Texas A&M punter and Walsh Jesuit High School graduate Drew Kaser spent Saturday nervously watching the third and final day of NFL Draft with about 55 friends and relatives at his parents’ house in Strongsville.
The fifth round was nearing an end and Kaser still hadn’t received word about whether his dream to be drafted would come to fruition.
“My phone was like a ghost town all day,” he said Monday during an interview with the Beacon Journal. “I wasn’t getting texts, calls, nothing from any teams, and then all of a sudden, I got a phone call from a California number.”
The San Diego Chargers dialed Kaser to tell him they would draft him in the sixth round (No. 179 overall). General Manager Tom Telesco and coach Mike McCoy hopped on the line to congratulate him.
Kaser conceded he “lost it” during the conversation.
“There were a lot of tears. I was really emotional,” he said. “I was so ecstatic. I could hardly keep it together, and they’re trying to talk to me and tell me I’m drafted. I’m trying to hold it together. It was so hard because it was a lifelong dream to do this and be in the NFL, and then to get that phone call and to have all my family and friends there to celebrate it with me, it was such an amazing moment. That’s a moment that I will always remember for the rest of my life, and I couldn’t be happier with how everything went down.”
Kaser’s hard work and sacrifice paid off. Not only did he become the first of three punters drafted, but he also believes the Chargers are a perfect fit for him.
Weather is vital for punters, so Kaser is delighted about the conditions in which he’ll play in San Diego.
One his best friends, Mike Lambo, is the Chargers’ kicker. They spent three seasons together at Texas A&M.
Three other members of the team’s 2016 draft class have ties to Ohio: University of Akron linebacker Jatavis Brown, Ohio State defensive end Joey Bosa and Ohio State linebacker Joshua Perry.
Kaser hit it off with fellow Ohioan and Chargers special teams coordinator Craig Aukerman, a University of Findlay graduate, when the coach visited Texas A&M for a couple of days during the pre-draft process to work him out and take him to dinner.
And there’s a bonus — Kaser will be home for Christmas because the Chargers will visit the Browns on Dec. 24.
But Kaser knows his journey has just begun, especially because he’ll be replacing the most prolific punter in Chargers history who spent the past 13 seasons with the team. The organization released Mike Scifres on Monday. His 45.2-yard career punting average ranks first on the Chargers’ all-time list and 14th in NFL history.
“Scifres is an amazing punter,” Kaser said. “I mean, he’s been there for 13 years, and he’s been one of the top, if not the top punter in Chargers history. So going in there and following in his footsteps, there’s going to be huge shoes to fill, but I’m looking forward to the challenge. I’m looking forward to going there and being the best punter that I can possibly be.”
Kaser is also eager to monitor the careers of his former Walsh Jesuit teammates who entered the NFL with him this past weekend. Michigan State quarterback Connor Cook was drafted by the Oakland Raiders in the fourth round (No. 100 overall). Duke kicker Ross Martin and Harvard offensive lineman Adam Redmond signed with the New York Jets and Indianapolis Colts, respectively, as undrafted free agents.
“It’s an amazing accomplishment for four guys in one year from the same high school to get drafted or sign with a team,” Kaser said. “I think it just speaks a lot of our program at Walsh. It speaks a lot of what [retired football] coach [Gerry] Rardin and all the other coaches have done over there. It’s such a cool thing to have four high school teammates make it in one year.”
Nate Ulrich can be reached at nulrich@thebeaconjournal.com. Read the Browns blog at www.ohio.com/browns. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/NateUlrichABJ and on Facebook www.facebook.com/abj.sports.