Colton Lichtenberg Commits to Boston College Football; Shores Up Kicking Game

Boston College football took another step towards assessing their kicking situation on Wednesday when they secured the commitment of Colton Lichtenberg.

Lichtenberg, a senior kicker from Savannah Country Day School in Savannah, Georgia, is the first and only kicker to commit to Boston College in the 2015 class. He is the 26th overall commitment to Steve Addazio and his coaching staff.

Boston College knew they were in the market for a kicker way back in the early Fall, and with National Signing Day just weeks away, they finally have a new face to add to the mix for 2015. It would appear that he will join the Eagles for the 2015 season as a preferred walk-on.

So, what do we know of Colton Lichtenberg, asking in light of the fact that most Boston College fans had probably never heard of him before yesterday? His Hudl page certifies that he is 5-foot-10 and can squat 315 pounds. Meanwhile, Lichtenberg’s combine ratings and scouting reports suggest that the Eagles got a good one.

Colton Lichtenberg was rated the tenth-best kicker in the Kohl’s Professional Camps’ kicking and punting division. Before parsing the scouting report, check out his stats, particularly those which would be of importance to us: in 2013, Lichtenberg made 31 of 32 extra points, and in 2014, he connected on all 27, proving that kicking a brown ball through yellow posts from about sixty feet away is not that hard.

Back to the scouting:

"”Showed an extremely strong leg; ball-striking skills were good. Compact powerful leg swing; should be a heavily recruited kicker in the 2015 class. Hit 62 yd FG off the ground in May of 2014. D1 kicker.”Colton Lichtenberg scouting report (Kohl’s Kicking; punctuation edited)"

Boston College Eagles

Boston College is not bringing Lichtenberg into the program so he can sit on the bench: they intend for him to compete, even though he may have “preferred walk-on” status. Walk-ons have gotten scholarships before, so let Colton Lichtenberg come to Boston and see if he can do the job. If he does well, he can advance himself within the program and solve the Eagles’ problem all at the same time.

The kicking situation desperately needs the help. After eight extra-point misses in 2014 and the various and sundry embarrassing moments that resulted, the team is going in a new direction. First, there was a new special teams coordinator hired, and now, there are kicker recruits inbound. There is nothing to be lost by trying someone new.

If Lichtenberg does become “the guy,” the best thing Boston College can do is stick with him and not do the kicker-by-committee thing again. It made no sense in 2014 and would make less in 2015 knowing how horribly it worked then.

We welcome Colton to the Heights.