Freshman kicker Kohorst no longshot to make a splash early for Rebels

By Ryan Greene

Tuesday, Aug. 10, 2010 | 2:15 a.m.

In the crop of freshmen that first-year UNLV coach Bobby Hauck was able to round up in just more than six weeks of recruiting, the one player most likely to see the most playing time is the guy who least looks like a college football player.

Listed at 6-foot and 165 pounds, Nolan Kohorst — a dual-threat kicker and punter out of Green Valley High — looks the part of a ball boy.

In fact, he used to be one.

"It's a little weird to think about how far I've come in just three years," he said. "Even last year, I looked up to these guys. These were my idols, my heroes, and now I'm playing right next to them. I mean, Omar (Clayton) is right over there, and I've grown up with him as (UNLV's) quarterback."

Kohorst grew up on UNLV football, claiming to have attended his first game before his first birthday and missed only three games in his 18 years of existence. His father, Keith, was a Rebels offensive lineman from 1981-82 and now serves as the team's optometrist.

For all of last season and part of the 2008 campaign, he was a game-day ball boy at Sam Boyd Stadium, bringing him closer than ever.

What got him deeper into the UNLV program, though, was his thunderbolt of a right leg.

Kohorst was recruited and offered a scholarship by former coach Mike Sanford. Hauck was brought in as Sanford's replacement and arrived on campus Dec. 26. His first call to Kohorst came two days later.

"I had no idea what was going on, who the new coaches were going to be or what they were like," recalled Kohorst, who also had offers from Wyoming and Air Force, along with interest from several other schools. "As soon as I got to talking with them and met them, they came to my house and told me what they were all about.

"I was for sure coming here."

So far, he hardly has disappointed.

"Kicking the ball is a lot like golf or baseball or any lever-arm sports, where some days you hit it a little cleaner than others," Hauck said following Monday morning's three-hour session at Rebel Park. "Two out of three days (into fall camp), he's hit it pretty good."

It's a strong endorsement for Kohorst, who is attempting to make a big impression early by landing both the place-kicking and punting jobs this fall.

Much of his time over the first few days of fall camp has been spent working the chains during 7-on-7 and 11-on-11 team drills. But when the kicking reps do come, he's proven to be more than just competition for returning seniors Ben Jaekle and Brendon Lamers.

The edge that Jaekle and Lamers have on him is experience, which Kohorst is gaining quickly.

What may be his biggest bump in the road came Saturday, as the camp's first practice ended with Kohorst attempting a 43-yard field goal at the end of a two-minute offense drill.

As the snap shot back to the holder, Kohorst took two big steps up to the ball, only to drive it right into the abdomen of defensive back Sidney Hodge, who had shot around the edge for the block.

"It wasn't the first kick I'd ever had blocked, but it was the first kick with a good snap I'd ever had blocked," he joked. "Speed is absolutely the biggest difference. In high school, I'd leave as soon as my holder caught the ball and started to put it down. Here, I'm leaving as soon as I catch the ball out of the corner of my eye. Here, I have to be at it in one or two seconds with my time. In high school, I could be at least three seconds.

"Speed kills out here."

Judging by the learning curve Kohorst has shown in his brief career, it might not take him long to get acclimated.

He played soccer as a freshman at Green Valley before picking up football as a sophomore. The buzz on him grew gradually during his three years as the Gators' go-to boot, especially as a junior when he regularly connected on kicks in the 40- and 50-yard ranges.

"Initially, he's doing a good job and trying to figure out everything it entails," Hauck said. "He's a little more involved in some of the preparation and being immersed in the team as a kicker than maybe he anticipated."

Baseball in the mix, too, for Kohorst

There's a chance that Kohorst could be UNLV's new resident two-sport standout, also.

An All-Southeast Division pitcher at Green Valley, Kohorst has been in talks with new UNLV baseball coach Tim Chambers about a potential spot on his roster this spring.

Hauck, of course, will have the final say in the matter.

"I've had numerous guys do it," Hauck said of athletes who have played other sports in his other coaching stops. "Basically, they have to earn that right."

Hauck said players can earn that right by taking care of academics and football responsibilities first.

Jaekle game for a challenge

If Kohorst wins the kicking job, it would mean he unseated senior Ben Jaekle, a fellow Las Vegas product.

Jaekle spent much of last season recovering from lower-back surgery, attempting just four field goals and six extra points while still handling kickoff duties.

In three seasons, he's 7-of-15 on field-goal tries and 5-of-6 on extra-point attempts.

No one has questioned the strength of the Bonanza High grad's right leg, but accuracy has been an issue for him in recent years.

He suffered an untimely setback a week after spring ball wrapped up, breaking the fibula in his plant leg after slipping on a patch of wet grass during an intramural softball game.

He didn't need surgery, but still is rehabbing and feeling the effects.

"It's just sore," he said. "I don't have all of my strength back to push off yet. It's sore. My achilles is hurting, my heel is hurting. Other than that, everything is feeling pretty good."

Jaekle and graduated senior Kyle Watson had a close friendship, splitting kicking duties during the past two seasons. Jaekle's still getting to know Kohorst, but has no bad blood as the competition is getting set to heat up.

"He's a good kicker, for sure — I'm glad we've got him here," he said. "It's just putting pressure on both of us to kick well. Whoever kicks well in these next couple of weeks, I guess, is going to get the job. It's making me buckle down a little bit. If I kick well, I'm hoping to have the job. If he kicks well, then he deserves it."

Kilgore done

Redshirt freshman offensive lineman Thomas Kilgore, a 6-foot-4, 310-pound Fresno, Calif., native, will not be returning to the gridiron for the Rebels.

After redshirting in 2009, a back injury will keep him from suiting up again.

Hauck said Kilgore will stay on scholarship at UNLV.