ASHBURN, Va. – The parking spaces in the lot at Redskins Park are adorned with burgundy-and-gold jersey-style numbers painted onto the road’s surface, shouting out the player for whom each space is reserved.
Spot 26 has running back Clinton Portis’s tricked-out Range Rover in it; spot 89 has wide receiver Santana Moss’s blue Hummer H2. Across the parking lot sits Spot 3, home of a relatively modest-looking Ford Escape, complete with a University of Maryland Alumni sticker on the back window.
For the time being, that spot belongs to former Terrapin kicker Nick Novak, who has been the kicker for the Washington Redskins since nine-year-veteran John Hall was injured in the team’s season opening victory Sept. 11.
But Novak’s time with the Redskins appears to be running out.
While he has filled in well, the team kept Hall on the active roster instead of assigning him to injured reserve, all but assuring that Novak’s stay would only be temporary. Once Hall is activated, likely in time for Sunday’s game at the New York Giants, the Redskins will likely release Novak. A decision is expected tomorrow.
Such is the life of a rookie kicker in the NFL. Despite Novak’s collegiate career, where he became the Atlantic Coast Conference’s all-time leading scorer in 2004, a two-time first-team All-ACC selection and an ACC record-holder with 80 career field goals, job security is not something that many first-year kickers ever enjoy.
Novak went undrafted in the 2005 NFL Entry Draft and had been released by both the Chicago Bears and Dallas Cowboys by the end of training camp.
“I was at home [in Indiana] training at Purdue at the time, just getting ready for the next phone call,” Novak said.
When he’s not on an NFL roster, Novak trains at Purdue with a strength coach, working on his flexibility and agility.
“That’s about it, I just went back and kicked a lot at Purdue, I haven’t really taken a break since college has ended,” he said.
After the Redskins called, he found himself on a plane to Virginia for an open tryout against three other kickers and before he knew it, he was kicking on one of football’s biggest stages: against the Dallas Cowboys on Monday Night Football.
“The thing that helped a little was I played in a preseason game there [with the Cowboys],” he said. “I could go back to myself and visualize what was going to happen and try not to be big-eyed, try to be a professional about it.”
Novak was clutch, kicking the game-winning extra point as the Redskins rallied for a 14-13 victory. Two weeks later against Seattle, Novak kicked the game-winning field goal in overtime, giving the Redskins a 20-17 win.
“I try to approach every kick like it was just a regular kick, not a game-winner,” Novak said.
Novak said he has fed off the atmosphere of the crowd at FedEx Field, which sits less than 10 miles from his former home turf, Byrd Stadium. When the Redskins score, “Rock and Roll, Part II” plays over the loudpseaker, and many in attendance can be heard singing the song Maryland-style.
“Most people don’t like to hear that song, but it brings comfort to me and just reminds me of Byrd,” Novak said.
Pressure is nothing new to Novak. In 2001 as a freshman, Novak kicked a 46-yard field goal for the Terps against Georgia Tech, sending the game to overtime where he would ultimately win the game with a 26-yarder.
“Georgia Tech was like a stepping stone for me,” he said, “I hadn’t made a kick like that in my college career yet when it happened and I just went to a new level as far as confidence goes.”
Overall, Novak has made five of his seven field goal attempts – the other two were blocked – and all 15 of his extra point attempts with the Redskins. He’s also had a chance to play for Hall of Fame coach Joe Gibbs. Novak sees similiarites between Gibbs and his former coach, Ralph Friedgen.
“They both know how to bring the best out of their players, I think that’s the biggest thing,” he said. “They know how to coach individual players, and that’s a great characteristic to have if you’re a coach.”
Novak knows that his time with the team is short. He said Hall has played well in practice, and has worked hard enough to play.
“I would love to finish the season here, whether that be active roster or the practice squad. I love this area, but that’s the nature of the business and if I get picked up [by another team] then I’ll go there and make the most of that opportunity and just do my best and continue to try to make a print on this league and try to be one of the best kickers, eventually.”
Despite the uncertain road that may lie ahead for Novak, he relishes the challenge.
“I like being the underdog,” he said, “I like proving people wrong. I like to just show people that people do underestimate me. In some cases you don’t want things just given to you, you want to work for them.”
Contact reporter Alex Baldinger at baldingerdbk@gmail.com.
