys at 50, instead of ‘must be star athletes in the NFL in their 20s’. * We’ve had 50+ years of pop culture of just how big/popular/important the QB is (or offensive players in general). We know that punting isn’t sexy and we don’t care. * It’s also a ‘this generation’ follow-on from the boom in popularity of football in Australia from the 80s and 90s (thank you to the late great Don Lane). Kids have been raised to watch & enjoy NFL/NCAAFB and we even have ‘Superbowl Monday’ in Australia. Since the kick-off is around 9/10am, people will actually take time off work (take the whole day off) to watch the Super Bowl (usually at a bar, so yes, 9am beers are a thing) and since it ends around 2/3pm, you have time to recover and be ready to start your summertime work week on Tuesday.
some other things that should make the choice of being a college punter a no-brainer if you have the talent to do either that or going to the afl as a high-ish draft pick out of high school: * nutrition/strength programs offered at power 4 schools are superior than what is available in australia even on a professional level. * the ability to be part of an alumni network that if used correctly, can be a game changer for the rest of your life. * avoiding the general wear and tear of aussie rules is beneficial to the body in the long run compared to punting and having rules work out for you so you don't get smashed up.
I don't know, a kid playing for the sandringham dragons isn't really going to give up a chance to get drafted by Richmond for a scholarship in America.
@@justicedemocrat9357 it's more the blokes who miss out on getting drafted but have a good kick that usually go for the scholarships. Miss the AFL draft, don't feel like grinding in the VFL or WAFL, give Prokick a call and get yourself a US scholarship
It's a lot more rounded and a lot easier to bounce as a result. You can still bounce an American football but it's a lot harder to do. It would be absolute carnage if the AFL ball was shaped like that though.
No joke I probably learned how to kick a Footy when as I learned to walk on my two feet. That's how ingrained it is especially if you grew up in Victoria.
Yep. It's so natural it's basically like riding a bike. I played juniors 20 odd years ago, and have hardly touched a ball since adulthood.. Found out a couple weeks back, while at the local park for a bbq with some mates, that I can still hit a target pretty consistently at 35-40m which is pretty good considering the collapsed disks in my lower back.. Yes, I paid for it for about a week afterwards... no warm up 😂.. Also no pressure so a bit different to during a game, but I like to think it still counts 😂 😂
To summarise this video: 1. Spiral punting doesn't work. 2. US imports punters who dont spiral punt. 3. US punters double down on spiral punting. 4. US spiral punters wonder why they're now unemployed.
I don't like saying 'Well Actually but the spiral punt, called a torpedo kick, is considered old fashioned in Australia because you look cool if you pull it off, but often you look stupid for attempting it and missing. Also the figures of 35-40 yard punts is... unimpressive to AFL fans, the average kick distance in the AFL is roughly 49-52 yards, that's right when it comes to punters, Australia ain't send its best, no they sending the guys who were kind of decent in high school, missed pre-selection for AFL development 2-3 years running and are back to being decent in the local club leagues.
The Aussie football differs significantly. It is better adapted to float longer and so the the average punt is longer than in the NFL. Kicking torpedoes is aided in NFL by the torpedo shape of the ball. However, AFL grounds are monstrous in size compared to NFL grounds. The Aussie lad has to develop from kids strong kicking legs to assure 40 + meter punts on such large grounds. Not a problem covering that on NFL plus accuracy. In AFL your kicking the ball accurately to a receiving player on the chest at 40 meters while the punter and the receiver are both on the move.
Well explained - would make a great movie. I'm in Australia and live in NSW where they play Rugby League but AFL to a lesser extent. In Victoria, SA and WA they love their footy/AFL and your video gives a good insight into something I was not aware. cheers
As an Aussie that had a footy in my hands from the age of like 4 this was an awesome watch. Also just want to add that hitting a spiral was the coolest thing in primary school
There is no doubt that we are always very proud when our boys play in US sports. Whether that NBA or NFL. Every single nightly news program here always reports on their weekend games. Thanks for giving them a shout out 🇦🇺🇺🇸
As an Australian, I went to America in High School for a year or two, and they all laughed at me when I dropped punted the ball (back spin kick). It's funny how ten years later, it's actually a thing now.
As a young kid I remember Aussie Rules when we had more styles of kicking than now. We used to have the spiral like American football, we called it the Torpedo (the Torp), also this weird drop-kick where the player would drop the ball right in front and kick in the same action as the ball touched the ground. The Torp disappeared because it was hard to do right, and inaccurate in wind, and inaccurate off the foot compared to the now ubiquitous drop-punt which pretty much became the only kick due to its improved accuracy in wind and overall accuracy which is crucial in Aussie Rules. You still do occasionally see an old fashioned Torp from time to time for distance. The drop-kick also went because it was the worst of both worlds, but weirdly stylish.
It also poses a question of why US born punters don't played a season of Aussie Rules when they're 17 or 18 in the amateur United States Australian Football League (USAFL)? It would help re-wire their brain about kicking the ball end-over-end, and how to do it on the run, avoiding tackles.
Probably need more than a year.. Also interesting from an AFL perspective is there is quite a bit of Basketball crossover as hand skills are important as is reading and reacting to a defence on the run.
tbh, I get what you are saying but USAFL would be a waste of time for those elite american punters. Small town league U18s colts games in australia are higher level than USAFL, it's just too small of a sport in america to have good talent.
Also they would need to change body shape to much. AFL players are running a hell of a lot more with less stoppages. I have played NRL with former NFL players and they can't match the endurance of NRL let alone AFL. To different.
AFL just doesn't have anything globally relevant though. Look at Major League Rugby, massive global sport yet not established as a pro series. As an Aussie we need to be realistic - 75% of AFL teams are based in Melbourne alone. AFL can't even expand into NZ let alone a pro series in the USA.
As others have notes, here in Australia, we begin with "kick to kick". Nobody in the AFL areas of Australia throws and catches like a QB / WR. Often footballers who aren't good enough to play top level AFL (up to USD1 Million per year) are playing for maybe $1,000 per week in lower leagues, but can earn big bucks if they can crack the NFL.
As an ex Australian football player in my youth, the "punt" is known as what we call a "torpedo" kick, and yes...... pretty much every kid who's ever picked up a Football can drop a massive Torpedo kick without even thinking about it! It's easy to spot the Australian players in American Football, as they move very differently on the field, showing standard Australian AFL moves that are common to our games here. Great video and very informative, as I had no idea how many Australian Footy players were being poached into American football!
