Veterans working on Georgia Tech kicking game

ATLANTA -- One area that has virtually no competition this spring at Georgia Tech involves kicking. There is no question that Harrison Butker will be the place-kicker and Ryan Rodwell will be the punter.

Although his job is safe, Butker is trying to refine his skills this spring.

"Accuracy by far," Butker said. "You have to be accurate. I have the leg strength and I can make the kickoffs, but at the end of the day you have to make the field goals. I'm trying to be as accurate as possible."

Butler, a senior from Atlanta's Westminster School, is a four-year starter. He has enjoyed some record-setting moments during that time, most notably the 53-yard field goal against Georgia in 2014 that sent the game to overtime and led to Georgia Tech's victory.

Butker's sagging numbers in 2015 reflect the drop-off in offense. He kicked 53 extra points as a freshman and 65 as a sophomore, but only 44 as a junior. He is 28-for-43 on field goals during his career, but only 7-for-11 in 2015, which included two misses at Notre Dame.

Rodwell, a senior from DeLand, Florida, averaged 39.3 yards and had eight kicks of 50-plus yards last season. But he punted 45 times, 13 more than the previous season. Rodwell is also the holder on field goals and extra points.

Redshirt freshman Shawn Davis from McDonough is working as the backup place-kicker, and Grant Aasen, a sophomore from Fayetteville, is backing up Rodwell.

DEFENSIVE BACK UPDATE

Competition continues to rage to see who will replace departed seniors D.J. White and Chris Milton in the secondary.

"No spot is set. We're competing every day," junior Corey Griffin said.

Lance Austin, Step Durham, Griffin, Dorian Walker, Jalen Johnson and converted quarterback Christian Campbell are all in the mix. Walker went high to intercept a pass near the goal line during Monday's practice.

"Every day is a new opportunity for everybody," defensive coordinator Ted Roof said. "Doors are wide open right now, so we're going to let it play out."

NOTES

The Yellow Jackets avoided the rain Monday and started their third week of spring practice. There were several highlights during the skeleton passing period. Qua Searcy came up big, catching a long pass from Justin Thomas and making two long touchdown catches over the middle. Harland Howell, vying for time at wide receiver, had a circus catch on a pass from Matthew Jordan. The spring game will be at noon on April 23 and will be preceded by a free concert by the group Laughlin.

This story was originally published April 12, 2016 at 6:06 PM with the headline "Veterans working on Georgia Tech kicking game ."