In other news, Turner tweaked his form
So first, as a reference point, this is what proper kicking form looks like (thank you, Jake Moody):
His kicking leg and left arm aren't visible because his leg is forward, and he's swinging his opposite arm across the body to counter the torque from the kicking motion. I'm no special teams expert but if you watch a video of it, it looks very stable. He's a rock.
This was Turner's form against ECU:
Gah! Kicking leg crossed his body (visible on his left side), left arm leading it, right arm flopping, entire body spinning away from the ball. It's incredibly unstable (like he's offsetting an extreme spin and counterspin); I can't look at it without wincing.
Anyway, here's Turner's form yesterday:
It's not quite Moody, but his kicking leg is more forward and while he's not swinging his left arm as a counterweight, he's not pirouette-ing anymore. He does still follow up by swinging his kicking leg and left arm to his left, it's weird but by that point the ball's away so who cares.
September 10th, 2023 at 11:49 AM ^
Who knows what the story is behind his janky form against ECU.
September 10th, 2023 at 12:46 PM ^
I'm gonna go with first-game jitters. First time he's played for a team as big as Michigan. He likely calmed down from week 1 to 2. That's my best guess.
I do the same thing from time to time when I'm thrust into a bigger spotlight. We all do.
September 10th, 2023 at 1:06 PM ^
Wonder if there will be any jitters at 6:53 EST under the lights in Happy Valley? Jitters in a kicker are bad. Kickers need to be androids, which Moody clearly was.
September 10th, 2023 at 2:08 PM ^
Good news is we play at noon that day
September 10th, 2023 at 11:52 AM ^
Yeah he didn’t tweak his form in one week
September 10th, 2023 at 12:06 PM ^
Well obviously his performance in the ECU game wasn’t part of the plan. Best case, nerves got him to revert to old habits. I hope this doesn’t become a recurring story.
September 10th, 2023 at 12:52 PM ^
And here I was thinking that he had updated his resume. I know that Tuck is working on his.
September 10th, 2023 at 12:56 PM ^
While some improvements only occur over time, small tweaks that have a major impact can take place in a week's time.
We regularly read about pitchers and hitters in baseball who make a small shift that fixes a problem they didn't realize had developed.
September 10th, 2023 at 2:03 PM ^
Exactly.
September 10th, 2023 at 11:53 AM ^
Dragonchild, I do not know you, but I feel like you'd be a great person to know in real life. Not just from this post, but from your posting history. This is just icing on the cake. Were you a former kicker, or just a much better fan than I am?
September 10th, 2023 at 12:03 PM ^
I played soccer for some years — badly. But I did try to learn, so I’ve spent some hours watching tape of kicking form.
September 10th, 2023 at 1:07 PM ^
Bullshit. Admit that you were one of those barefoot FG kickers in the 1980's!
September 10th, 2023 at 11:56 AM ^
The first frame shows him after he hops to the left and the second shows him before he hops to the left. Here's about the same time against ECU. Looks almost identical to the second one.
September 10th, 2023 at 12:05 PM ^
I should’ve embedded video. There’s a significant difference in the motion. Against ECU it’s like his body was spinning out of control, or he was trying to kick a banana (the soccer shot, not the fruit). Yesterday that hair-raising nonsense was way down.
September 10th, 2023 at 11:57 AM ^
I noticed on his XPs that they were straight on and booming. Last week, he had a hook. The guy's a proven kicker. Would like to see a 40+ FG try this coming week, along with 9 or so TDs.
September 10th, 2023 at 12:23 PM ^
Other than an end of half or 2nd-string time, I don't know if BGSU's going to be able to hold this offense to FGs of any distance.
September 10th, 2023 at 3:13 PM ^
Agreed he will get it going. He holds the single season percentage record for Louisville. He will be adequate for us.
September 10th, 2023 at 12:00 PM ^
We are going to need Turner to kick some important kicks for us this year, so I really hope his accuracy is as good as what has been said in the preview. Yesterday his PATs did look much better. Go Blue!
September 10th, 2023 at 12:01 PM ^
Was he just rushing his kicks in the first game? Could just be jitters
September 10th, 2023 at 12:15 PM ^
That’s my guess? When he’s accurate his counterclockwise pirouette is just a weird post-follow-through formality. When he goes into that earlier in the motion, the ball has a wicked sidespin and is prone to fly sideways.
September 10th, 2023 at 12:15 PM ^
i think he'll settle down. extra points are 99% mental. Field goals will be more sporadic but with this offense we shouldn't have to ask him to kick nearly as many as Moody had to kick last year
September 10th, 2023 at 1:01 PM ^
It's the same in baseball.
I was never good at baseball BUT coached by a couple of ex-major league pitchers, I learned to teach Little League players to tuck their non-throwing arm into their body. That's certainly not best for every player but for little kids, it gave them stability.
Also for little kids: no leg kick but a step & throw. Again, it gives them more stability, more control of actually getting the ball over the plate.
September 10th, 2023 at 9:16 PM ^
I take it one of the ex-pitchers wasn't Denny McClain.
September 11th, 2023 at 7:51 AM ^
Nope, though I did work for Peet Meat Packing, whose pension plan McClain had control of.
Anyway, the point is that little kids are more stable throwing without the leg kick.
September 11th, 2023 at 12:02 PM ^
I understand. With Denny in control, I hope everything worked out ok with your pension. Yikes! 😬
September 11th, 2023 at 4:33 PM ^
I was okay. It was a summer job. Part of what put me through the U of M.
But my best friend on the plant floor, a proletariat philosopher who talked about books and introduced me to Bernard Malamud, had to come out of retirement on subsistence wages for his wife and him.
September 10th, 2023 at 1:24 PM ^
Moody up for his first fg attempt as we type....
Yes he's on my fantasy squad.
September 10th, 2023 at 1:25 PM ^
I was expecting this was a post about JT Turner tweaking his foot, only with the typo to "form."
September 10th, 2023 at 1:25 PM ^
Great stuff.
September 10th, 2023 at 2:14 PM ^
I've noticed many baseball pitchers now do a cute little pirouette with their back leg on the follow-through. It's the annoying equivalent of vocal fry. When did this happen and why was I not consulted?
September 10th, 2023 at 2:33 PM ^
mgoblog now has kicking analysis!
September 10th, 2023 at 5:33 PM ^
Oh heavens no. I’m just a poser. I did notice this difference though.
September 10th, 2023 at 2:41 PM ^
Michigan needs to use those 4th and shorts as opportunities for Turner to practice fgs on these big stages that he is not used to