In a recent XFL Xtra podcast, Seattle Dragons placekicker Ernesto Lacayo mentioned how the ball was a challenge to kick.
“Kicking and punting, even the snappers didn’t like the football. It was definitely difficult… a little bit different feel on the ball,” Lacayo said.
When asked to explain what was different about the ball, Lacayo indicated it may be the smaller girth of the XFL football.
“We were looking at it actually from the NFL to an XFL ball, the middle of the ball is a lot more smaller in diameter,” Lacayo said. “It had a big effect in our field goals. It was a lot harder to find the sweet spot on the ball for us to kick to get a good end over end ball.”
“The punters were the first ones to really complain about it,” Lacayo added. “All these punters that we had in the XFL were great punters as far as hang time when it comes to the NFL ball, but for some reason, they were not able to get their foot completely on that ball to get the hang time that they desired.”
According to Lacayo, many of the league’s “specialists” would often compare notes on the ball, as they collectively had the same thought that “these balls are interesting.”
Might explain some low field goal stats, but without a full season of play it’s hard to gauge the true impact on scoring. I love how kickers are so sensitive to the little things. Kicking is a real science.
Fan of the XFL from the beginning. You may remember me from the original XFLboard.
That was something that got noted during the game telecasts. The balls were tested for passing and receiving, and the XFL rules were designed so that the only real priority as far as kicking went was to ensure that kickoffs stayed in play.
But I'm surprised they actually went with a narrower football—I was under the assumption that they left the dimensions all the same. So I'm not sure how true that is.
johnnyangryfuzzball wrote: ↑Wed Sep 02, 2020 7:36 am
But I'm surprised they actually went with a narrower football—I was under the assumption that they left the dimensions all the same. So I'm not sure how true that is.
Lacayo did tell me they were slightly more narrow. Another kicker said the same. I spoke to four kickers and one punter. They all complained of a harder to find sweet spot. They all said they adjusted and made the ball work, but complained of a lack of distance.
