Bama kicker Tiffin hopes for big year in ‘08

Ken Rogers
Media General News Service
Published: August 6, 2008

TUSCALOOSA — Leigh Tiffin is a soft sell. A student of understatement.

Alabama’s junior placekicker keeps looking down, almost like he’s expecting a ball to be spotted near his thunderous right foot during an interview.

The big talk comes from that foot. It’s why he’s a preseason first-team All-SEC kicker in many national publications.

He didn’t get a vote — and doesn’t care what the magazines say, anyway.

“It doesn’t mean a whole lot right now,” Tiffin shrugged Wednesday, before splitting the uprights in the way of explanation. “I’ve been on both ends of the spectrum as a kicker and I know what can happen throughout a year.”

The junior knows the spectrum is vast. As a freshmen, he was 8-for-16 on field goals and 12-of-13 on PATs appearing in five games after an injury to starter Jamie Christensen.

Rock bottom came against Arkansas, when he missed from 30 yards with three minutes left and from 37 yards in the first overtime. He missed the PAT in the second overtime as Arkansas went on to win 24-23.

Tiffin didn’t break. In fact, he won the job over Christensen in training camp last fall. He responded with 111 points, the most by a kicker in school history. He made 25-of-34 field goals and was 36-for-36 on PATs.

So it’s no surprise that Tiffin says, “I’m just going to take it one week at a time and try to be consistent this year.”

But he’s in a much different — and better — place than he was a year ago. Christensen has graduated. The job is his.

“I’d say I’m probably a lot more confident now than I was then on a lot of different levels,” said Tiffin, who is probably the only one who understands what “a lot of different levels” means.

“But I’m still approaching it the same way,” he said. “Trying to give it my best and improve every day.”

That can be tedious. He spent hours this summer with holder P.J. Fitzgerald and long snapper Brian Selman, working on technique, drilling fundamentals and, not unlike a golfer, grooving his swing.

Asked if last season could have gone much better, Tiffin said, “I didn’t make ’em all ... But, yeah, it ended up pretty well.”

He expects more of himself this year, but has been through the heat of battle enough to never claim victory.

He has seen improvement in his power game.

“I made large improvements on my kickoffs,” said Tiffin, who was asked if he’ll get more kicks into the end zone. “I don’t want to make any predictions, but yeah, I think that’s achievable.”

Like the entire Alabama team, Tiffin said he’s after better consistency this fall.

“I think once you get to a certain level, to a certain degree you’re always going to be fairly consistent,” he said. “You might have slight ups and downs, but not the drastic movements in your game like you would when you’re still a developing player.”

He brightens when asked about opening the season against Clemson in the Georgia Dome.

“I’m excited about it. I think it’s a great opportunity,” Tiffin said. “As far as being a kicker, it’s great conditions. It doesn’t get any better.”

That is several weeks away. In the early days of camp, Tiffin said the field goal unit hasn’t taken shape.

But soon, near the end of a practice, coach Nick Saban will back up the field goal team and tell Tiffin if he makes it, practice is over. If he misses, everybody runs.

“We haven’t done anything like that yet,” he said. “It’s gonna pick up more and more.”

His teammates will be counting on him. He doesn’t plan on letting them down.