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- As Arkansas-Pine Bluff football prepares for its game against Prairie View tonight, it is prepared to go a different route at kicker.
- With an injury to his starting placekicker, head coach Doc Gamble has turned to the women’s soccer program for relief.
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The University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff football program has run into a predicament on special teams. The Golden Lions don’t have a kicker.
During last week’s game against Alcorn State, UAPB took a 19-point lead into halftime but went on to lose 39-38 on national TV. The kicking game was a major factor in the loss.
Kicker Zach Piwniczka had a PAT blocked in the second quarter and the team was forced to go for it on a late fourth down. While the decision appeared questionable at the time, asking why not attempt a field goal from inside 30 yards, but now we know.
Piwinczka suffered an injury earlier in the game and was unavailable. As head coach Doc Gamble prepares for his team to potentially take the field without Piwinczka tonight, he has made preparations accordingly.
That plan starts with punter Josh Sanchez.
However, as Gamble points out, he is not a placekicker.
“We do have a punter who is outstanding, his name is Josh Sanchez,” he said. “But you know, that’s what he is — he’s a punter. He’s not a placekicker. Both guys are two different guys and as coaches, we gotta put our players in position to be successful.
“Somebody wanted us to run Josh out there to kick a field goal for us (last week),” Gamble said. “Well, if you ever go to one of our practices, Josh is probably like 1-for-50 on field goals, so I couldn’t do him like that.
Thus, in the case that Piwinczka can’t go, he has turned to the soccer field for help. Gamble had some kickers try out from the UAPB soccer team.
The school does not have a men’s team, so Gamble has two female soccer players on standby at the kicker position for this weekend’s game against Prairie View.
“We didn’t have soccer guys — we have soccer girls, “ he said. “It’s two of them that can kick it pretty good. And they actually did it in high school.”
Obviously, Gamble would prefer not to have to go that route. He would rather Piwinczka get cleared and kick, and has spent extra time in practice with Sanchez all week in case he doesn’t.
However, should neither guy be an option, he is prepared to hand the keys to one of two female kickers. While neither of the two would be making history on the Power Five level like Vanderbilt’s Sarah Fuller did last year, it would be pretty cool if they found the uprights tonight.