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62 GOLD AND BLACK ILLUSTRATED able to commit myself to that now that I have a very clear picture of what it was going to take. Then I went into last year really firing on all cylinders. I knew what needed to be done. I knew how it needed to be done, and I got it done." Did he ever. As a junior, Griggs quickly dis- patched transfer Ian MacDougall as his latest challenger with a master- ful camp and never let up. Griggs drilled 16-of-20 field goals and 32-of-33 extra points last sea- son. His only misses were from 42, 43 and two 47-yarders. His makes included 51, 52 and 53 yards, the latter two both in the same game at Wisconsin. "I've liked the progression," Coach Darrell Hazell said. "He's certainly matured even since the time we've been here. It's import- ant to him. This needs to be a great year for him. He needs to hit 85 percent of his field goals from those makeable spots, and if he does that, we'll have a lot of success." SPRINGBOARD Kickers always face an odd dy- namic. No offensive coordinator really wants to send them onto the field for a field goal — it essentially sig- nifies failure for the offense — and there's intense pressure to not miss when those rare opportunities are presented. Griggs insists he doesn't feel pressure, and he says he'd be fine if all he had to do was kick extra points and boom the ball on kick- offs, if it means Purdue is winning. "Those can get a little tiring, but I'll make it to the ice bath on Sun- day if it means I'm kicking off a lot," Griggs said. One would think it'd be bet- ter for Griggs' NFL hopes to get a bunch of field goal op- portunities this season. He says he hasn't set his personal goals for his senior year yet but knows top on that list will be getting Ws. But if he is required to trot out onto the field for a field goal, the Boilermakers' confidence in it go- ing through the uprights is at "an all-time high," quarterback and occasional spring holder David Blough said. That's been built not only because of Griggs' success in 2014 but also because Blough and his teammates know the work that Griggs puts in. Though he's "only" a kicker, Griggs is one of the team's best athletes — he doesn't work like a kicker in the weight room or in conditioning. And he spends as much time dis- secting film as the rest of the group. Last season, he started sending vid- eos to Orner on a regular basis and following up with FaceTime to get tips. "He works and grinds and works and works," Blough said. "I noticed it going to South Africa (on a mis- sion trip) with him when we were digging a ditch — he just doesn't complain and just works. He really is a great dude off the field, makes great decisions, represents the pro- gram with a ton of class. "He's one of a kind — and a pret- ty dang good kicker, too." But not just in college, Griggs hopes. Since proclaiming his intentions as a fifth-grader, since identifying Casey as a role model, since soak- ing in every nugget Orner dis- patched, since pressing through early struggles at Purdue, Griggs has had one ultimate dream: To be one of the very select few to kick for an NFL team. Orner, who said he coaches nine current NFL players, thinks Griggs has a shot. "Mentally, he is as strong as the NFL guys I work with," Orner said. "How he practices now, to be almost like a pro, like he's putting himself in that situation … and taking it like it's a full-time job. The intangi- bles, obviously leg strength, and the second thing he possesses, he's not just a kicker, he works his butt off in the gym. His overall strength and size, and he's also one of the best ball strikers that I work with. "I think without a doubt, he should definitely be considered NFL caliber." j