Indian Land kickers rise to the occasion in football debuts

Indian Land football coach Michael Mayer was concerned all offseason about replacing North-South All-Star placekicker/punter Shea Rodgers, who graduated and will kick in college at Newberry.

Given the Warriors’ soccer program’s success, there was no shortage of strong legs to choose from. But would they be able to handle the pressure of a football game, with 200-pound defensive players bearing down on them and quite a few more people watching from the stands? On Friday, the answer was yes.

Placekicker Matthew Medlock and punter Mason Mullis – who form the backbone of Indian Land’s soccer defense – enjoyed almost perfect debuts. Mullis averaged close to 38 yards per punt, allowing no return yardage, while the left-footed Medlock made 4-of-5 point-after kicks, and most importantly, a last-second 22-yard field goal to beat Buford 39-38.

Rodgers actually helped recruit Medlock and Mullis to take his place. The pair turned out for spring football and worked with Rodgers over the summer: Mullis practiced getting his punting footwork right and Medlock honed his kickoff accuracy. Both admitted they still have work to do in putting on their pads in a timely manner.

“I usually just wear shinguards!” said Medlock.

Mullis said kicking the football shape took some getting used to, but both have played in big-game atmospheres. The pair made All-Area soccer the last two seasons while helping the Warriors to the 2A state title games each of the last three springs.

Friday night was another big occasion – the football rivalry with nearby Buford.

“We had a 15-point lead at half and promptly blew that,” said Mayer, whose club trailed most of the second half before grabbing a 36-35 lead in the fourth quarter.

The Yellow Jackets hit a late field goal with just over a minute left to lead 38-36. Tripp Wells’ team tried to squib the kickoff, but the ball didn’t make it past the first line of Indian Land players. Junior Stephen Cedeno pounced on the loose pigskin.

Starting at midfield with no timeouts, a couple of key passes from sophomore quarterback David Loughry to seniors Dillon Mackey and Chris Blakeney – who got out of bounds to stop the clock each time – moved the Warriors downfield, before Loughry produced a key scramble that got Indian Land down to the 5, where he stepped out with 1.1 seconds left.

“I knew there was a lot riding on it, of course. We’ve never lost to Buford in soccer, and I wasn’t planning on losing that night,” Medlock said on Monday. “I knew everyone wanted to win. But it’s a 20-yard-something field goal, that’s easy, you do that every day in practice. That’s what I kept telling myself.”

Buford unwittingly helped Indian Land with a timeout to try and make Medlock over-think the kick that ended up helping the Warriors. Medlock saw Buford had a two-on-one on the edge of the line, and Mayer said his team was disorganized leading up to the kick.

“‘All right everybody, calm down, this is just like practice,’” Mayer told his team. “‘This is an extra point. Let’s get a good snap.’”

“The timeout was pretty much a benefit,” said Medlock.

After the stoppage, a perfect snap went back to holder Matt Murray and from the left hash mark, Medlock thumped the kick through the goalposts.

“Right after I kicked it, I was like, ‘that’s in,’ and then I ran over here and everyone dog-piled me,” said Medlock. “Probably about 1,000 pounds of linemen.”

“We knew if it crossed the line (of scrimmage) it was going in,” said Mullis, laughing.

This story was originally published September 1, 2015 at 3:27 PM with the headline "Indian Land kickers rise to the occasion in football debuts."