Huskies Don't Want to Kick This Habit — Gross Who Makes Everything
If Michael Penix Jr. is the most relaxed, cool-under-fire University of Washington football player, Grady Gross must be a close second.
Through nine games as the Huskies' newest place-kicker, Gross has been virtually unflappable and near perfect as a replacement for the record-setting Peyton Henry.
Gracefully handling a position that has flatlined more confidence and psyche levels than any kicker would care to admit, the 5-foot-11, 209-pound sophomore from Scottsdale, Arizona, was at his best on Saturday night when he stepped up against USC and kicked a go-ahead, 43-yard field goal in the Huskies' 52-42 victory at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
"I hit it well," Gross said. "I was aiming pretty much straightforward, so it went little right of center. I was a little nervous at first, but it stayed true and the ball flight stayed straight, so it was good."
Entering Saturday's game against 13th-ranked Utah (7-2 overall, 4-2 Pac-12), the Huskies kicker has converted 8 of 9 field goals and all 46 of his extra points. His lone miss was his first three-point attempt of the season, a 33-yarder against Tulsa.
Asked how he's been so unfailingly productive for the fifth-ranked and unbeaten Huskies (9-0, 6-0), Gross points to his high school team. In the Phoenix suburbs, he kicked for Horizon High, which also answers to the Huskies and won a 5A state championship. He was 12-for-15 on field goals and perfect on all 68 extra-point attempts as a senior, with a long kick of 52 yards.
"You just keep your mind quiet," Gross said. "Just don't think too much. Got to trust your training. Your body knows it better than your mind. Really if you can quiet that up, your body will do it. Don't overdo it or change up anything."
It works for him. He hasn't relied solely on chippies either, with three makes from 41, 43 and 47 yards. He also handles kickoff duties, which means he has to be careful not to overuse his leg during the week.
Before the USC game, Gross walked into the Coliseum alone in his thoughts and dropped down on one knee on the goal line and for the longest time soaked in the atmosphere.
From long snapper Jaden Green to holder Jack McCallister to Gross, the kicking team's timing has been impeccable.
"He's stayed fresh, he's stayed sharp," UW coach Kalen DeBoer said of his place-kicker. "That whole unit, from Jaden to Jack holding to Grady, they're on point. The timing is good. It's quick. The blocking, they believe if they do the rest of it, it will be executed. Grady has just done an awesome job."
Currently a walk-on, though his scholarship situation should change, Gross came to the UW and DeBoer's new coaching staff because it felt like a home away from home.
"The coaches did a great job of creating a family culture," Gross said. "I appreciated that, especially being a couple of states away. I just think the perspective that they held and the knowledge that this would be big-time program going forward definitely made an impact."
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