Rutgers’ Adam Korsak among new wave of Australian punters in the Big Ten
The conference’s influx of punters from down under can be attributed, in part, to Prokick Australia’s efforts.
Rutgers punter Adam Korsak sits on the set of Big Ten Network during day two of Big Ten Media Days at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Ind., on Tuesday, July 27, 2022. Korsak received questions throughout the day on what it means to be one of three starting punters from Australia in the Big Ten. The event marked the 50th annual Big Ten Media Days.
July 27, 2022
INDIANAPOLIS — Tory Taylor isn’t the Big Ten’s only punter from down under. The 6-foot-4, 230-pound Hawkeye is one of many athletes that have benefitted from the services Prokick Australia provides.
Prokick is a program that helps Aussie specialists hone their skills and connect with America’s college and professional football teams.
Like Taylor, Rutgers punter Adam Korsak came to the U.S. with help from Prokick Australia.
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Korsak, a 2021 second-team All-American, set a new NCAA record for net punting last year, averaging 45.25 yards per boot.
“[In] Australian rules football, to pass the ball, you have to punt it,” Korsak said during a Big Ten Football Media Days press conference Wednesday. “To score, you have to punt it. We have uprights on either end, and to score, you need to put the ball through the uprights off your foot. So, how you might have grown up, or anyone might have grown up throwing a baseball or throwing a football, we grow up punting the ball 20 yards back and forth with our friends or dad or whoever.”
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Korsak said his Australian rules football experience made his transition to American football feel natural.
Prokick Australia took care of all the networking Korsak needed to start the recruiting process. The 6-foot-2, 185-pounder said all he needed to do was kick well enough to capture the attention of the recruiters Prokick Australia connected him with.
“Prokick Australia does all the recruiting, pretty much,” Korsak said. “So, all we have to do is just try to be the best we can be. We get enough film and we try to talk to enough people to where Prokick can put us into a position to try to sell us and try to get us a scholarship.”
The Scarlet Knights were familiar with Prokick before they recruited Korsak. One of the first Prokick athletes to join Rutgers’ roster was Tim Gleeson, who played collegiately from 2012-16.
Rutgers’ current head coach, Greg Schiano, inherited Korsak when he was hired by the Scarlet Knights in 2019.
Schiano said he’s tried to maintain the connections former Rutgers head coaches Kyle Flood and Chris Ash established with Prokick. He added that the skillset athletes acquire playing Australian rules football translates more easily to the college game than the pro levels in the U.S.
“When you look at Australian rules punters, they roll out,” Schiano said. “Your traditional NFL-style punters are stand-up-straight, down-the middle guys. So, I think there’s a big difference. But it fits college football because in college football, the rules allow you to let as many gunners go before the ball is punted. Whereas, in the National Football League, only the two guys on the outside can do that.”
Korsak and Taylor, arguably the two best punters in the conference, are both from Melbourne. The punters from down under are both living about 10,000 miles from their homes.
On Sept. 24, Taylor and Korsak will square off as Iowa and Rutgers play at SHI Stadium in New Jersey.