For anyone interested in giving Aussie Rules a try, theres leagues across the US and Canada that would welcome you and teach you the game and skills. Just look up your local city and see if there's a team nearby
I reckon rugby league kickers will start to come in as well, because they can put in specialist kicks which are so difficult to catch, it isn’t worth attempting it
I wondered about that. Andrew Johns was lethal in rugby league at high balls 40m or so with accuracy and spinning them so it rolled into the field of play. But NFL punters seem to need more distance.
Ideally you have a punter who played both. Rugby league kickers are used to kick for territory to the opposition with kicks that are hard to catch. Aussie rules footballers are known for their accurate kicks over long distances. You need both as a gridiron punter.
Clicked on the video expecting to hear about Aussie gamblers and instead got an interesting video about a sport’s metagame changing and not just instantly smothered out and banned. Great vid
You didn’t even mention that in Australia we call it a “torpedo punt”, not a spiral. It used to be way more common, but it kinda fell out of popularity due to its unreliable nature. Drop punt is easier to repeatedly execute and also way easier for forward players to mark.
Interesting video to see as an Aussie, i'm sure you know this but i didn't hear you mention it in our game AFL the traditional more accurate kick is the one you described that we call a 'drop punt' yes but we also have the 'spiral kick' we just call it a torpedo it goes alot further but is widely inaccurate and rarely taught anymore. Even in NRL (Rugby) an actual punt occurs at the end of a 5th play similar to what happens in the NFL on 4th down, those players are probably more skilled at doing different styles of punts including the accurate drop punt style and also the spirals which are rare and hard to do but there are a few specialists who do it and they're almost impossible to catch cleanly.
There could easily be plenty more Aussie punters in the USA. I played Aussie rules with a guy who went on to become a college punter. He wasn’t even in the best 5 kickers in our local under 18s side.
In Australia, punter means gambler. Used typically when referring to someone who bets on horse racing, but can be used for betting on any. And as an Aussie, after reading the title I thought this was going to be about something VERY different. But very interesting to learn how our footy is influencing your game! Based on the comments, it seems like the algorithm has entered the Aussie audience lmao.
I think we will see this evolve even further. I think coaches will devise ways of getting Australian Punters even closer to the line of scrimmage Australian Punters are very comfortable under pressure and in congested situations and are perfectly use to taking contact. I think you’ll see other Australian kicks like check sides, etc. come into the American game.
Oh, you mean Kicker. I thought you meant something much more nefarious. Aussies also call Gambling Punting. So a Punter is someone who gambles. Imagine a story about Aussie gamblers breaking College football... much more interesting.
They are not what is generally referred to as a kicker in American/Gridiron. There are different types of “kickers” in that sport. Punters and placekickers, the latter is usually known as “kickers”.
In Australia, there’s a small population the size of like LA so there’s less of a pool to choose from, so an Aussie in football, if you want to make it you have to be able to do it all. It’s interesting that America can just pick one of us up to do one thing in the game. The one thing we Aussies are taught since you can kick a ball.
As a real average in my quick calculations as an Australian male born in 1985. I could say on average about 50 kicks a day. Alot of people kick the footy everyday, some don't. Some days in my childhood I would have kicked it 200 times a day, sometimes more. Even kicking to myself walking up the street. It's just what we do
In AFL, there have been other styles of kicking in the past as well-a "drop kick" (which involves kicking the ball on a half-volley as it bounces) and a "torpedo" (with the ball rotating like a traditional NFL punt). You could also do a place-kick, but that has also disappeared. There's also a banana kick (you can work out what that does) but that's a specialist goal-kicking tool used in AFL. The dominant kick in AFL now is the drop punt - spinning end of end, as you've mentioned. All of the same issues that you describe were considered (the kick doesn't do as far, but can be more accurate and quicker to dispose). AFL doesn't have a monopoly on kicking-but, it's worth looking at this sport and others to watch their developments and techniques to help inform punters from the US.
I work near Glenferrie Oval, the traditional home of AFL powerhouse Hawthorn Football Club, on any given day there is 3 or 4 AFL players with coaches practicing NFL punting and kicking the ball well over 60 yards
Interesting about the drop punt v spiral kick. In Aussie Rules coaches have encouraged and trained the drop punt at the expense of the spiral punt (called in Australia a torpedo punt) because it is more reliable and accurate. However some players still can master the torpedo and use it occasionally. Go back a few decades and there were plenty of players who could kick reliable torpedoes, the best regularly kicking over 60, sometimes 70 metres. Check out footage of Peter Daicos and Bernie Quinlan, those guys had a variety of kicks (especially Daicos) including huge long torpedoes (also called barrels)
3:58 "Imagine if every [award] winner came from like one state that's was just a little bigger then Florida" Excuse me sir, what??? Isn't Australia like 56 times bigger then Florida, because it's a, you know... WHOLE GODDAMN CONTINENT??!!
Florida population 23 million. Australia population 26 million. Unfortunately, Isaac thinks all AFL footballers come from Victoria. Darren Bennett grew up playing football in Western Australia. Was a star player for East Fremantle when he was recruited by the Melbourne Football Club at the age of 22.
Fascinating video. Thanks so much for your contribution. I do wonder, are we going to reach a point of parity in punting to the point that, fort most NFL teams, it isn't even worth drafting a punter? Just drop down a couple net punt yards and pick up undrafted talent?
That's a pretty loaded question, I think the parody at the NFL level is surprisingly high at all positions. Maybe you'd be fine if you have a middle of the pack guy dropping him off for fresh Free undrafted talent, but If you think you could get a top 5 guy in the draft I think it's worth going for it just like any other position. Those little yards and clutch punts add up.
The thing about Aussie punters is that they can adapt to any style of kick straight away. I have pictures of me as a 2yr old holding a football all the time. I don't even remember not being able to kick a footy.
Yeah me and my dad "punted" the ball every second day to each other. I dont suppose alot of American kids are doing that, so it's still pretty amazing how good you are at it.
AFL is 80 minutes split into four 20 minute quarters. In that time, players only stop moving for a few reasons around the balls: fouls, marks, goals, out of bounds. With the larger field, kicking is the primary way to get the ball from one end to the other, going between players. Because of the constant tackling and pressure from opponents, the players need to think quick, and react quicker. Locate the threats, consider possibilities, look for options, act on it. Because of this, the kicking techniques need to be drilled into players much more stringently than other disciplines in the game, forcing accurate kicks, and techniques that are optimised for the best possible results. Now take those skills, slap them into a stop-start game like the American Football model, and you have players who are going to adapt and innovate on the game quicker than your veteran players can. It's such a unique situation to watch unfold, that I'm enjoying seeing how the rest of the NFL react and adapt to the changes.
