Emergency Kicker Saves Rush

Jeff Sims
Wednesday April 25, 2012

In the game of football, not matter at what level, the kicker is one of the least respected players on the team….until he is needed.

In the Arena Football League, the same theory applies, if not greater. Think about it. In the AFL, kicking is more difficult than in any other form of football. The goal posts are nine feet wide and the crossbar is 15 feet high as compared to the 18 and a half feet wide with a ten foot high crossbar in the outdoor game.

Picture having to make a game winning kick with few seconds or no time left on the clock and having to kick the ball through these more condensed uprights for a victory. Sometimes, depending on the head coach, this kick can even mean if a guy remains on the team the following week.

Earlier in the week, the Chicago Rush found out that their kicker, Mike Salerno, had sustained an injury and might not have been able to kick in the team's game on Saturday night against the Milwaukee Mustangs.

As a result, the Rush coaching staff tried out several kickers on Friday in the event that Salerno would not be able to give it a go.

After it was determined on Saturday morning that Salerno would not be able to go, enter emergency kicker Nick Setta. Setta graduated from Notre Dame in 2003 having the second highest field goal total in school history having made 46 of 66 field goal attempts.

Setta had last kicked for the CFL's Hamilton Tiger Cats from 2006 to 2009. He led the CFL in his first season with the team in 2006 scoring 167 points. That season, he was named a CFL All-Star.

But he had never kicked in an Arena Football game in his career.

"The difference is the constant warm-up," said Setta about the difference in kicking in the Arena game versus the outdoor game. "A lot of guys are great at just standing and keeping their leg loose. I like to think of myself as being athletic and I always have to be constantly warming up and moving. During timeouts (in the Arena game), you can get on field and do your running. (Salerno) helped me out a lot and let me know what I would need to do for the game."

He didn't know that his first game would come down to his foot to win the game.

With four seconds left in the game, the Rush scored a touchdown on a pass from quarterback Russ Michna to Jared Perry to tie the game against the Mustangs at 61-61.

The game would come down to the foot of Setta, who would need to make the extra point to secure the Chicago victory.

"We were very confident," said Rush head coach Bob McMillen when asked about having the game in the hands of an emergency kicker. "When we had a feeling that Mike wasn't going to play, we had Nick come in and work out. We didn't know until (Saturday) morning that Mike wasn't going to be able to play. He tried to kick and he just wasn't that strong, so we had to go with an emergency kicker. We knew that (Setta) was a good kicker with Notre Dame and was excellent in the CFL, so we had all the confidence in the world in him. I spoke to him before the game and just told him to be perfect. He's played in front of 80,000 people, so I'm sure he could play in front of 8,000 people."

Prior to the final kick, Setta had connected on seven of eight extra points and hit the left upright on a 48 yard field goal attempt. Not bad for a kicker's first arena game.

But nothing has to equal the pressure of having to kick an extra point with a heavy rush coming at you to win a football game. Setta was cool, calm, and collected as he nailed the extra point down the middle to secure the 62-61 victory for the Rush.

When asked what was going through his mind prior to the kick, Setta joked, "God, I have to be to work in the morning!"

Then in all seriousness, he continued, "it is about keeping your head down and doing what you have done your whole life. No more pressure than anything else. You just want to help a bunch of guys that have just given their all for the whole game. It is not just about me. It is about those guys and you want to come through for them because you see how much they care."

"He should be sitting in one of these chairs right now," McMillen said during the team's post-game press conference. "For a kid that comes in his first game and hits a game winning extra point; he was just outstanding."

For a guy that hasn't kicked in a professional football game since 2009, what made him decide to give the arena game a try?

"I love the game (of football)," said Setta. "A lot of people tell you that you're done and this and that. But I knew I wasn't done. It is just hard to show that when you are not kicking for anybody."

After his performance on Saturday against the Mustangs, I would think that a number of coaches will see this performance and wish that they had such a performer on their teams.

"I have been away from it for a little while and it was just a nice experience to come out here and compete more than anything. That opportunity to compete is in me all the time.  That chance to compete is what you are here for. You have to love the competition, or you wouldn't be out here. If someone is out there that wants me to kick the ball (for them), that would be great."

Note: After this was written, the Rush have since reactivated Mike Salerno and have placed Setta on recallable reassignment. If Salerno is unable to kick for the Rush this upcoming weekend against the San Antonio Talons, they can bring back Setta to kick for them.

Not too many teams can say that they have two quality kickers ready to go at a moments notice.

Injury Notes

The Rush had to play this game without a couple of key components on defense.

Linebacker Nekos Brown did not play due to a family emergency and did not make it back in time for the game. Russell Monk was activated for the game and saw limited action in his place.

During the first Milwaukee offensive series, defensive back Vic Hall went hard into the boards and injured his back. He did not return. Having only suited up three defensive backs for the game, the Rush alternated wide receiver Reggie Gray and jack linebacker Kelvin Morris in the DB position for the remainder of the game. Hall's status for next weekend's game is uncertain at this time.

To make things even more scary, Morris went down on a Rush offensive play in the endzone in the second quarter. He went up against two Mustang defenders in an attempt to bring in a pass from Michna. He would get up on his own and return to the game in the second half.

 Let's Go Streakin!!

Morris had his fourth consecutive game in which he has rushed for a touchdown. He took a carry from two yards out to tie the game at 7-7 early in the first quarter.

Wide receiver Reggie Gray was held without a score on Saturday night. This was the first game in Gray's AFL career that he did not score a touchdown.

The Rush are looking to go on another winning streak after losing the previous week in Georgia McMillen hopes this is the start of another streak for his Rush team. "We're 5-1," he said. "We may not have played like a 5-1 team, but we are going to get better."