From cents to sense in the CFL
KAMLOOPS — It’s one of those stories that seems believable — given the time of year — but is also embellished as the years go by.
Five days before Christmas during the 2009 NFL season, Ricky Schmitt was broke. He had auditioned eight times as a kicker for six teams. All turned him down. The tale associated with the 28-yearold former soccer player was that he had $11 in his bank account. It turns out that, indeed, was a bit of a stretch.
“I was actually down to 23 cents. True story,” the new import punter for the B.C. Lions said. “It really was, ‘Oh crap, what am I going to do?’ You give up a lot of time and sacrifice a lot, but if it’s your dream and (you) love it enough you don’t give it up for anything.”
An understanding fiancée and phone call from the San Francisco 49ers saved Schmitt from financial ruin and a possible full-time career as a substitute teacher that year.
And though Schmitt has only played that one NFL game, it enabled him to avoid going into arrears and keep him in the game long enough. Though it is generally contrary to form in the CFL, the Saskatchewan Roughriders elected to tinker with their import ratio and signed Schmitt two seasons ago, and his work made him attractive to the Lions this year.
It is also not a stretch to suggest that signing Schmitt as a free agent represented the Lions’ biggest catch of the winter, at least as big as the contracts to acquire Kevin Glenn or Khalif Mitchell.
Nothing will be validated in the first pre-season game for the Lions when they travel to face the Edmonton Eskimos, given the number of regulars being left behind. Field position will, however, be measurable. That’s where the new punter becomes part of the Lions’ new math.
“It’s huge,” said special teams co-ordinator Chuck McMann, who hasn’t had a player signed for his unit since 2006 when Paul McCallum was punted by the Riders, nor an import kicker since 2003 when Wally Buono signed Curtis Head.
“Ricky will give us distance and that will make the guys job so much easier. I’m hoping we have some guys in there with some renewed energy. With Ricky it’s going to make my job less stressful.”
Schmitt’s punting, in the estimation of the Lions, will require opponents to make at least another first down per possession while becoming less reliant on the 44-year-old McCallum.
There’s a place with the Lions for sophomore Steven Shott, provided he agrees to a practice roster position for added grooming. Schmitt will start, but Shott will get the majority of work against the Eskimos.
Though McCallum remains a career 80-per-cent kicker on field goals, the Lions were practically doormats when it came to giving up net yards on punts and kickoffs last year and had to do something.
Directional kicking isn’t a needed component of an NFL resume, and there were concerns with the Lions that Schmitt’s leg isn’t suited for the CFL, considering he had 13 singles last year in Saskatchewan. Too many deep kicks give opponents better field position if the ball is unreturned and placed on the 35-yard line. Too many kicks with big hang time can hurt when not executed properly,
But McMann and the Lions are comfortable that Schmitt can adapt to the directional kicking game made famous for years by McCallum, whose perfect punt was a cue shot that bounced out of bounds inside the 10-yard line.
In Saskatchewan, the Riders pushed back the opposition nearly 10 yards further per possession for a good portion of last season because of Schmitt’s punting, which could also result in milestone statistical performances this year from the likes of Rolly Lumbala and Jason Arakgi on special teams.
Besides, for the first time in a long awhile, Schmitt feels wanted, which is not something he could say in a professional sense before coming to the Riders late in the 2012 season.
“You kind of knew (in the NFL) you were only there to get film but I would never have changed a thing. You were there to learn,” said Schmitt, whose only game with the 49ers was played alongside Mitchell, a fellow native of Virginia Beach, Va.
“But being here, I couldn’t ask for a better place. The coaches are amazing. And they’re hungry.”
Schmitt also has a lot more than two dimes to rub together in search of football table scraps.