What's funny is that some of the afl guys that make it can kick 60 + meters with a drop punt (65 + yards). America gets the Aussies that tend not to make it into the AFL
Aussie rules greatest game in the world, if we weren't on the other side of the world and had the population like the rest of this world. AFL would be the biggest game by far.
@PhansiKhongoloza how so, when rugby is not even bigger than Australian rules 🤣 let's talk skill, AFL players are if not the most athletic and arguably the most skill full game in the world. And I watch and support every sport, including rugby.skills rugby, not even close, and that's comparing it to lots of sports around the world.
From an Australian perspective the specialisation in the American game seems extreme. For sure in Aussie Rules Football there are specialised players but all players have to be able to do everything, at any time on the run as it is a free-flowing game with few stops and starts and a lot of shifting positions spontaneously. Every Aussie rules player punts...every game... from set positions but importantly on the run from every angle. The American game is a series of plays and set pieces where the coaches designate who does what a lot of the time. In Aussie Rules the players determine their own plays individually and through a hive-mind. The play just keeps on rolling. The American style of playing and coaching may develop punt specialists but they will rarely have the flexibility and the kinetic intuitions that players raised in the Australian game have. This is not meant to be an insult. It is just a recognition of the different types of game players are raised in.
one is a micro managed sim while the other is let the training do the talking. neither is right or wrong.
chess vs checkers!
The tactics and plays in American football are great but the chaos in footy at home is like no other.
@@jpmorganandco-k1y afl is not the same the game has been wokefied
@@alcinobenfica 🙄🥱
I randomly turned on an Aussie Footy game 2 years ago and got addicted. If you are watching this channel, you should give it a shot when the next session starts. Its on the fox sportd channels but the AFL posts games for free after they air and they won't get spoiled in the USA.
who do you support im a north fan
@@ExampleName-j2n you should consider Geelong - the only small town club, beautiful jerseys, & we try to win the premiership every year instead of having depressing rebuild eras
supporting geelong is like supporting the celtics, don’t be a boring ass bandwagoner lmao
@@baileyfry7031 I'm Australian and have supported Geelong my whole life, which was passed down through family generations. No way are we like the Celtics. If you want an American sports comparison, the Packers are the closest - small team, run extremely well, have had modern success but haven't got over the last hurdles a lot.
As a kid, my family spent a few years in a suburb of Dallas. Across the street from us was an Australian family. They ended up moving back to Australia after a few years and my family would also move to another state a couple years after that. They would continue to send Christmas cards every year though, and that's how we found out the son who I used to play with as a child ended up getting drafted in the first round of AFL. Pretty cool stuff. Unfortunately, he had a lot of injury issues and his career never took off, after being a highly touted prospect.
Before all of this happened, I had already taken to watching AFL highlights as a teenager because the local Fox Sports network had a show every Friday night where they would play them. Still enjoy watching it to this day when I come across it.
Aussie here. The ‘drop punt’ is the AFL’s normal kick. In AFL if you kick what we call a torpedo (what you call a traditional punt) it may go further and the crowd will love it but it has a lower efficiency percentage. So, if you kick a torpedo that doesn’t come off you look like a fool and the coach will go off at you. Some of the best kicks of all time in the AFL are torpedo’s kicked after the siren from a set kick where the ‘thorp’ goes 80m for a goal and the win. TH-cam ‘Malcom Blight’s 1976 Massive Torp’ The team mate that walked past Blighty said to him before the kick ‘I know it’s impossible but do it anyway.’
@GEB-yy3ud
i watched Malcolm Blight kick that goal, it went 110 yards through the goals the another 20 yards into the crowd, i mentioned yards because we had not changed to metric at that stage.
@@Peterepeat55 Blighty's kick/goal is like any good legend; it gets longer with every passing year.
@@TheHappyfleaSoon he'll have kicked it from Arden St to the G
@@TheHappyfleayeah, but you watch the tape and it still unbefuhkenlievable…
"no pressure Mal" I remember thinking when he kicked that amazing goal.
Chatting with one of the ProKick folks here in Melbourne the other day, and it was interesting that their primary focus is to get these guys a free US college education, and if they then go NFL, that’s just a bonus. Full ride sports scholarships aren’t a thing here (our universities focus on education, not sports revenue), so a nice niche to get 50+ dudes free school every year by just kicking a footy is a good deal
I mean, we've got HECS, college scholarships aren't really a big thing here when kids don't really pay for university. I think most kids see it as a free holiday to America and the guys who actually have a chance to make it in the AFL, like you know the kids who can actually kick a football focus on trying to get drafted.
@@justicedemocrat9357 Kids don't really pay for uni?!? Its 16k a year (for 4 years) for the engineering degree I did now. 64k!
@@saberintAnd you'll only pay it when you earn more than an amount and it essentially inflates away, while leaving the moment you die.
It's more or less the best possible form of debt.
Still sucks though.
Most football scholarships are for private high schools like Xavier, Geelong Grammar, etc.
Most AFL athletes are identified at Junior level and go through private schools and the under 18s academy's.
By the time they are old enough for college, they're already on an AFL list.
What's the impact on the AFL of losing young talent to the USA? How many come back to play in the AFL?
Never forget the Aussie Punting GOAT Brad Wing, who faked a punt, ran all the way to the end zone, and got flagged for taunting before he got in, negating the TD. (LSU v Florida 2011)
I think about this play and get annoyed about twice a year to this day.
Disallowed a touchdown for taunting? They would have had to get out the smelling salts if he actually started sledging.
Brad King?
As an Aussie, you could always just teach how to kick. It isn't that hard. Playing Aussie rules you learn in a few weeks.
@@chrisoakey9841youre missing the point completely, its not like americans have no idea how to kick a ball, they dont know what a snap or a banana is, they call torps spirals and the checkside kick they would just wonder why.. im aussie too, played footy but there were always people that could just kick it better, further and more accurate, surely you understand this.
