St. Paul punter Tyler Perkins commits to Iowa State
Jun. 21—NORWALK — Several times this past winter, Tyler Perkins and his father, Pete, grabbed a snow shovel and headed to a snow-covered Contractors Stadium.
After clearing off a path on the turf, Perkins, who will be a senior this fall, started punting the football as practice. There were wind gusts of 25 miles per hour, and temperatures in the teens.
Putting in extra effort and work is one thing. But why go to those bone-chilling lengths?
"Because of that moment when I heard those words," Perkins said of a May 18 phone call he received inside the St. Paul athletic office.
On the other end of the line was Iowa State University head coach Matt Campbell, offering the nation's No. 2-ranked punter a full scholarship to play for the Cyclones after high school.
"It was emotional," said Perkins, who had no idea at the time that any type of offer was on the horizon. "It's something where you tell yourself that you worked so hard all your life for this. It's not just a preferred walk-on situation.
"My college education is paid for, there are no student loans — and you get to compete for a high-level, elite program. I think you can stand out in the snow and practice punting for something like that."
Perkins had communicated with Iowa State assistant coach Rob Grande as far back as February, both on the phone and via text messaging. But still, there was nothing that led the All-Ohio first team selection in 2020 to think he was on the verge of a scholarship offer.
"We talked about school and baseball season, that type of stuff," Perkins said. "It was a total shock — but a great surprise. The fact that I'm a punter, it just shows you that how hard you work in the classroom and on the field will pay dividends down the line."
Ranked the No. 2 punter in the country for the Class of 2022 by Kohl's Kicking Camps, Perkins attended a Kohl's Showcase on May 16 in Chicago. Two days later, he was offered by an Iowa State program that finished No. 9 in both the Associated Press and USA Today coaches poll last season after a Fiesta Bowl win over Oregon.
"Honestly it felt like another camp," Perkins said. "Nothing in particular stood out, to me at least. But looking back at it now, it sure doesn't feel like it was another camp."
After receiving the offer, Perkins and his family visited the campus in Ames, Iowa, the weekend of June 11-13. While there, Perkins was able to put on the Cardinal and Gold uniform of the Cyclones for some photos.
"That was a sweet moment to put that uniform on," he said. "The campus itself and the academic side of things was great. It's a beautiful place and the football facilities are brand new, but it wasn't about that. It was about the people.
"The people at Iowa State who have reached out and communicated with me are even better," he added. "A lot of the coaching staff is also mostly from Ohio, so there is a good connection there. I felt like I was able to build relationships just in the two days I was there."
After his freshman high school season for the Flyers, when he punted nine times for a 34.8-yard average for longtime coach John Livengood, Perkins realized punting or kicking at the collegiate level was a real possibility.
"Coach Livengood pulled me aside and told me to keep working at it, because he thought I could do this at a high level and punt on Saturdays and Sundays some day," Perkins said. "He still tells me that, actually."
As a sophomore in 2019, Perkins finished with a 32.2 average on 27 punts, with a long of 43 yards. He was also 53-of-55 on extra point attempts and made a 37-yard field goal as the team's kicker.
In nine games last season, Perkins punted 20 times for a 44-yard average, including an impressive long of 67 yards against Crestview in Week 2 (Sept. 5, 2020). He was also 33-of-36 on extra points and 5-of-7 on field goals.
Those numbers earned him All-Firelands Conference and OPSWA Northwest District and All-Ohio first team honors at punter in Division VII. He was also the first team selection at kicker in FC voting.
Playing for St. Paul teams that have gone 24-8 in his three seasons, Perkins has only needed to punt about twice per game in his high school career.
Perkins hopes that is also the case at Iowa State. In 2020, the Cyclones were a pair of losses by a combined nine points to No. 6 Oklahoma State and No. 10 Oklahoma away from making the College Football Playoff from the Big 12. They rebounded to rout Oregon in the Fiesta Bowl.
With 18 starters returning on offense and defense from the best team in school history, the Cyclones will likely open with a top 10 preseason ranking in 2021 — it's highest ever entering a season.
"It was fun to watch them make a run and be in that playoff picture for most of last season," Perkins said. "It's expected of me to go in and compete as a starter next year, and the thing that really stood out to me about the ISU coaching staff is a lot of the other schools that were recruiting me seemed to only care about me as an athlete.
"The coaches at Iowa State not only care about me as an athlete, but they really care about me as a person as well. That really stood out in the last four months."
When Perkins was in junior high just four years ago, he said he would have never envisioned he'd be where he is today. But now that the commitment is out of the way, he believes calmer days are ahead.
"I think there is a lot less pressure honestly," Perkins said. "Most kickers and punters are looking for that offer still, and I'm entering my summer of my senior year already committed.
"But it doesn't mean you're not working, and really I think it just makes me want to work even harder," he added. "I always told myself I wanted to play baseball in college. Now, I'm going to be playing for a very good Power Five football program. So you just never know, and you always have to keep working."
