Florida punter-turned-kicker Chas Henry is in an unenviable position. A stress fracture in his back has kept kicker Caleb Sturgis out for a month, thrusting Henry into a position he hasn’t played since high school. And while Henry is one of the best punters in the country, the rust has shown in his kicking game.
Henry started well enough, making two field goals to account for all of Florida’s points in a 31-6 loss at Alabama in his first game at the position. He made another a week later against LSU.
But three misses in a row, including on in the final seconds against Mississippi State that would have tied the score, drew criticism coming into Saturday’s game against Georgia. Lee Corso even called for Henry to be replaced on ESPN’s College GameDay.
To be sure, the Gators are not in an ideal situation. As coach Urban Meyer said after the Georgia game, “He’s not majored in that.”
Without an adequate backup for Sturgis, who himself is 2-for-4 on field goals this season, Henry became the guy.
A missed field goal in the first quarter certainly didn’t prove critics wrong.
But Meyer stuck with him, and he ended his streak of four misses with a 34 yarder in the fourth quarter.
Henry said his coaches’ confidence, as well as that of his teammates, never wavered. Even still, Henry’s make was impressive for a guy who hasn’t played that position in three years and is now 4-for-8 on field goals.
“It was Chas Henry making a damn field goal,” Meyer said. “Think about that for a minute.”
