Kickers are godsends for Vikings' special teams

By TRAVIS DOWNEY

Florida Freedom Newspapers
(850) 315-4476 | travisd@nwfdailynews.com

FORT WALTON BEACH - Dylan Hawkins wanted to pinch himself.

It was during a Fort Walton Beach pep rally several weeks ago that Hawkins, a senior kicker, was presented with the team's Most Valuable Player Award for special teams following the Vikings' 35-21 win over rival Choctawhatchee.

"I never saw myself (being) in that situation," Hawkins said of receiving the award.

Truth be told, very few did.

But when the Vikings entered last spring in search of someone - anyone - to fill a glaring void at kicker, it was Hawkins and fellow senior Don David, each members of the Fort Walton Beach soccer team, who came to the rescue, with Hawkins handling the team's kickoffs and David ultimately becoming responsible for extra points and field goal duties.

The pair's important presence on the team has become even more apparent this postseason, where the Vikings (10-1) will play host Friday night to Tallahassee Lincoln (9-3) in the Class 4A regional finals at Steve Riggs Stadium.

"They've been a blessing," Viking coach Mike Owens said. "We were scrambling up ways to go for two."

Instead, the Vikings found the answer to their kicking game quandary in the two, thanks in large part to persuasive skills of senior receiver Will Wamble.

Already close friends with Hawkins and David, Wamble sold the two on the idea of going out for the football team in large part due to a lack of competition.

"I told them, ‘If you come out, you will play because we don't have a kicker at all,' " Wamble recalled with a laugh. "Apparently it worked."

Having elected to give football a try, both Hawkins and David spent the next several months brushing up on the finer points of kicking a football, traveling to various kicking camps around the state before eventually making their way to Tampa to take part in a camp put on by current NFL players Bill and Martin Gramatica.

"They helped us out a lot," David said. "They were awesome, incredible guys."

While most would think kicking a football to come easy to the pair - as Wamble said, "If you can kick one type of ball, I don't see why you can't kick another" - it hasn't been easy.

"Soccer is a lot more freestyle while football is a lot more mechanical," Hawkins said.

Still, no one is arguing with the results.

David has hit on 40-of-43 extra point attempts while connecting on 8-of-10 field goal tries while Hawkins has more than adequately handled kickoff duties.

"It has definitely been a new experience," David said. "It's my first year of football. It's been really awesome being in the program and meeting the guys.

"I feel so lucky to join the team. We've gotten so far, I'm just happy to be part of the experience."