Hahahaha omg Aussie here I thought this was a video about some sort of betting scam! We call gamblers “punters” ie having a bet at something (particularly horse racing) is having a punt at it.. so punters I thought referred to how Aussie gamblers broke college football .. oops.. still I’ll subscribe was a great vid cheers 😂l ❤ 🇦🇺
Same here.
Yep. I also thought this! 😂😂
this is the comment I came looking for
I thought the same thing.
Me too. Aussie and I thought it was a corruption story about sport betting. 😂😂😂😂
What makes Aussies better is the accuracy. Australian punters have been kicking footballs into players hands at 30-50 metres since age 12. Getting in inside the 10 yard line is easy by comparison
12? We start much younger than that, kids start kicking after they learn to walk. Auskick the AFLs junior program starts at 5!
@eddiegagliardi7660 yes I know. I was saying that we don't start hitting players on the run from 30m until age 12, that's when we start getting accurate at those distances
@@eddiegagliardi7660 Show me a 5yo kicking 50m.
50m is 54.6 yards.. no wonder they think were goated😂
Edit: 47yards is 42metres, i get that they also want hangtime but it doesnt seem that far at all
@psilocycho2761 imagine if prime Rocca or Fletcher went to the NFL
I loved watching this video! I did it of my own free will and Isaac doesnt have my family! Special teams is the best!
same, what a mood. My family definitely hasn't been taken and I watched this of my own volition! 😃
I have to admit, I’m a little disappointed when the topic ISN’T special teams! A million channels are dedicated to analyzing offence and defence. Issac’s focus on special teams is what keeps me coming back here.
The solution for more US bred skilled punters is to have them play Aussie Rules football from childhood too! It's a winter sport*, so the season can start after the US football season ends.
_*(Aussie rules football (AFL) was initiated to keep cricket players fit in the off season winter (there's a lot of running to keep warm in the cold))_
There are a lot of money hungry AFL suits like Eddie 'Turd with ears' McGuire (who coincidentally has a son who is a punter in the US) who will get a boner over your idea. That'll be a huge money maker.
That's not a terrible idea... games shocking for injuries but honestly it would help
When was Gridiron first played? MGS and Scotch had their games begin in 1858.
@@datz8926spot on mate. Way too many injuries in Afl to risk these potential future nfl careers on.
It's not a Winter sport by Minnesota standards. In Canada there is an Aussie Rules league, it's a summer sport.
A key little-discussed comparison….
In the States, kids/friends will ‘Pass the Pigskin’ and throw the football back & forth (so a good QB/WR experience) in the yard, at school, at the park etc.
In Australia, kids might play ‘Kick-to-Kick’ which is literally standing a decent distance apart and kicking the football to each other (since we don’t have sports that naturally require QB ‘above shoulder, pass forward of body’ throwing mechanics). You’ll practice big kicks, spiralling kicks, grubber kicks along the ground. Basically a Punter/ Punt Reception experience. A child who then plays Australian Rules or Rugby has then at least learn a skill that IS applicable in either sport (even if the kicking share in Aussie Rules is far higher).
At school I used to play kick to kick with a guy who turned out to be a pretty useful AFL player - Geoff Raines.
Then there is the schoolyard classic forcey backs....or was that a NSW thing?
@@aaronflowers8626 played forceback in rural nz as a kid
@@aaronflowers8626 In NSW it's a schoolyard thing, in the other states it's an entire sport.
We used to start out passing it back and forth rugby style and as the gaps slowly widen it would switch to grubber kicks and chip kicks. Full on punts and drop kicks off the ground were less common because you needed the space so you might do it if you were early to training or after school and had most of a field to yourselves.
Because AFL (and rugby) aren't stop-start games based on set plays and offensive/defensive squads, the players need multiple skills.
I wandered into an American-style sports bar in the Valley in Brisbane years ago - mostly for the free peanuts - and they had an NFL game on screen.
By all the gods you care to name, it was the most tedious thing I've ever seen. I was their for about half an hour, and it was the middle of the game. I think there was about three minutes of actual play in all that time. It was literally just executing one "play" that consisted of about three movements of the ball. And then stop. No one had scored, no one got tackled, there was no foul. And then it went to absolutely mind-numbing colour commentary, endless stat BS, those stupid graphics that they love showing - I guess you have to make it interesting somehow - and footage of the coaches planning the next play like they were Cyril Clowes plotting out Milne Bay.
Absolute lobotomy.
There's a comment below suggesting getting Aussie rugby league players too. You wouldn't go far wrong. Some of the good guys put up 'bombs' with huge hang times that are near impossible to catch. And they give the added benefit of being able to tackle a runaway truck. Only problem might be getting them to pass any of their study subjects.
Rugby union has even more punt focused players and both rugby codes have the benefit of being about kicking to an opposition like NFL instead of kicking to pass to a teammate like AFL. The ball is a much less similar shape though.
Rugby balls are a lot bigger than NFL footballs and rugby players don't kick torpedoes it wouldn't really translate well.
@@OtterSC2union doesn’t put up torpedo bombs like we do in League.
That’s what op is talking about, Burton and the likes
League players go to afl players to learn how to kick. So just stick with afl we can 60 yards on the run no problem. Every nfl team will have a Aussie punter soon enough
if you want rugby players who can pass exams go rugby Union its a university sport in australia and the UK
"Innovate? Hell no... import!" 🤣
See also NASA post World War 2 …
40% Tarrif on Aussie Kickers
Lol just play AFL in America?
I played with a guy back in the 90s. He just returned from the US.
He was there as an exchange program from the Australian Uni. He met with the college football team, the punter showed him how they did it, he rwpaonded with a footy screw-punt and the coach replaced the punter on the spot.
The Americans were shocked he could hit and take a hit too.
Aussie punters best edge is being able to scramble as a punter, like having a QB that can break out of their pocket and still pass is naturally better, so being able to punt off a step or around another player means better opportunities to draw out a defender and pass it off or get it right down to the corner at the 1
another thing that goes in Aussies favour is its in their DNA to accept a hit to take the kick
Funny how such a basic skill for us is a game changer in another code. Being able to kick on the run and accurately hit a target is a core part of our game. The best can do it like a QB throwing deep to a wide receiver, they aren't kicking to a stationary target but where someone will be. Guys that can do this on the run at 40 to 65 yards are very highly valued here as there are 36 players on the ground and to be able to pinpoint one in all the congestion is a game breaker. So yeah hitting a stationary target or a zone with no one tackling you is pretty basic. We wish we could import more Americans for your skills to play AFL but you get paid WAY WAY WAY too well to even consider it. We get the odd one who can't make a college team for basketball but that's about it.
