By Greg Bates
Correspondent
MINNEAPOLIS – Lining up for a field goal in front of 110,000 screaming fans at Michigan Stadium can be nerve-racking.
But Emmit Carpenter passed that test with flying colors while kicking for the University of Minnesota football team.
Lining up for a field goal in front of 30 to 40 NFL coaches and scouts can also be a high-pressure situation.
But once again, Carpenter was calm as could be during his Pro Day at the Minnesota football practice field March 27.
Carpenter said he wasn’t nervous kicking in front of what could be one of his future bosses.
Nothing has ever really rattled him – that’s a good trait for a kicker.
“The only thing that you can control is the way you prepare, focusing on your approach to the ball and just actually kicking it and kind of letting the rest of the stuff work itself out,” Carpenter said.
Carpenter, who graduated from Minnesota in December with a degree in supply chain and operations management, is currently living in the Twin Cities.
He’s been training nonstop for the last three months for Pro Day and the NFL Draft.
After a solid four-year career at Minnesota, starting as the placekicker for the final three seasons, Carpenter is preparing for a run at the NFL.
It’s quite amazing what he has accomplished since graduating from Ashwaubenon in 2014.
Carpenter finished his time with the Gophers 53-for-67 (79.1 percent) on field goals, which is the highest conversion percentage in Minnesota history.
He was 21-for-28 from beyond 40 yards and missed just one extra point in 118 attempts.
His 276 points rank him second all-time in school history.
Carpenter also has the third-longest made field goal in program lore at 53 yards – hitting that distance twice.
He isn’t quite sure how many of his dozen attempted kicks he converted at his Pro Day, but he does remember showing off his exceptional leg strength by connecting on a 58-yarder.
“The whole thing was a blur just because I was locked in and excited,” said Carpenter. “We were bouncing around to different spots on the field and I think we kicked about 12 field goals. Then we did some kickoffs and he put me through a few drills at the end.”
Carpenter thinks he showed the NFL representatives in attendance how sound of a kicker he is.
“I think one of the most important things to show them is that you can consistently kick the same ball over and over again,” Carpenter said. “Showing that repeatability is really important in the NFL because there’s a lot of people out there that have really strong legs, but the consistency aspect isn’t there. The coaches want to see you kick the same ball every time, that has the same rotation and the same ball flight. Being able to show the consistency and then also be able to back up and kick some deeper field goals in front of people is definitely a good experience.”
Carpenter is one of the top kickers in the draft, getting rated No. 6 by CBS Sports.
He is at No. 7 according to Walter Football, which has him either getting selected in the seventh round or going undrafted.
Carpenter said he and his agent have spoken to a number of teams, but it’s hard to gauge interest.
“There are some teams out there that are showing a lot of interest, but with three weeks left until the draft, there’s a lot that can change,” said Carpenter. “Even on that last day of the draft when most of the kickers go, whether it’s in a late round or if you go as an undrafted free agent, there are a lot of things that can change in the course of a few hours. I’m kind of telling myself to not expect much, but really then just keep my hopes up for something exciting to happen. We’re staying hopeful that I land somewhere, but at the end of the day, if nothing happens, I can hang my hat and say that I gave it a really good shot and I worked hard for a long time. I gave it my best effort and if it doesn’t work out, it doesn’t work out, and I’ll have no regrets.”
With just about three weeks remaining until the draft, which runs April 25-27, Carpenter will be sticking to a strict training regimen that he’s followed for the last three months.
“I’ve put together a good schedule for kicking,” Carpenter said. “I’ve worked with some coaches and put together a really good schedule for strength and conditioning. In terms of all that, nothing’s going to change. I’m going to stay with my schedule of working out six days a week and staying focused on my diet and kicking and making sure I recover.”
Carpenter didn’t become a kicker until he was a freshman in high school and earned the starting job as a junior at Ashwaubenon.
He’s come a long way as a kicker in the last six-plus years.
The 23-year-old knows his dream of playing professional football could become a reality soon.
“I’m not going to lie, I always thought that would be as a starting quarterback, wide receiver or something cool like that, but the way things worked out is pretty cool,” said Carpenter. “If I could have a conversation with my 16-year-old self in high school and tell him where I’m at right now, I think he’d be pretty proud of me.”