2026 UDFA Thread.





JM: You’ve made terrific strides. Talk to me about balancing accuracy with leg strength? You're very accurate within 40 yards and you also have 12 career field goals from 50 yards or further.

Drew Stevens: I wasn’t always this big and physical enough to make those kicks from distance. Again, building that leg strength, the credit goes to Iowa’s strength and conditioning staff. I think I came in at 167 pounds. That was my first weigh-in at Iowa.

As I sit here in Iowa now, I’m 215 pounds. I put on a lot of good weight. My kicking coach always said I can put on as much weight as I’d like as long as I don’t get fat or slow (laughs). The weight gain was the easier part for me.

I was always a big-leg kicker, regardless of my weight. I was always classified in that big-leg kicker category. I’ve always been working on finding that accuracy component. Obviously you have a lot of wind and weather elements at Iowa.

The conditions make kicking at Iowa a more difficult task. I’ve always had the right attitude. As long as you’re mentally strong enough, it should make you better. You just have to keep repping it in those elements.

Sometimes, a kick doesn’t fly in the cold. It might fly further in warm weather. I have high aim. That makes me unique compared to most kickers. I think that made me a more accurate kicker.

JM: Building on that, what about balancing physical skills with mental traits? Kicking feels like a mental game more than anything sometimes.

Drew Stevens: In terms of balancing physical traits with mental ones, I honestly think the physical stuff comes easier. It’s definitely easier than the mental. The mental aspect, there’s so many different directions that can go in.

I credit my mental toughness to coach Levar Woods. He’s a special teams coach. He’s not a specialist coach. He didn’t specialize in kicking specifically. He understands schemes and coverage at a high level. I think he’s probably the best in the nation in that department.

I credit my mental toughness to Coach Woods. He was like my second dad. He was definitely my father figure at Iowa (laughs). If I had a bad day, he lifted me up. If I’m having a good day, he’ll make sure I don’t get too high on myself either (laughs).

He made me so much better from a mental standpoint. I could always get into more detail and offer specific examples, and I’ve been discussing those things with NFL teams.

JM: Having that mental toughness will take you a long way at the next level. You were one of few specialists invited to the NFL Combine. That’s a huge honor. What's that experience like for a kicker?

Drew Stevens: I loved being there with so many high-level prospects in this draft class. The other positional players, the relatability aspect of it, it was such a fun environment. It’s like putting a chemical engineer in a room with another chemical engineer. It was so much fun to be in their presence.






www.si.com

Drew Stevens Makes Strong Case As NFL Draft's Most Valuable Kicker

Iowa kicker Drew Stevens is among the best specialists in the 2026 NFL Draft. The reliable placekicker even earned an invite to the NFL Combine earlier this pre
www.si.com www.si.com
 
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I like the competition but id be lying if I said I was more confident in a rookie than i am in moody.

Nothing about this kids resumè impresses me.

Even rookie kickers who were phenomenal in college tend to struggle early.
 
heisenberg said:
I like the competition but id be lying if I said I was more confident in a rookie than i am in moody.

Nothing about this kids resumè impresses me.

Even rookie kickers who were phenomenal in college tend to struggle early.
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58.

Also cold weather not as easy to kick, 4 of 6 at 50 plus last season, and decent for most of his career post 50. If I recall Moody struggles post 50.
 
skinsinparadise said:
58.

Also cold weather not as easy to kick, 4 of 6 at 50 plus last season, and decent for most of his career post 50. If I recall Moody struggles post 50.
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Moody started his career solid then hit the shits and the niners released him but that release might have lit a fire because he was 90 percent with the bears and 90 percent with us with a long of 56.

Moody was a highly touted 3rd round pick coming out of college and now looks like he might be starting to live up to his billing.

Im not against competition but I like moodys chances of being our guy long term is all.
 
Faithful Fan said:
Moody isn’t the best from 50+ yards, but he has the range. In college, he was 4 for 10 with a long of 59. In the NFL, he is 8 for 14 with long of 57. Last year, he was 2 for 2 with a long of 56.
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I am aware of who Moody is and his track record. But tough for me to yawn the idea that Stevens longest field goal was 58 when Moody's best in the pros was 57.

