Nottingham’s Adams emerges as NFL punter prospect
Growing up, Stephen Adams used to kick footballs for fun on the sidelines during Nottingham games. Longtime Northstars coach Jon Adams eventually pressed his son into punting action for about 10 minutes at the start of practices when he played on the team in high school, but strictly as a backup.
Neither foresaw it being his niche in the sport, and Adams was recruited to play quarterback in college.
Little did he know that years later, he would become one of the nation’s best Division III punters at Delaware Valley University.
“It was one of those things that was always there, but I just never wanted to do it because I wanted to be the quarterback; I wanted to be the receiver; I wanted to be a guy scoring touchdowns and kind of get that glory a little bit,” Adams said. “But when I got to college and I was really given this spot and given this chance to play at a great school like DelVal, I had to take it more seriously. And seeing how involved the position really was, even though it’s not that sexy position of quarterback or receiver, it was really my thing to take away and run away with, and as soon as I started to learn it and get the technique down and see myself having success, it really was just an eye-opener for me and it ended up just kind of becoming my thing.”
With emerging NFL prospects, Adams is set to officially sign with agent Jake Presser on Wednesday. The two made a connection through Don Povia of Transition Sports Entertainment, another Nottingham graduate, in January at the College Gridiron Showcase in Fort Worth, Texas.
One of few Division III players selected to participate, Adams knew his dream of going pro was possible through the feedback he received.
“It ended up being a really successful event for me. I did really well,” Adams said. “As soon as Jake kind of got that information from scouts that he knows personally who were there, him and I decided that we were going to start working together. It’s just been a really cool experience for me so far.”
With an eye toward performing at Villanova Pro Day in late March, Adams has begun working with kicking coach Luke Gaddis of One On One Kicking. The renowned camp’s founder is Mike McCabe — a longtime mentor to both punters in this year’s Super Bowl, Johnny Hekker and Ryan Allen.
Adams also trains with Doc Strong Fitness at Body Dynamics Fitness Center near Philadelphia. ‘Doc’ also trained former Delaware Valley player Rasheed Bailey, who recently signed a Canadian Football League contract and had stints with five different NFL teams including the Eagles.
“For me it was a nobrainer to start working out with him,” Adams said. “Within the first three weeks of training with him I’m already starting to see some tremendous results in my body and starting to see some results on the field. So I know when we keep pushing ourselves these next couple months, I can’t imagine where I’m going to be.”
Each week, Adams punts for four days and lifts weights for three days. He wakes up at 6 a.m. and eats five low-fat meals daily: two breakfasts, two lunches and a large dinner.
“It’s very strict, but it’s something I’ve always wanted to do,” Adams said. “I just haven’t had that right guidance, that right knowledge I guess if you will to really understand what I needed to do for my body.”
Playing catch-up is a challenge Adams embraced throughout his college career.
Beginning at Albright College in 2014, Adams switched from quarterback to receiver because of his low standing on the depth chart. He suffered a concussion in August, took a medical redshirt and transferred to Delaware Valley in January 2015.
Adams impressed in a training camp punting competition with the Aggies that summer and used that as his opportunity for playing time.
“I didn’t have a coach my first year, so I was learning through videos online, just watching guys on TV, trying to pick up pointers here and there where I could,” he said. “We finally got a kicking coach, Steve Hellings, my sophomore year. That was more my developmental year where I went through the struggles of really understanding the position and trying to be technically sound.”
His best season was in 2017 as a junior, when Adams averaged 40.5 yards per punt in 13 games as Delaware Valley advanced to the national quarterfinals. He earned an honorable mention on d3football. com’s All-America team and first-team honors on the AllEast Region team.
“I think now with the stuff that I’m being introduced to today, I’m becoming more technically sound, getting my stuff down, really understanding the position entirely as I keep going along,” he said. “It’s still an uphill battle for me, it’s still a process. Obviously I’m a little behind these guys because of the fact that I started so late and I was introduced to the right technique so late, but I think I’m piecing it all together very well. I think this extra time preparing for the Pro Day and for private workouts and all that is just beneficial for me, because it gives me more time to develop these skills. So I’m just going to keep working, keep grinding and stay on top of it the best I can.”
According to ncaa.com, 12 Division III players were on NFL rosters at the start of last season including Giants quarterback Alex Tanney (Monmouth).
Adams hopes to be the next hidden gem at an unheralded, but vital position. Super Bowl LIII featured 14 punts including a record 65-yarder by Hekker for the Rams.
“Some people will say it’s boring and it’s a puntfest and a snoozefest, whatever, but I think those two guys, Ryan Allen and Johnny Hekker, it kind of brings light to the position,” Adams said. “It can change the game. You pin a team back on the 5 (yard line), they’ve got to go 95 (yards) to score. And vice versa, if you hit a shank and you give them good field position, it sets them up to have success. The position is very important and I think the more success that punters have, they’ll get notoriety and people will start to notice … so for me it means the world because it’s just more opportunity for me.”
Adams is also on track to graduate from Delaware Valley this May with a degree in secondary education.
In addition to his NFL training, he’s currently student teaching at Pennbrook Middle School.
“That kind of has been bittersweet for me almost because I had the opportunity to go train with Mike McCabe in Alabama,” Adams said. “He has invited me to come down and work with him, but I obviously wanted to get my degree. I wanted to make sure I solidified my basis outside of football, just in case say it doesn’t pan out for me, it doesn’t work out the way we want it to. I’ve still got that in my back pocket.”