So funny how what is considered a very basic skill in one game can make you an elite player and change the game in another code. I'm not saying all us Aussies can kick it like Rocca, man was a freak and one of the biggest kicks ever, but being able to kick on the run is a very basic skill most of us have down at about age 10. There would be roughly around 100 guys playing AFL who can regularly kick it accurately to a target, while running, between 45 to 60 yards. If you want to see what an absolute freak can do with an oval ball look up Peter Daicos highlights, or the highlights of any indigenous player, those lads are magicians with the ball.
Given the fact that Australian Rules Football (AFL) has been around since the 1860s its prety wild that this never happened before now.... Its one of the most obvious cheat codes to ever exist in the game.
Its not new, its been happening since the 1960's. It's just getting easier to identify talent early now.
the internet has really helped colleges find these guys (as well as Prokick Australia). You think a scout in Iowa was flying to Australia in the 1950s to find a punter?
I never understood why American kickers just stood there and kicked instead of taking a run. I thought it must have been against the rules. I have realised it's because what we were brought up with in Australian rules, that a person kicking the ball would take some steps before kicking it.
yeah same man, its so engrained into my head from years of footy as a kid.
*stands there Australian-ly*
Did some work for NFL Europe, and whenever rugby guys would try out andstart with a run-up, the coaches told them to stop and step into the punts.
Thirty years later, here we are.
Absolutely nailed this video mate.
what's interesting is that the people that are going to America to punt, are, by and large, the guys that can't cut it in Aussie Rules. They simply don't have the skills required here, but in America they're being seen as breathing new life into punting.
No offense to the College football teams but the Australian punters they are recruiting in Australia aren't even that good of punters to begin with the best guys who can punt 75+ yards stay in Australia and play in the AFL the dudes they're recruitng are like the bottom of the barrel guys who wouldn't make it as a professional athlete in Australia so they try their luck in America. The dudes who played in the NFL like Sav Rocca only made the move because his career in the AFL was basically over because he lost a lot of his athletic ability at his peak he probably could've added another 10-15 yards a punt.
Today's AFL players can't kick the ball as far as players in the past. To begin with, a number of them can't even hold the ball correctly when kicking.
It's a joke that when a behind is scored, today's players need to run out from the goal square because they can't kick the ball very far.
@@kenchristie9214 wah wah wah "when I were a lad". Good onya grandpa.
I'm 64, I'd say the modern AFL, Rugby League or Union player is 10 times fitter and twice a skilled in all aspects of the game than "When I were a lad"
That’s true (ie max duffy who was mentioned in the video played like 3 games for freo in 2014 before being cut and any all-Aus level player would be better) but to be fair to them all they took a chance and it paid off, just bc he wouldn’t be the best doesn’t diminish their achievements
@@iffracem Fitter yes, better kicks, definitely not. Prior to 1980, players were on the field for 100 minutes, then there's time on added.
Old school San Diego Chargers fans will remember how Darren Bennett showed up to training camp punting the ball with COMBAT BOOTS 🏉🦵
Didn’t he create a sensation by absolutely FLATTENING a returner once? It was like “Wait, what, a punter that tackles? What’s with THAT???” as though it was against the rules or something.
It’s cool to see my fellow countrymen go to the US and actually have a bit of an influence over there. The kick (drop punt) is integral to our game. We actually use it as an accurate pass. Gotta say though, the American kickers are impressive with their spiral punts. We call that a torpedo punt here. It is used, but not a lot. It used to be pretty common.
You know what's even more wild? AFL isn't exactly ubiquitous in Australia, throughout NSW and QLD it plays second fiddle to rugby union/league and we still have time to punch above our weight in basically every other sport.
I'm an Aussie and we have thousands of guys that could walk straight in to college football it's in our DNA. Wait till they start to kick the ball around corners making the ball move in the air one way and end up moving back the other way. Impossible to read in flight . Don't know if they are trying it or not but it will come . Sort of kick it inside out.
We call the spiral kick a torpedo or a torp. Peter Daicos was the best at it. After that the coaches told the players not to do it which is a shame. Interestingly enough a similar revolution has been going on with Gaelic footballers introducing the snap shot set kick which used to get some really funny comments and looks.
Set snap would be the "Stevie J" kick I assume. Kicked 4 with it in 2011 Grand Final off one good leg, won them the game.
@BossDropbear and now common in AFL thanks to the expanded protected area.
Stewy Dew( Port Adelaide) and Malcolm Blight were just as great at it too but because they are South Australians they dont get VFL legend status
I'm curious about what happens when these Aussies get onto an NFL team with a crazy coaching staff and figures out how to run a RPPO (Run, Pass, Punt, Option).
The guy is already rolling out to kick, right? The guy has played Aussie Rules and at least 2 years of college ball, and he's 30.
Why not let him read the coverage?
Defense sends 7? Gunner is going full Go...but wait...breaks Curl? Pass!
Defense drops to set up return? Continue to roll with TE, gunners, and pulling line to block? Run!
Defense has some discipline? Just kick it with some wicked knuckle and get the muff.
ST coverage is going to give coaches ulcers.
Saints and giants already beginning to utilize the roll out a bit
Because he can't throw
Plenty of the AFL boys have cricket skills as it is the summer Oval game, many have great throwing and hand eye coordination. Cross sport code experience is everywhere in Oz as the pressure to specialise is not as high. Kick, Run, Pass options will be awesome to see
Plenty also good basketball skills, and are used to reading the defence and looking for a short kick as well.. just change that to a pass.
@@kevincurtis1468 Throwing a football is a very different skill to throwing a cricket ball, the lack of throwing skill is definitely the reason it doesn't happen often, if you float the throw even slightly it can go haywire very quickly.
The mobility is definitely a huge advantage though, so is having an extra guy who can generally tackle pretty well in coverage.
Some guys will definitely develop it though, a positive of having 20 years of kicking training already in the bag when you show up means you can afford to learn some of the other skills a bit more.