I am ok with Moody being the guy but I don't see the competition as some irrelevant nothing burger.
 
I've been wanting competition at kicker for years. Moody hasn't proven enough to be entrusted with the job. Let him win it. Heck, bring in the best UFL kicker, too!
 
burgold said:
I've been wanting competition at kicker for years. Moody hasn't proven enough to be entrusted with the job. Let him win it. Heck, bring in the best UFL kicker, too!
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there are a couple...but they are no Brandon Aubrey or Jake Bates or even the thiccer kicker.
 
prodigy said:
lol I like that name
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It is a great name and a great story. I can't take any credit for the nickname, I saw it in an article. Rooting for that guy to stick in the league. What a journey. He was rudderless in Japan in his late 20s, his dad paid for a trip to the US for him to clear his head, he ends up watching a football game out of curiosity, fell in love with the game and decided he needed to be a player, went home and watched kickers on youtube, sent a mixtape to every school in the country, was offered to walk on at a tiny JC, spent 2 years there, then transferred to UH. Now he's in an NFL training camp with a legit shot to win a job. Unreal.
 
skinsinparadise said:
I am aware of who Moody is and his track record. But tough for me to yawn the idea that Stevens longest field goal was 58 when Moody's best in the pros was 57.

I am ok with Moody being the guy but I don't see the competition as some irrelevant nothing burger.
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It isn’t hitting from 58 that gives Stevens the edge, Moody has the Michigan record of 59. That said, I could see thinking Stevens has a bigger leg because he hit 12 from 50+, Moody didn’t do that. But ultimately it looks like they’re both 80% kickers with similar range.

I would love to find the next Brandon Aubrey who can hit from 70 and makes 50 look easy, I do think that’s the future standard for NFL kickers. Maybe Stevens is more likely to reach that level, but I do worry that rookie kickers often struggle for a few years before finding success.

That’s what happened with Moody; he never lived up to the expectations of a high draft pick in San Francisco, but broke out of his slump and put together a good year last season. We’ve watched kickers struggle here and go on to success elsewhere, how nice would it be to see a kicker find his rhythm with us for a change?

As I’ve said, I like Moody but welcome the competition from Stevens. They look comparable to me, in which case I would favor the veteran, but it would be interesting to see them both kick from 60+.
 
Faithful Fan said:
It isn’t hitting from 58 that gives Stevens the edge, Moody has the Michigan record of 59. That said, I could see thinking Stevens has a bigger leg because he hit 12 from 50+, Moody didn’t do that. But ultimately it looks like they’re both 80% kickers with similar range.

I would love to find the next Brandon Aubrey who can hit from 70 and makes 50 look easy, I do think that’s the future standard for NFL kickers. Maybe Stevens is more likely to reach that level, but I do worry that rookie kickers often struggle for a few years before finding success.

That’s what happened with Moody; he never lived up to the expectations of a high draft pick in San Francisco, but broke out of his slump and put together a good year last season. We’ve watched kickers struggle here and go on to success elsewhere, how nice would it be to see a kicker find his rhythm with us for a change?

As I’ve said, I like Moody but welcome the competition from Stevens. They look comparable to me, in which case I would favor the veteran, but it would be interesting to see them both kick from 60+.
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This is exactly where my mind is at with this, I welcome the competition but we finally have a chance to be on the right side of when a kicker gets his head straight.

But if Steven's is the guy straight out of college like tucker was I'd welcome that too, i just have less confidence in it is all.
 
RedWolf said:
Who and what position?
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Ashton Ngo

2025 (REDSHIRT SENIOR): Served as the long snapper in all 12 games … Helped kicker Scott Starzyk make 14 of his 18 field goal attempts and all 47 point-after attempts … Tallied one tackle … Saw action in the regular season finale against Missouri (Nov.
arkansasrazorbacks.com arkansasrazorbacks.com
 
Likely just need a LS for the rookie minicamp, since they’re trying out a kicker. Not like our veteran LS is gonna be there. Although he’s getting quite old
 
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