It’s a sight you wouldn’t expect, like a construction supervisor sitting down for a cold one with blue-collar laborers. Every day after practice, Syracuse kicker Collin Barber joins his teammates for a soothing, cold whirlpool bath.

‘Every day, I get ridiculed,’ Barber said. ‘When you kick a kickoff, it takes everything out of you. We’re doing 50 kickoffs a day.’

The work’s paying off. This preseason, Barber’s kicking performance has been his best since he came to Syracuse. It needs to be, because he’ll have to beat out junior Justin Sujansky – who missed last season with a knee injury – and freshman Ricky Krautman to keep his job as SU’s field goal kicker.

‘It’s a fierce competition,’ head coach Paul Pasqualoni said. ‘Right now it’s deadlocked. It’s a battle that’s going to come right down to the final minute.’

Special teams coach Chris White, though, gave Barber a slight advantage. Barber made 27 of his first 30 field goal tries during preseason practice, the highest percentage among kickers.

‘Collin is having his best preseason right now,’ White said. ‘Justin is next up percentage-wise. He’s gotten better but still has some flaws in his kicking. Sometimes his ball hooks a little bit. Ricky, he has a strong leg. He had trouble adjusting from high school to college. His ball doesn’t get up in the air as well.’

The future for Krautman, though, is bright. At New Jersey powerhouse Ramapo High School, Krautman kicked his team into the playoffs with a last-minute, 43-yard field goal. In practice, Krautman said he’s booted field goals from as far as 60 yards.

For now, it appears the position is Barber’s, which may worry some critics. Barber made 11 of 20 field goals and 33 of 36 extra points last season. One of his failed extra points cost Syracuse a chance to go to overtime in a 17-16 loss at Temple.

But Barber battled injuries all last season. He strained his groin in the preseason a year ago and strained a ligament in his left foot against Auburn. The injuries altered Barber’s technique, and he worked all summer to regain his form.

‘When I was injured I picked up a lot of bad habits,’ Barber said. ‘I had to start from square one and break all those bad habits. It’s frustrating as a kicker picking up bad habits.’

So frustrating, in fact, it affected Barber’s psyche. But his successful summer, which included working with Philadelphia Eagles kicker David Akers and daily lifting and running sessions, restored his confidence.

‘He needs to have a mental approach where he gets to the level where if he misses one, he can come back and get the next one,’ White said. ‘In the past couple years, once he missed one it snowballs on him. It gets in your head. I think that’s what he’s gone through.’

‘Being a kicker, you need to be mentally strong,’ Barber said. ‘What’s in the past is in the past. It’s a new year, and I’m ready to get going and show people that wasn’t me.’

Published on August 26, 2003 at 12:00 pm