Improved Consistency a Goal for Mizzou's Blake Craig During Spring Practice

Despite the goal for consistency in that area, some things aren't changing. For Craig, he has a strict process that he endures to prepare for a kick. That hasn't changed a bit and won't, until it stops working.

That preparation occurs outside of practice and games, as well. It doesn't require a football or another person to hold it for him, either. All he needs is himself to sit down, relax and think about the task at hand.

“I like to call it a visualization,” Craig said. “It's something that I do. Either I can do it in bed, before I go to bed and just kind of close my eyes and think about it, or I can kind of go out on the field here and step it out and visualize it.”

Craig is only a sophomore and still has a ways to go when it comes to maturation, but he has started to show signs of it. Now that he's experienced a full season as a kicker along with the ups and downs that come with it, the young Tiger kicker knows how to deal with the good and the bad.

It's evident that the mental side of kicking is something Craig prioritizes, which is shown by his visualization process. Knowing how to handle high-pressure situations, makes and misses have improved now that he has that exact experience.

“I’ve grown up. I've dealt with those situations and just having that year under my belt is obviously important,” Craig said. “But I will say that my mental game is just something that I focus on every day, like I go through a lot of mental reps and I think that that is very important for me.”

Last year, Craig was one of three kickers on the roster. He had a freshman and a junior in the room with him, but still propelled himself to the front of the group. Now, Craig is the standard for the kicking room in Missouri and will look to be a mentor for anyone else that joins the position group.

“I would say that not having someone older than you is a little bit different,” Craig said. “I’m gonna step into that leadership role, and we have, we have a couple of young guys that I want to take kind of under my wing and show them, the right way to do things. And I think that's important.”

Craig has the rest of the offseason to continue to improve in the areas he needs to. If he can find a consistent stretch from those spots he was turbulent in last season, Craig will continue to be a relied upon option for head coach Eli Drinkwitz and the Tigers.