Minimal gap in quality between FBS and FCS punters reminds me of NFL and UFL kickers, Brandon Aubrey and Jake Bates have been two of the biggest successes coming out of spring football to hit the big time
Don't forget about Younghoe Koo in the short-lived AAF. He's arguably the one that started this trend and is easily the biggest success story from that league
All these college players who don't make the NFL should start a local Aussie Rules league!
wont work aussie rules is all abt running and boncing now- sure they could start a low tier league but their skills would have translated better in the late 2010s when richmond and west coast 's kick and pass game was on top
@ExampleName-j2n I mean, we wouldn't know any different here😂. It would be completely new to most of us beyond seeing clips.
it would be fun to watch, or get 15 together against 15 flying stars over for an exhibition
@@nominalize defo
It may work in the states but youd absolutely get slaughtered in the actual AFL. People dont comprehend how insanely athletic you gotta be to play at that level. You have to have the endurance +20% of a MLS player + the strength of a rugby player + know understand the elite play of AFL.
The sport aint fking about.
The Aussie guys all know how to kick a torpedo too as rolling out the barrel in the AFL is where you get the highlights reel.
I've watched a number of AFL players attempt torpedoes and fail miserably. I'm surprised at how many don't even hold the ball correctly for the torpedo.
@@kenchristie9214 it isn't practiced often since it's not a common part of game. Even attempting it can get you benched.
@@kenchristie9214 it’s been coached out of the skill set that’s why
@@davecollins1753 How hard is it to teach a person how to hold a ball. In 1964 I learnt how to drop kick from a photo sequence of Barry Cable in the newspaper.
@ some people are very bad at it, some are good? Dunno
Another reason why Aussies are quite comfortable to be NCAA punters is that it combines a lot of good ‘whole of life’ experiences.
* Travel to another part of the world.
* It can act as a ‘Gap Year/Period’ where you’re just young and having fun.
* Potential full scholarships (even partials are fine), which I can’t highlight enough. We know we’re unlikely to go pro. BUT if you get any portion of a college degree for free, in the long run, having that degree can be massive with real-world employment, and so punters want to be career guys at 50, instead of ‘must be star athletes in the NFL in their 20s’.
* We’ve had 50+ years of pop culture of just how big/popular/important the QB is (or offensive players in general). We know that punting isn’t sexy and we don’t care.
* It’s also a ‘this generation’ follow-on from the boom in popularity of football in Australia from the 80s and 90s (thank you to the late great Don Lane). Kids have been raised to watch & enjoy NFL/NCAAFB and we even have ‘Superbowl Monday’ in Australia. Since the kick-off is around 9/10am, people will actually take time off work (take the whole day off) to watch the Super Bowl (usually at a bar, so yes, 9am beers are a thing) and since it ends around 2/3pm, you have time to recover and be ready to start your summertime work week on Tuesday.
some other things that should make the choice of being a college punter a no-brainer if you have the talent to do either that or going to the afl as a high-ish draft pick out of high school:
* nutrition/strength programs offered at power 4 schools are superior than what is available in australia even on a professional level.
* the ability to be part of an alumni network that if used correctly, can be a game changer for the rest of your life.
* avoiding the general wear and tear of aussie rules is beneficial to the body in the long run compared to punting and having rules work out for you so you don't get smashed up.
I don't know, a kid playing for the sandringham dragons isn't really going to give up a chance to get drafted by Richmond for a scholarship in America.
Here's to 9am beers 🍻
i didnt know anyone watched nfl let alone make a thing of it but hey any excuse is a good excuse for a day at the pub i guess.
@@justicedemocrat9357 it's more the blokes who miss out on getting drafted but have a good kick that usually go for the scholarships. Miss the AFL draft, don't feel like grinding in the VFL or WAFL, give Prokick a call and get yourself a US scholarship
Let’s not forget that Aussie rules also requires you to bounce the ball when running with it, and it’s a very similar shape to an American football.
It's a lot more rounded and a lot easier to bounce as a result. You can still bounce an American football but it's a lot harder to do. It would be absolute carnage if the AFL ball was shaped like that though.
No joke I probably learned how to kick a Footy when as I learned to walk on my two feet. That's how ingrained it is especially if you grew up in Victoria.
Aussie here, There’s a photo of my brother wayyy back, he looks about 1 yr old, holding the footy trying to kick it lol
Yep. It's so natural it's basically like riding a bike.
I played juniors 20 odd years ago, and have hardly touched a ball since adulthood.. Found out a couple weeks back, while at the local park for a bbq with some mates, that I can still hit a target pretty consistently at 35-40m which is pretty good considering the collapsed disks in my lower back.. Yes, I paid for it for about a week afterwards... no warm up 😂.. Also no pressure so a bit different to during a game, but I like to think it still counts 😂 😂
I love your videos
I always wondered why college punting formations were completely different from the NFL. Great video
To summarise this video:
1. Spiral punting doesn't work.
2. US imports punters who dont spiral punt.
3. US punters double down on spiral punting.
4. US spiral punters wonder why they're now unemployed.
I don't like saying 'Well Actually but the spiral punt, called a torpedo kick, is considered old fashioned in Australia because you look cool if you pull it off, but often you look stupid for attempting it and missing. Also the figures of 35-40 yard punts is... unimpressive to AFL fans, the average kick distance in the AFL is roughly 49-52 yards, that's right when it comes to punters, Australia ain't send its best, no they sending the guys who were kind of decent in high school, missed pre-selection for AFL development 2-3 years running and are back to being decent in the local club leagues.
🇺🇸: "can you punt/kick?"
🇦🇺: which kick? Torpedo, the floating bomb, chip & chase, grubber, box kick, and the drop kick
The Aussie football differs significantly.
It is better adapted to float longer and so the the average punt is longer than in the NFL.
Kicking torpedoes is aided in NFL by the torpedo shape of the ball.
However, AFL grounds are monstrous in size compared to NFL grounds.
The Aussie lad has to develop from kids strong kicking legs to assure 40 + meter punts on such large grounds.
Not a problem covering that on NFL plus accuracy.
In AFL your kicking the ball accurately to a receiving player on the chest at 40 meters while the punter and the receiver are both on the move.
Well explained - would make a great movie. I'm in Australia and live in NSW where they play Rugby League but AFL to a lesser extent. In Victoria, SA and WA they love their footy/AFL and your video gives a good insight into something I was not aware. cheers
And TAS and NT is all AFL too
Ahh yes. United by country, divided by the Barassi line and Peter V'ylandys. 😂
As an Aussie that had a footy in my hands from the age of like 4 this was an awesome watch. Also just want to add that hitting a spiral was the coolest thing in primary school
And that created ....anyone? ...anyone? Trickle......Trickle Down Puntenomics.....LOL
😂😂😂
Still the best football and NFL channel around. Nice one!
