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AMES, Iowa — Six misses in Grant Mahoney's last 12 attempts haven't shaken Iowa State coach Paul Rhoads' faith in his place-kicker.
“If I have an opportunity to hit a 50-yard field goal against Nebraska on Saturday morning,” Rhoads said, “I call on (Mahoney) to kick it. And expect for him to hit it well.”
Mahoney had been close to perfect on his first 23 opportunities this season, nailing 14 straight point-after attempts and converting 9 of 11 field-goal tries. One of the missed field- goal attempts was a 57-yarder against North Dakota State.
Things started to sour for Mahoney on Oct. 3 when Kansas State blocked his extra-point try with 32 seconds to play, allowing the Wildcats to escape with a 24-23 victory.
The next week against Kansas, Mahoney missed his first two PAT attempts. Mahoney did kick a 34-yard field goal, but Iowa State went for two points after scoring each of its last three touchdowns against the Jayhawks.
The sophomore from Marion, Iowa, converted all three PATs, as well as a 45-yard field goal, in last Saturday's 24-10 win over Baylor. He also missed field-goal attempts from 50, 35 and 30 yards against the Bears.
Rhoads paused this week at his press conference when a reporter asked, “Where's your kicking game right now?”
“I have to be careful where I place it for the attitude and motivation of our kickers,” he said.
He went on to discuss other aspects of Iowa State's special teams before getting back to the kicking.
“Our field-goal game right now is suspect,” Rhoads said.
He compared Mahoney's recent struggles to a golfer who is “off a hair” with his swing.
“He needs to get back to where his approach is the same, the placement foot is the same, the spot where he hits on his foot is the same,” Rhoads said. “It's no different than any other player.
“You work with him, you get as many reps in practice as you can and you hopefully find a groove.”
Asked if he's considered giving backup Zach Guyer a shot, Rhoads replied, “In my mind, Grant Mahoney is the guy.”
Rhoads said Iowa State also needs to improve its return game. Iowa State's 21-yard average on kickoff returns ranks eighth in the Big 12 and 74th nationally. The Cyclones are 11th in the league and 98th nationally in punt returns with a 5.2-yard average.
“We need more out of our return game in this final five-game stretch if it's going to be part of our football team that contributes to victories,” he said.
Contact the writer:
679-2298, steve.pivovar@owh.com
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