Spotlight: Kyle Wall and the Perfect Placement

It’s 1:15 p.m. on a Saturday afternoon. Kickoff is at 2:30. The field is empty, lying-in wait, except for one Lancer. Kyle Wall is at midfield with a handful of footballs working on his punting. It’s an overlooked position no doubt, but one that holds significant importance for teams that has had trouble moving the ball downfield. So, Wall takes the responsibility upon himself to be the first one on the field, as he consistently places his warmups within the 5-yard line or in the end zone.

That pregame work is translating to his performance in-game, as his 41.2 yards-per-punt average ranks second in the MASCAC. Wall has been putting in the work throughout his college career, and even before that while he was at Wachusett Regional High School in Holden, Mass. In his underclassmen years, Wall would kick for the Mountaineers as well as hold up positions on both the offensive and defensive lines. However, “by senior year (I) kind of transitioned out of O-line/D-line and just focused on kicking because I knew that with my size that was what I was going to do if I did play in college.”

When Wall did decide to play in college, he chose Worcester State University and went into the field of Biology, sending him on a track that he hopes one day gets him to a career in physical therapy. He knew it would not be easy because “a lot of the classes have labs attached to them which can interfere a lot in terms of timing.” Wall has proven himself to be able to deal with that adversity by managing his time effectively. He encourages everyone to take risks, commenting “I knew it was going to be harder, I knew it was going to be more school, but my gut told me it’s what I wanted to do and it’s what I wanted to do down the road.”

Before he does get down the road, Wall has enjoyed his time as the Punter for the Lancers, a role that he felt comfortable in for the past four seasons. “Freshman year I got lucky. We had just graduated out the previous punter. I heard good things about him and knew I had a good role to fill.” Wall attributes his success to two main training regimens. The first is lifting, which Wall simply loves. Even though the football team is on a strict lifting program, the PT major feels right at home in the gym and it doesn’t take much for coach to get him in there. But Wall also credits his mental preparation as a key factor to his outstanding output on the field. “It’s a lot of mental reps. It’s a lot of kicking but at the same time a lot of reps without the ball. Trying to get locked in so that when it comes to the pressure situation you can fall back on those basics.”

Kyle Wall has become the epitome of a Worcester State University student-athlete, successful on and off the field. He and the football team will take on Plymouth State University at noon this Saturday, defending their home turf in the seventh contest of the season.

by Chris Wright