There is no doubt that we are always very proud when our boys play in US sports. Whether that NBA or NFL. Every single nightly news program here always reports on their weekend games. Thanks for giving them a shout out 🇦🇺🇺🇸
As an Australian, I went to America in High School for a year or two, and they all laughed at me when I dropped punted the ball (back spin kick). It's funny how ten years later, it's actually a thing now.
Matt Burton in the NRL would be a huge punter,,,
Jamal Fogarty as well.
As a young kid I remember Aussie Rules when we had more styles of kicking than now. We used to have the spiral like American football, we called it the Torpedo (the Torp), also this weird drop-kick where the player would drop the ball right in front and kick in the same action as the ball touched the ground. The Torp disappeared because it was hard to do right, and inaccurate in wind, and inaccurate off the foot compared to the now ubiquitous drop-punt which pretty much became the only kick due to its improved accuracy in wind and overall accuracy which is crucial in Aussie Rules. You still do occasionally see an old fashioned Torp from time to time for distance. The drop-kick also went because it was the worst of both worlds, but weirdly stylish.
Sav Rocca was an Aussie Rules legend before he went to NFL
"legend"
It also poses a question of why US born punters don't played a season of Aussie Rules when they're 17 or 18 in the amateur United States Australian Football League (USAFL)? It would help re-wire their brain about kicking the ball end-over-end, and how to do it on the run, avoiding tackles.
Probably need more than a year..
Also interesting from an AFL perspective is there is quite a bit of Basketball crossover as hand skills are important as is reading and reacting to a defence on the run.
tbh, I get what you are saying but USAFL would be a waste of time for those elite american punters. Small town league U18s colts games in australia are higher level than USAFL, it's just too small of a sport in america to have good talent.
Also they would need to change body shape to much. AFL players are running a hell of a lot more with less stoppages. I have played NRL with former NFL players and they can't match the endurance of NRL let alone AFL. To different.
Remember, AFL season is Americas Offseason, they could literally come here in their offseason and play!
AFL just doesn't have anything globally relevant though. Look at Major League Rugby, massive global sport yet not established as a pro series. As an Aussie we need to be realistic - 75% of AFL teams are based in Melbourne alone. AFL can't even expand into NZ let alone a pro series in the USA.
As others have notes, here in Australia, we begin with "kick to kick". Nobody in the AFL areas of Australia throws and catches like a QB / WR. Often footballers who aren't good enough to play top level AFL (up to USD1 Million per year) are playing for maybe $1,000 per week in lower leagues, but can earn big bucks if they can crack the NFL.
As an ex Australian football player in my youth, the "punt" is known as what we call a "torpedo" kick, and yes...... pretty much every kid who's ever picked up a Football can drop a massive Torpedo kick without even thinking about it!
It's easy to spot the Australian players in American Football, as they move very differently on the field, showing standard Australian AFL moves that are common to our games here.
Great video and very informative, as I had no idea how many Australian Footy players were being poached into American football!
For anyone interested in giving Aussie Rules a try, theres leagues across the US and Canada that would welcome you and teach you the game and skills.
Just look up your local city and see if there's a team nearby
You say you force us to watch your punt vids but I'm on the edge of my seat waiting for another one :D
I reckon rugby league kickers will start to come in as well, because they can put in specialist kicks which are so difficult to catch, it isn’t worth attempting it
Matt Burton????
I wondered about that. Andrew Johns was lethal in rugby league at high balls 40m or so with accuracy and spinning them so it rolled into the field of play. But NFL punters seem to need more distance.
Ideally you have a punter who played both. Rugby league kickers are used to kick for territory to the opposition with kicks that are hard to catch. Aussie rules footballers are known for their accurate kicks over long distances. You need both as a gridiron punter.
@@BossDropbear was thinking someone like Cleary (obvs he won’t) who has such a deadly bomb teams just wouldn’t bother catching it
They couldn’t pass a college degree in most cases 🥴
Clicked on the video expecting to hear about Aussie gamblers and instead got an interesting video about a sport’s metagame changing and not just instantly smothered out and banned. Great vid
You didn’t even mention that in Australia we call it a “torpedo punt”, not a spiral. It used to be way more common, but it kinda fell out of popularity due to its unreliable nature. Drop punt is easier to repeatedly execute and also way easier for forward players to mark.
Interesting video to see as an Aussie, i'm sure you know this but i didn't hear you mention it in our game AFL the traditional more accurate kick is the one you described that we call a 'drop punt' yes but we also have the 'spiral kick' we just call it a torpedo it goes alot further but is widely inaccurate and rarely taught anymore.
Even in NRL (Rugby) an actual punt occurs at the end of a 5th play similar to what happens in the NFL on 4th down, those players are probably more skilled at doing different styles of punts including the accurate drop punt style and also the spirals which are rare and hard to do but there are a few specialists who do it and they're almost impossible to catch cleanly.
As an Australian kid we used to take one shoe off and use it as a kicking tee. A lot of kids grow up here with above-average kicking skills.
lmao i love that a dropkick is a recent innovation for you guys, you're welcome :D
Excellent video, thank you for sharing bro!
God Isaac that's so cool that you're almost a top 10 FBS punter at your peak!
There could easily be plenty more Aussie punters in the USA. I played Aussie rules with a guy who went on to become a college punter. He wasn’t even in the best 5 kickers in our local under 18s side.
In Australia, punter means gambler. Used typically when referring to someone who bets on horse racing, but can be used for betting on any. And as an Aussie, after reading the title I thought this was going to be about something VERY different.
But very interesting to learn how our footy is influencing your game! Based on the comments, it seems like the algorithm has entered the Aussie audience lmao.
I remember Tom Hackett, who played for Utah. He won two Ray Guy awards and was one of the best punters I've ever seen. He's Australian.
POV Iowa fans right now let’s go we finally we have a video on Isaiah punts
Trickledown puntanomics is the greatest thing I've heard in a while.
As an Aussie this is fucking hilarious 😂i knew we loved gambling but i didn't think it was on this level😂
Haha, "Punters" colloquially refers to gamblers, glad it's not a betting problem!
We’re also really good at kicking under pressure
That's because you're always under pressure! Especially from the Springboks.
@ yeah nobody cares about rugby where I’m from. Also I was referring to Aussie rules
I think we will see this evolve even further. I think coaches will devise ways of getting Australian Punters even closer to the line of scrimmage Australian Punters are very comfortable under pressure and in congested situations and are perfectly use to taking contact. I think you’ll see other Australian kicks like check sides, etc. come into the American game.
