Top 25 kicking specialists in Texas high school football entering 2024

Who are the top kickers and punters in the state for this upcoming season?

The Woodlands kicker Scott Starzyk, the 2025 top high school kicking prospect in Texas. / Photo by Rob August, SBLive

It’s nearly go time for the 2024 Texas high school football season.

In the lead-up to Week 1 (beginning Aug. 29), SBLive is taking a position-by-position look at the top returning players across the state.

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We’ve already identified the top quarterbacks, running backs, wide receivers, tight ends, offensive linemen, defensive linemen, linebackers, cornerbacks and safeties returning to Texas this fall.

Now, we shift our focus to the kicking specialists, both kickers and punters. Who are some of the top players in that category entering the 2024 season?

We have narrowed it down to the 25 best players, based on past impact and contribution toward team success. Dive into the names below.

TOP 25 KICKING SPECIALISTS RETURNING IN TEXAS

This list is in alphabetical order.

Clay Addison, Flour Bluff, sr.

Measurables: 6-2, 180 | Pos: Punter

Addison proved to be a valuable weapon when it came to flipping the field. Last season, he placed 17 of his punts inside the opponents’ 20-yard line. Addison ended up averaging 39.6 yards per punt, with his longest traveling 61 yards.

Roberto Alvarez, Grand Prairie, sr.

Measurables: 5-7, 155 | Pos: Punter

Alvarez punted a total of 36 times last season, averaging 39.5 yards per attempt as his punts amassed a total of 1,422 yards. His longest punt traveled 58 yards.

Bryan Bazaldua, Waco Connally, sr.

Measurables: 5-10, 180 | Pos: Kicker

Bazaldua returns to a Cadets’ squad that went 8-4 last season, including a perfect 4-0 in district play, and he was named second-team All-District. In the offseason, he has attended specialist camps at Texas, Texas A&M and North Texas.

Brettson Booker, Ridge Point, sr.

Measurables: 5-11, 155 | Pos: Kicker

Booker, in a Week 7 win in 2023, made all six of his PAT attempts and delivered three kickoffs for touchbacks.

Trevor Brooks, Tyler Chapel Hill, sr.

Measurables: 5-10, 183 | Pos: Punter

Brooks may be recognized more for his defensive skills, a linebacker who amassed 131 tackles and 15 sacks last season during the Bulldogs’ run to the 4A DI title game. But don’t overlook his punting abilities, as he averaged 41.9 yards on 27 attempts, with his longest punt traveling 69 yards. Brooks placed nine punts inside the opponents’ 20-yard line as well.

Ty Bush, Boerne, sr.

Measurables: 5-9, 195 | Pos: Punter

Bush punted a total of 20 times, averaging 38 yards per kick, with his longest going for 50 yards. Of those 20 punts, eight of those were placed inside the opposition’s 20.

Jordan Cartwright, Prosper Rock Hill, sr.

Measurables: 6-3, 160 | Pos: Punter/kicker

Cartwright was the winner of the 2024 punt competition put together by the Kohl’s Texas Showcase. Kohl’s Professional Camps also bestowed upon him a five-star rating and is ranked the No. 16 punter in the country.

Bennett Cooper, Houston Christian, sr.

Measurables: 6-0, 170 | Pos: Punter/kicker

Cooper accounted for 66 total points for his team in 2023, going 7-of-9 in field goal attempts and 45-of-47 in extra point attempts. In the Southwest Preparatory Conference championship game, he made both of his field goal tries, covering 32 and 30 yards, and also made all three of his PAT attempts. Cooper also started punting late in the season and of his six punts, none were returned.

Jasper Crain, Hooks, jr.

Measurables: 5-11, 185 | Pos: Punter

Crain averaged 43.8 yards with 16 punts, good enough to make the top 10 in the state for punting average in all levels. His longest punt traveled 62 yards and nine times, he placed punts inside the opponents’ 20-yard line.

Justin Dewers, Plano Prestonwood Christian, sr.

Measurables: 6-3, 185 | Pos: Punter/kicker

Dewers was the Texas Fall Camp Kickoff Champion in 2023 in a national camp put together by renowned kicking guru Chris Sailer. Dewers, who was given a five-star rating by Sailer, was also ranked first in the Class of 2025 for kickoffs at Kohl’s Fall Texas Camp.

Vincent Discon, Cypress Bridgeland, sr.

Measurables: 6-4, 213 | Pos: Punter

Discon, who also plays on the defensive line was selected as a first-team All-District punter last season. He punted 24 times for a total of 1,012 yards, averaging 42.2 yards per kick, with a long of 61 yards. Five of Discon’s punts landed inside the 20.

Diego Frausto, El Paso Del Valle, sr.

Measurables: 6-3, 225 | Pos: Kicker

Frausto is seeking a repeat performance of his 2023 campaign, in which he went 10-of-11 on field goal attempts. His longest field goal went for 42 yards.

Carson Griffin, Whitney, sr.

Measurables: 6-1, 160 | Pos: Kicker

Griffin was selected as the All-District Kicker of the Year following the 2023 season, a season in which the Wildcats finished 11-2. In the early portion of the season, Griffin kicked a game-winning field goal despite battling an ankle injury. 

Oliver Hautanen, Colleyville Covenant Christian, sr.

