“I like being the villain,” says Buckeyes kicker Jayden Fielding. “It’s a fun mentality to have.” (Press Pros Feature Photos)
Jayden Fielding’s dependability as a kicker is the most important part of his job. But when he must, he’s not afraid to tackle other responsibilities.
Columbus, OH – Jayden Fielding likes to be feared.
Mostly as a kicker who can break the opponent’s heart. But he has other, lesser-known skills of aggression.
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As a 145-pound high school soccer player, he earned more yellow cards than he can count. He played center back with the responsibility of stopping the opponent’s offensive attack. Those moments often call for more contact than is acceptable.
When Fielding kicks off for No. 1 Ohio State, he occasionally must get physical. At Washington, he got his now 175 pounds in the way of 220-pound Adam Mohammed on a return run that otherwise would have gone beyond midfield.
“He got run over slow, but he got him down,” head coach Ryan Day said. “He might be our leading tackler on kickoff, which is not good, but he passed the toughness test for a kicker.”
Fielding’s soccer instincts took over when he was suddenly face to face with Mohammed. Similar to marking the ball in soccer, Fielding’s job is to stay between the ball and goal line. If the ballcarrier breaks through, it’s Fielding’s job to make the hit as the final line of defense.
“You never expect to make the tackle when you’re running down as the kicker on kickoff because we got the best guys in the country covering,” he said. “Sometimes stuff happens, though, and it’s my job to get in there and fill in the gap and tackle like they do.”
That’s why kickers go to the weight room and do all the same strength and agility drills the other players do. That training allowed Fielding to get right up even though he got the worst of the contact when he got in Mohammed’s way.
“The guys came around me a little bit more, which is fun, but they did give me a hard time about the tackling form,” he said.
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Fielding’s mom had a different perspective on him sacrificing his body for the team.
“She told me to get my head out of there so I can have a brain after football,” he said.
While Fielding shows physical toughness on kickoffs, his mental toughness on field goals is what his team counts on the most.
Fielding has made all four of his field-goal attempts this season and is 33 for 41 in his career. When the Buckeyes needed to put last year’s national championship game out of reach, Fielding’s field goal did the job.
Making pressure kicks comes with the right kind of practice. There are times at practice when Fielding must make a field goal before the team can progress to the next stage or avoid an extra set of sprints.
“Consequences,” Fielding said and nodded his head in agreement. “If there’s consequences on it, there’s heightened stakes. I guess you could say it makes it more game like. It’s nice to have that opportunity in practice, so it’s not the first time it comes up when it happens in a game.”
Day has seen enough from Fielding in practice and in games to trust his kicker in pressure situations. Whether a game comes down to Fielding’s right leg or not, Day has confidence in calling for the kick.
“He keeps answering the call and proving that we can trust him in big moments,” Day said. “That’s what this is all about is earning trust every day, and he’s doing that with his teammates. At some point this season, it’s going to come down to one point, one play, and we’re going to need him.”
Fielding’s preparation is more than repetition and execution under pressure. He’s learned to assess the wind at outdoor games and make adjustments.
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The swirling winds inside Ohio Stadium make it as difficult a place to kick as any he’s played in. The wind comes in around the ends of the south stands. So he watches the flags around the stadium.
Sometimes the flags on either side are blowing toward each other, sometimes away from each other. And, according to Fielding, the direction can change about every four minutes.
“I pay attention to the wind as a kicker a lot during the game,” he said. “I learned a lot from Noah Ruggles. You just kind of notice stuff like that.”
Fielding said the wind on the practice field is similar because of the buildings that surround it. That’s helpful when practicing long kicks. He said lining up a kick in any wind is like choosing where to aim a golf shot.
“When you’re hitting your driver and you see a five mile an hour right to left wind, you’re going to aim more right just to keep it in the middle of the fairway,” he said. “It’s the same thing, just like trying to hit the fairway in golf.”
The pressure moments of the job suit Fielding. Maybe not his mom, who told him she almost threw up the first time he kicked off in a college game in 2022 against Notre Dame. She still gets nervous, but she’s handling it better.
For Fielding, especially on the road, he likes being the guy the opponents fear.
“I like being the villain,” he said. “It’s a fun mentality to have.”
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