Oh, you mean Kicker.
I thought you meant something much more nefarious.
Aussies also call Gambling Punting. So a Punter is someone who gambles.
Imagine a story about Aussie gamblers breaking College football... much more interesting.
They are not what is generally referred to as a kicker in American/Gridiron. There are different types of “kickers” in that sport. Punters and placekickers, the latter is usually known as “kickers”.
Love these. Can just tell an Aussie rules player how he carries himself with he footy.
In Australia, there’s a small population the size of like LA so there’s less of a pool to choose from, so an Aussie in football, if you want to make it you have to be able to do it all.
It’s interesting that America can just pick one of us up to do one thing in the game. The one thing we Aussies are taught since you can kick a ball.
As a real average in my quick calculations as an Australian male born in 1985. I could say on average about 50 kicks a day. Alot of people kick the footy everyday, some don't.
Some days in my childhood I would have kicked it 200 times a day, sometimes more. Even kicking to myself walking up the street.
It's just what we do
Importing sounds like innovation to me.
In AFL, there have been other styles of kicking in the past as well-a "drop kick" (which involves kicking the ball on a half-volley as it bounces) and a "torpedo" (with the ball rotating like a traditional NFL punt). You could also do a place-kick, but that has also disappeared. There's also a banana kick (you can work out what that does) but that's a specialist goal-kicking tool used in AFL.
The dominant kick in AFL now is the drop punt - spinning end of end, as you've mentioned. All of the same issues that you describe were considered (the kick doesn't do as far, but can be more accurate and quicker to dispose).
AFL doesn't have a monopoly on kicking-but, it's worth looking at this sport and others to watch their developments and techniques to help inform punters from the US.
Gotta say my favourite moment was when Darren Bennett carried out a tackle., it sent the commentators crazy 😂
Eddie Czaplicki being half our offense this year made me really appreciate punters. I finally understand what being an Iowa fan is like
They're in the CFL too, thanks to the Global Players rule.
A pair of CFLers tried out with Tampa this week.
AFL is awesome! Give it a watch
I work near Glenferrie Oval, the traditional home of AFL powerhouse Hawthorn Football Club, on any given day there is 3 or 4 AFL players with coaches practicing NFL punting and kicking the ball well over 60 yards
And here I thought he was talking about making a bet
Interesting about the drop punt v spiral kick. In Aussie Rules coaches have encouraged and trained the drop punt at the expense of the spiral punt (called in Australia a torpedo punt) because it is more reliable and accurate. However some players still can master the torpedo and use it occasionally. Go back a few decades and there were plenty of players who could kick reliable torpedoes, the best regularly kicking over 60, sometimes 70 metres. Check out footage of Peter Daicos and Bernie Quinlan, those guys had a variety of kicks (especially Daicos) including huge long torpedoes (also called barrels)
Came here to see how Australian gamblers were changing American college football. Was still not disappointed but the algorithm is getting crazy
3:58 "Imagine if every [award] winner came from like one state that's was just a little bigger then Florida"
Excuse me sir, what??? Isn't Australia like 56 times bigger then Florida, because it's a, you know... WHOLE GODDAMN CONTINENT??!!
population size
Florida population 23 million. Australia population 26 million. Unfortunately, Isaac thinks all AFL footballers come from Victoria.
Darren Bennett grew up playing football in Western Australia. Was a star player for East Fremantle when he was recruited by the Melbourne Football Club at the age of 22.
Do they not kick balls regularly over there as children and that's why they need a specialist kicker?
lol love this, as an unfit australian nerd, even I could 'drop punt' at the age of like, 8, because its just what yah do here in aus
Fascinating video. Thanks so much for your contribution. I do wonder, are we going to reach a point of parity in punting to the point that, fort most NFL teams, it isn't even worth drafting a punter? Just drop down a couple net punt yards and pick up undrafted talent?
That's a pretty loaded question, I think the parody at the NFL level is surprisingly high at all positions. Maybe you'd be fine if you have a middle of the pack guy dropping him off for fresh Free undrafted talent, but If you think you could get a top 5 guy in the draft I think it's worth going for it just like any other position. Those little yards and clutch punts add up.
The thing about Aussie punters is that they can adapt to any style of kick straight away. I have pictures of me as a 2yr old holding a football all the time. I don't even remember not being able to kick a footy.
AFL doesn't say punting so this might confuse some.
Love the Iowa representation
You,re welcome!👍💪😁🇦🇺 If any American hasn't watched a game of AFL then you need to! We don't wear pads.
Yeah me and my dad "punted" the ball every second day to each other. I dont suppose alot of American kids are doing that, so it's still pretty amazing how good you are at it.
The distances you mentioned are quite short compared to AFL. I guess its the ball difference. 50meters is kinda normal and the record is 72.
AFL is 80 minutes split into four 20 minute quarters. In that time, players only stop moving for a few reasons around the balls: fouls, marks, goals, out of bounds. With the larger field, kicking is the primary way to get the ball from one end to the other, going between players. Because of the constant tackling and pressure from opponents, the players need to think quick, and react quicker. Locate the threats, consider possibilities, look for options, act on it. Because of this, the kicking techniques need to be drilled into players much more stringently than other disciplines in the game, forcing accurate kicks, and techniques that are optimised for the best possible results.
Now take those skills, slap them into a stop-start game like the American Football model, and you have players who are going to adapt and innovate on the game quicker than your veteran players can. It's such a unique situation to watch unfold, that I'm enjoying seeing how the rest of the NFL react and adapt to the changes.
Sav Rocca had a great career in Australia before he made the move
What's funny is that some of the afl guys that make it can kick 60 + meters with a drop punt (65 + yards). America gets the Aussies that tend not to make it into the AFL
Aussie rules greatest game in the world, if we weren't on the other side of the world and had the population like the rest of this world. AFL would be the biggest game by far.
😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
Not! Rugby is a far superior sport as it requires far more skill.
@PhansiKhongoloza how so, when rugby is not even bigger than Australian rules 🤣 let's talk skill, AFL players are if not the most athletic and arguably the most skill full game in the world. And I watch and support every sport, including rugby.skills rugby, not even close, and that's comparing it to lots of sports around the world.
I would love to see an American football team play a game of Australian rugby. I dont watch sports normally, but i would watch that haha