Kim looking to make the most of his opportunity as starting field goal kicker for Michigan State

East Lansing, Mich. – After four years at North Carolina, where he had success as a kick-off specialist, Jonathan Kim knew that he needed to make a change to pursue his NFL Dream. Despite having the prerequisite leg strength of kickers playing on Sunday, Kim lacked an opportunity to showcase that big leg as a field goal kicker until he transferred to Michigan State.

In Mel Tucker’s program, Kim found an opportunity to earn a job as a starting field goal kicker. And if he performs up to his potential in that role, Kim believes he can use Michigan State as springboard to an NFL career.

“My goal is to get the NFL,” Kim said, “and its hard to get to the NFL if you don’t kick field goals as well. So, I wanted to make myself more of a weapon, to make myself more available to go to the NFL.”

Whether Kim realizes his NFL dream remains to be seen. At present, however, Michigan State appears have a kicker capable of making field goals at the Power 5 level, as evidenced by the 47-yarder he booted through the uprights to score the first points of the season for the Spartans in Week 1.

Kim made his first field goal as Spartan with just under eight minutes remaining in the opening half when things weren’t going to plan for Michigan State on offense, which came away empty handed on three straight possessions to open the game. And given the way Michigan State struggled to make field goals in 2022, ranking dead last in the Big Ten in field goal percentage, Kim faced a considerable amount of pressure in his first collegiate field goal try since he attempted 52-yarder as a freshman at North Carolina.

“It being my fifth year, I was a little bit more confident in myself,” Kim said. “I felt a whole lot more confident. I got a lot of work with my snapper and holder, and the o-line has done a great job. I was confident not only in myself but the operation.”

Kim also leaned into faith as well as his experience.

“Really for me, it was just seeing God’s plan come to fruition,” Kim said. “I really feel like this is where God wants me to be. This was just him proving to me that this is exactly where I need to be right now. I don’t feel too much pressure because I know that I am not identified by how I play on the field, I can go out and play freely which takes a whole lot of pressure off me because I know that God is going to love me no matter how I play.”

That same faith helped Kim navigate the NCAA transfer portal.

“I loved North Carolina and it was a great place, but God was telling me that’s not where I needed to be anymore,” Kim said. “When I came on my official visit (to Michigan State) there was this overwhelming sense of peace, getting to talk to all of the coaches and getting to know everybody. I knew this was where I needed to be.”

Faith is important to Kim, but that alone doesn’t explain his transformation from kick-off specialist to an effective field goal kicker. The North Carolina transfer has worked tirelessly to develop a kicking style rooted in sound fundamentals that can hold up under pressure. And he has done so with guidance from Charlotte-based kicking coach Dan Orner, who began his collegiate career at Michigan State before playing two years at North Carolina.

“He doesn’t work with any schools, he just coaches a high schoolers, college, and NFL guys,” Kim said. “I got a lot of work in with him. I stopped playing after Week 4 last year, so I was with him every single weekend. He was coaching me and also coaching younger guys. I was also able to help younger guys, which helped me build my own confidence knowing that what I am telling them is right.”

Kim works hard outside of practice to maintain strong fundamentals.

“Kickoff and field goal is two different swings,” Kim said. “For kick-off you are trying to get downfield. For field goal, you want to get up because you want more trajectory. I did a lot of no-steps, which is contact and extension because it’s a different contact and extension than it is for kick-off. Like after practice today, I did a lot of those. I usually do about 50 per day just to make sure its bulletproof, so I know that when I go out there that whatever I do I know that my contact and extension is going to be good.”

Kim signed with a Michigan State as a scholarship kicker, but he wasn’t given the job. He had to earn it through competition in training camp, and it wasn’t easy. Sophomore Stephen Rusnak pushed Kim throughout the month of August.

“There was a really good competition between me and Rusty,” Kim said. “At the end of the day the percentages were close, but I had a couple more makes than him.”

Kim lost a similar competition to Noah Burnette in 2022 after biding his time behind established kickers Noah Ruggles and Grayson Atkins during his first three years at North Carolina.

“My first three years I was behind some All-Americans, so I was just being patient,” Kim said. “Noah Burnette is a great kicker and he is going to do great things. He beat me out, and it was a really good and really good competition.”

Kim beat Rusnak for the job of kicking field goals by demonstrating consistency in performance throughout training camp. His leg strength, however, is something that Michigan State hasn’t had since Dave Rayner in the mid-2000’s. Kim’s leg strength is so good that he was given the opportunity to attempt a 58-yarder into the wind during training camp.

Kim failed to make that would-be scrimmage winner, but he did manage to kick a 65-yarder on a different occasion during training camp. Had he kicked that 65-yarder in a game, Kim would have set the record for longest field goal at Michigan State. That mark is currently held by NFL Hall of Famer Morten Andersen, who made 63-yarder against Ohio State in 1981.

“With no wind, I’d say I am pretty confident from 62,” said Kim.  

Kim’s reputation as a weapon on kick-off preceded his arrival at Michigan State. During his time at North Carolina he was one of the best in FBS as forcing touchbacks. In 36 games for the Tarheels Kim forced touchbacks on just under 80 percent his kick-offs. In his Spartan debut, Kim forced touchbacks on three of his four kick-offs. His lone mishit of the evening was kicked out of bounds.

“The plan is to get it in the end zone, but also to get it outside what we call the honey which is the hash and the numbers,” Kim said. “That is my aiming point, outside of that just to help close down the field.”

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