Hopkins Kicker Brengman Gets Leg Up On Competition

Zach Brengman always tries to put his best foot forward as the kicker for the Hopkins Royals. However, unlike most kickers, his foot is a bare one.

Brengman showed his clutch kicking last season when he connected on a 20-yard game winning field goal in a 45-42 overtime win over Shakopee in front of 7,500 fans.

Brengman attended the Alabama and Minnesota football camps and is hoping to continue his kicking career in college.

Patch caught up with Brengman to learn more about his unique college style and summer camp experiences.

Hopkins Patch: You are known as the “Barefoot Kicker.” How did you start that?

Zach Brengman: I played soccer my whole life and from there, I always kicked in my back yard barefoot. I did the punt, pass and kick and I always practiced that barefoot. I’ve worked with it and done very well. 

Hopkins Patch: There used to be several barefoot kicker in the NFL, but now there are no role models for you to follow?

Brengman: There are no barefoot kickers in the NFL, but I think that there are a couple in colleges. There were like four or five in the 80’s, but now you never see it.

Hopkins Patch: Have you tried kicking lately with a shoe on?

Brengman: I am used to it and my foot gets used to it. It gets callused and it doesn’t hurt or anything. 

Hopkins Patch: You were at the Minnesota camp. What other camps have you been able to make?

Brengman: I just got back from Alabama. I’ve gotten a few letters from the Crimson Tide. I drove down there. It was really nice. I did very well.

Hopkins Patch: What was that like?

Brengman: There were a lot of kids, but only a few set kids were from out-of-state. I was probably the farthest one. It was really cool. It was nice to hear from all the coaches and staff. Nick (Coach Saban) was really nice. It was really cool.  

Hopkins Patch: Alabama won the national championship in 2010 and they don’t recruit too many Minnesota kids. That has to make you feel very proud that you were one of the kids picked to attend the camp.

Brengman: Yes, it was. I was really excited to get that first slider and it was really cool being down there. It was a lot of new experiences.  

Hopkins Patch: How did you think that you kicked at the two camps?

Brengman: I did very, very good at the Alabama camp. I hit a lot of deep field goals. I hit a few good 55, 60 yard kickoffs. Here (at Minnesota), I drilled all the first field goals. I missed like two from the hash, but I hit almost all of them. I was pretty happy.

Hopkins Patch: Is that kind of a confidence thing for you? When you start out well, you get in a little bit of a groove.

Brengman: Yes. It is nice when you hit the first few and get some momentum. It helps.

Hopkins Patch: What other schools are you hearing from and what other camps are you planning on attending?

Brengman: I am going to try to go to Iowa, the Dakotas and maybe Michigan. Mostly up around here and try to stay close to home. As many as I can get to, I am going to get to.

Hopkins Patch: Are you doing anything at Hopkins yet team-wise?

Brengman: We started summer camp a few weeks ago. I have only been able to go to one or two days because of Alabama, but I am going to try to get down there every day this week.

Hopkins Patch: What are the expectations for Hopkins this season?

Brengman: We practice all summer every morning for about two hours. We work out, lift, run and get out on the field. Pretty high expectations from our coach.

Hopkins Patch: Have you set any team goals like conference or state?

Brengman: We really want to get to state. We got pretty close last year and failed, but this year, we are going to come out pretty hard and try to go for it.

Hopkins Patch: What types of things are you going to be working on the rest of the summer to improve yourself as a kicker?

Brengman: I am trying to get my field goals deeper and higher with better hang time and more consistency.

Hopkins Patch: Were you the only barefoot kicker at the two camps? Was there anyone else brave enough to try it

Brengman: No, I was the only one. Everyone was asking me all these questions. I was the only one without a shoe on.

Hopkins Patch: Did you like that, though? Was it kind of fun?

Brengman: Yes, it’s nice. I like the publicity, I guess, but it all depends on how you do on the field.

Hopkins Patch: When you kicked at Alabama, did you kick inside or outside?

Brengman: We kicked in the indoor facility. It was really nice, but their stadium is unbelievable. It is huge. It holds like 102,000 fans. It’s crazy. It was beautiful up there.

Hopkins Patch: What is it like to kick at TCF Stadium?

Brengman: It is really cool. I’ve never kicked on an open stadium like this, especially in front of the head coach. It is just a really good experience. I like it. It’s cool. A great feeling.

Hopkins Patch: Have you gone to many kicking camps in the past?

Brengman: I went to the Taylor Melhaff camp, the Ron Zauner camp and I have done a few other camps over the summer. It is nice. One-on-one is also good

Hopkins Patch: Is it hard for the instructors to really teach you since they are not used to barefoot kickers?

Brengman: The technique is all the same. All the steps and the swing. It is just different on the foot.  

Hopkins Patch: Do you learn a lot from those camps?

Brengman: You learn a lot working with those guys. They have been through a lot and teach you really good technique.

Hopkins Patch: What type of things are you working on to improve yourself as a kicker?

Brengman: Right now, I am trying to work on my steps from my kickoffs and get that down, make sure it is good. That is pretty much it. Just practice. 

Hopkins Patch: Hopkins has a high-powered offense, so you actually get a chance to kick a lot.

Brengman: I do a lot of extra points. That is really nice. Get on the field and kickoffs. Field goals, we don’t do too much of. It is nice to be on the field a lot. We have a good team and a lot of good guys. 

Hopkins Patch: You had the game-winning field goal to beat Shakopee. What was that like?

Brengman: That was really nice. It ended their season. They were undefeated. It was the most fans they have ever had. It was just unbelievable. It was pretty cool

Hopkins Patch: Did you sent out some video to schools?

Brengman: I got all my clips together from this past year and a couple from the previous year against Minnetonka, since that was on TV. That was a good game and we won by one point. We sent it out to a friend, who works for Kare-11.