Notre Dame Football: Does Walk-On Kicker David Ruffer Deserve Scholarship?

Sometimes it hurts to admit that you were wrong, other times you don't mind as much because things worked out for the best.

When it was announced during the bye week in 2008 that a kicker from the interhall leagues was invited to practice with the team, I recall pacing around my garage saying, "and this is where we are, this is where we are..." 

Things were not going well, kicker Brandon Walker was 2-for-8 in field goal attempts, and David Ruffer, a sophomore transfer from William and Mary who had never played organized football other than two interhall games, was the kicker that was invited in. The only action that Ruffer saw in 2008 was a missed extra point attempt in the Washington game, never to be heard from again was my impression. I was wrong.

Fast forward to 2009. Irish kicker Nick Tausch is on a roll, save the two crucial misses against Navy. The freshman converted 14 field goals in a row to become the school record holder at the time for consecutive field goals. Tausch was second on the team with 69 points having converted 27 of 30 point after attempts.

A foot injury forced him out of the last three games.  This opened the door for the Ruffer to take over field goal duties, he had been sharing kickoff duties throughout the season. Ruffer finished the season 5-for-5 in field goal attempts with a long of 42 yards, and 9-for-10 in point after attempts.

Tausch was the odds on favorite in the spring heading into the 2010 season, but Ruffer won the starting job and never looked back, all Ruffer did was convert 15-of-15 field goals (20-for-20 including 2009) including a long of 50 yards, and 34-of-37 extra points to finish with 79 total points for the season.

Along the way, Ruffer became the all-time school leader in consecutive field goals made passing Tausch, and was a finalist for the Lou Groza Award, which was won by Oklahoma State's Dan Bailey who converted 22 of 26 field goals. But that is an article saved for another time.

Ruffer, a senior walk-on, has indicated that he would come back for a fifth year if he were offered a scholarship. He has been paying for his own education thus far and would most likely end up in an NFL training camp next season—if there is a season.

This brings up the question: should Coach Kelly use a scholarship on Ruffer when the reliable Tausch will be back as a junior? To make the matter even more complicated is Notre Dame has a verbal commitment from Kyle Brindza, who has a booming leg, with field goal range of over 52 yards and also a 70-yard punt this season.

My opinion on Ruffer may not sit well with some Irish fans, but I feel that he should move on to the next level. He has been perfect, he is living the dream and I feel that he should leave with an unblemished record and let Tausch and Brindza handle the kicking duties.

There has been talk of giving anywhere from 27 to 29 scholarships for 2011. That number seems extremely high. With Michael Floyd and Kyle Rudolph still undecided and 19 verbal commitments on the board, and some others with a fifth year option, I feel that it would be in the best interest of the team and David Ruffer to do his kicking on Sunday from here on out.