Countdown to Kickoff: 92 days (Griffin Oakes)
/
Written By: Nick Holmes (@HoosierHolmes)
We continue our countdown to kickoff by looking at record holding Hoosiers, current kicker and number 92 Griffin Oakes.
Griffin Oakes
After redshirting his first year at Indiana, the Greenwood native was thrust into action in the Hoosiers' 31-27 upset victory over the SEC West Champion Missouri Tigers. Coach Wilson was pleased with his effort, awarding Oakes with the IU special team player of the week honors and giving him the start the following week against Big Ten East opponent Maryland. In a game of mostly lackluster performances for the Hoosiers, Oakes was one of the few bright spots against the Terrapins. The talented kicker went 3 for 4 on field goals, including a record setting 58-yarder right before halftime. As a result, he was named the Big Ten Special Team's Player of the week.
Overall on the season he connected on 13 of 18 field goal attempts and converted 3 of 4 outside kicks. He was also perfect when kicking PAT's, going 23 for 23. In addition to being named IU's special team player of the week in the game against Missouri, he also received the honor in the Maryland, North Texas, and Purdue games. His outstanding play for the year earned him BTN.com All-Freshman team honorable mention honors.
| Griffin Oakes - Kicker | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | RS Sophomore 5'10''/197 Greenwood, In Greenwood | FGM | FGA | Pct | Lng | XPM | XPA | OKA | OKR |
| 13 | 18 | 72.2 | 58 | 23 | 23 | 3 | 4 | ||
| KO | Avg | TB | 1-19 | 20-29 | 30-39 | 40-49 | 50+ | ||
| 43 | 62.6 | 21 | 0-0 | 3-4 | 6-7 | 3-4 | 1-3 |
Future Outlook
The sophomore-to-be had strong first season for the Hoosiers, as the team was looking to replace one of its most prolific kickers in school history, Mitch Ewald. While not quite as accurate as Ewald, Oakes made many kicks in critical moments, including hitting three in the Hoosiers victory over rival Purdue in the Old Oaken Bucket. He was recently named to Phil Steele's Preseason All-Big Ten Fourth Team. He, like all the members of Indiana's special teams will play an incredible vital role in helping the Hoosiers achieve bowl status for the first time since 2007.