Measurables: 6-0, 165 | Pos: Kicker

Hautanen received first-team All-District honors as a kicker, and was also a second-team All-State choice. In one of his team’s win last season, he made all five of his PAT attempts, kicked four touchbacks and even ran a fake punt 90 yards for a touchdown. He has received a five star rating from Kohl’s Professional Camps and is the seventh ranked kicker nationally by that organization.

Roman Hernandez, Fort Worth Chisholm Trail, sr.

Measurables: 5-11, 160 | Pos: Kicker

Hernandez turned in a strong junior season in 2023. He was 7-of-8 in field goals, with a long of 48 yards, and also made all 39 of his PAT attempts.

Noah McGough, Dallas Jesuit, sr.

Measurables: 6-0, 175 | Pos: Kicker

McGough was selected as the District 7-6A Special Teams Player of the Year and was a first-team All-State pick. Chris Sailer Kicking has ranked McGough — who already has received an offer from Duke — No. 24 in the nation.

Roman Morales, Saginaw, sr.

Measurables: 6-0, 185 | Pos: Punter

Morales, who is also the quarterback and passed for nearly 1,500 yards last season, punted 13 times for an average of 26.6 yards with a long of 45 yards.

Brayden Pate, Gilmer, sr.

Measurables: 5-9, 185 | Pos: Kicker

Pate may very well be the best placekicker in East Texas. He converted all 12 of his field goal attempts, with a long of 36 yards, and was 95-of-103 on PAT attempts as the Buckeyes claimed the 4A DII championship. In Gilmer’s regional final win against previously undefeated Carthage, Pate made all four of his field-goal attempts and all five of his PAT tries.

Caden Schluens, Caldwell, sr.

Measurables: 5-10, 150 | Pos: Punter

Schluens averaged 36.9 yards per punt on 16 attempts as a junior. His longest punt traveled 44 yards.

Scott Starzyk, The Woodlands, sr.

Measurables: 5-10, 160 | Pos: Kicker/punter

An Iowa commit, Starzyk has produced stellar numbers both kicking and punting. Last season, he made all four of his field goal attempts (with his longest traveling 49 yards) and went 71-of-74 on PAT tries. Then on punts, he had 29 of those with an average of 39.9 yards, including his longest traveling 60 yards. Starzyk was also the top-ranked kicker in the Class of 2025 by Kohl’s Professional Camps.

Ryder Taylor, Graham, sr.

Measurables: 6-2, 180 | Pos: Punter

Taylor is also a standout baseball player and will be playing collegiately at Seminole State in Oklahoma. On the punting front, Taylor improved his average from his sophomore season, getting 38.3 yards per attempt in 2023, with a long of 43 yards.

Ayden Treadaway, Pearland Dawson, sr.

Measurables: 5-10, 160 | Pos: Kicker/punter

Treadaway has committed to play at Air Force. Last season, he punted 33 times for a total of 1,224 yards, averaging 37.1 yards. His longest punt went for 62 yards and Treadaway placed 10 of his punts inside the 20. Following the season, Treadaway earned second team All-District honors. In a win against city rival Pearland, he made all three of his PAT attempts and placed a punt inside the Oilers’ 5.

Christopher Valenzuela, El Paso, sr.

Measurables: 5-11, 180 | Pos: Punter

Last season, Valenzuela punted a total of 21 times, covering a total of 1,027 yards. That was enough for an impressive average of 48.9 yards per kick. Valenzuela also plays running back, and rushed for 998 yards and 10 TDs as a junior.

Bryce Wallum, Troup, sr.

Measurables: 5-9, 170 | Pos: Kicker

Wallum converted 63 of his 65 PAT attempts and made three of four field goal attempts for a Tiger squad that finished 9-2 in 2023.

Zechariah Washington, Midlothian, sr.

Measurables: 5-11, 175 | Pos: Punter

Washington was a first-team All-District punter last season. He punted 17 times for a total distance of more than 600 yards, and also placed seven of those kicks inside the opponents’ 20. Washington was selected second-team All-District safety last season as well.

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Stay with SBLive's preseason coverage in the lead up to the 2024 Texas high school football season and the start of games on Aug. 29.

Who are the 25 best teams in Texas, regardless of classification or association? Here are the SBLive Preseason Texas Power 25 rankings, as well as the 20 winningest active coaches.

Who are the most underrated teams in the Lone Star State entering the season? We're taking a look by region at the programs poised to out-perform expectations, starting with North Texas, Southeast Texas and Central Texas.

We examined offseason player movement and the 12 transfers that will have the biggest impact in the fall.

Which teams are district favorites? Top sleepers? We're going district-by-district and choosing both, starting with 6A Districts 1-16, 6A Districts 17-32, 5A Division I and 5A Division II.

We're taking a position-by-position look at the top players returning in the Lone Star State this fall, starting with 50 quarterbacks, 70 running backs, 40 wide receivers, 25 tight ends, 25 offensive linemen, 30 cornerbacks, 25 safeties and 45 linebackers.

The Lone Star State is home to many of the country's top prospects. We examined the top 20 committed recruits in the state and where they're headed. And we narrowed down the 25 best uncommitted players in the state — and where they're at in their respective recruitments.

-- Buck Ringgold | buck@scorebooklive.com | @sblivetx