Michigan State football adds Auburn kicker to compete for starting job

Michigan State football picked up a commitment from Auburn kicker Ben Patton as he comes in to compete for the starting job.

There are a number of position battles to keep an eye on as the Michigan State football season approaches in a couple of weeks, but no one has really been talking about the starting kicker job.

Jack Stone is a freshman who was one of the best kicker recruits in his class and many are hopeful that he will be the future at the position and Stephen Rusnak has the only experience at the position, though he struggled a bit last season.

Matt Coghlin’s departure has left a major void at the position.

But Mel Tucker went out and landed a portal kicker in the form of Ben Patton who hit all four of his 30-plus yard attempts in his career with Auburn. He still has three years of eligibility left and could very well be the future at the position or at least a strong backup option.

Wondering just how impactful this addition might be? Well, here he is in the Iron Bowl last year, nailing a 49-yard field goal in overtime to give Auburn a lead:

I’ll be honest, this addition might mean that the kicking battle in the preseason hasn’t been going as well as Tucker would have liked. Maybe Stone isn’t quite ready and Rusnak didn’t take that next step. I see this addition as a sign that things weren’t going well this preseason.

Still, you have to give it up to Tucker for going out and making a move to ensure that games aren’t going to be lost on field goal and extra point misses.