April 22, 2008

Athens, OH (UWIRE) -- Making the move from a Division I-AA school to a Division I-A school requires a lot more work and training for most athletes. That's not the case for kicker Barrett Way.

Like the other students at Virginia Military Institute, Way was required to join one of the four military institutions. He decided to follow his uncle and join the Air Force ROTC, where he ran through marine obstacle courses and spent weekends in the middle of a forest doing land navigation drills - a far cry from the day-to-day practice activities for kickers and punters at Ohio.

Way no longer has to wear uniforms to class, and in the place of push-ups, sit-ups and weapons inspections, there's homework and a few field-goal attempts.

"It's two different worlds," Way said. "It was a great experience going to a military school, but (VMI) didn't have much success on the football field, so I transferred to (Ohio)."

Not having success is an understatement.

Way, the most accurate field goal kicker in VMI's history (29-for-37 for 78.4 percent), was coming off a 1-10 junior season before he transferred to Ohio. The team was just 4-29 during his three years at the school. The senior kicker wanted to get out of a losing situation and go to a school where he could get more exposure.

With only one year of eligibility left, Way wanted a chance to play, so he started going down football rosters looking for schools with senior kickers.

That brought him to Ohio, which had just brought in Washington transfer Michael Braunstein the previous year and had no other kicker on the roster. After Way met the coaches, saw the facilities and was accepted into the college of business, he decided to come to Ohio.

"I thought stepping in here would be a great opportunity," Way said. "It came down to that I got into the business college here, because I really wanted to be a finance major."

Special teams coach Ross Els believes that Way's experience at VMI will be an asset in the fall.

"This guy's kicked in some pretty big football games," Els said. "He's got the right mental attitude, he knew what he was getting into when he transferred here. ... I think he's prepared himself well."

If Way wins the job, it will be the second straight year that the Bobcats will have a senior transfer kicker coming in with one year of eligibility left.

But with Weller coming, the trend of bringing in one-year starters looks to be coming to an end.

Maybe.

"Who knows?" Els said. "I guarantee you this. These kickers know every kicker across the country and they know every kicker that has a senior kicker and knows what's available when that guy leaves. That's what happened with Barrett and we're fortunate to get him."

Another advantage that Way has is the help of Braunstein.

The former Bobcat kicker spent time working with NFL specialists on the West coast and has worked on different aspects of the kicking game in hopes of making an NFL roster. Braunstein stayed after practice on Friday to help Way and Belany with their field goals and gave them both some tips on getting power behind their kickoffs.

"I set the bar high for him," Braunstein said. "He'll be good."

(C) 2008 The Post via UWIRE