Sept. 1, 2006

Fifth-year senior Brandon Fields believes he hasn't had his perfect game yet.

Despite entering the season as Michigan State's and the Big Ten Conference's all-time leader in punting average, placing the average kick a booming 45.6 yards away from scrimmage, there's something Fields said he'd like to do at least once.

Despite blasting a punt 79 yards during his red-shirt freshman season against Notre Dame, a 22-16 win in the unfriendly confines in South Bend, he said he'd trade it for something else.

Despite placing three of his seven kicks inside the 20-yard line last season against Ohio State, a game in which every punt was key as the Spartans entered the fourth quarter with a 24-21 lead before falling 35-24, he said this season he'd like to be remembered as something else besides the best punter in Michigan State history.

After all, Brandon Fields is a team player. He wants to have a game where he comes into the Michigan State locker room with grass stains on his knees, dirty from a perfect day from his other job on the team, holding extra-point and field-goal attempts all afternoon, while never once having to use his leg.

"If it's a perfect game, I probably don't have to punt," Fields said, before letting loose a smile. "If I'm only out there holding, that means our offense and defense are doing well enough. It's kind of strange to think about it, but if I'm not on the field, that's a good thing."

His goal, the team's goal, for this season is as simple as it gets: "win the Big Ten Championship." And one of those perfect games would go a long way in getting the Spartans closer to that goal.

In three seasons as the Spartans' starting punter, Fields has come close to the perfect game, including three two-punt games and a one-punt effort in a 51-17 rout of Minnesota in 2004. But never has the 6-foot-6, 235-pound punter had a game where he didn't have to stand in the backfield and give possession of the ball to the other team.

Even if Fields never does have that perfect game in a Spartan uniform, he is more than well-prepared for the worst. At his best, Fields might be the best in the nation. He was a consensus All-American as a sophomore in 2004 after averaging a nation-leading 47.9 yards per punt, and he finished second in the nation in punting average as a freshman.

Even during a junior season that saw his punting average slip 6 yards from his All-America season, he still ranked in the top 40 in the nation, and he still booted two punts more than 60 yards and had 11 downed inside the 20.

"In the back of my head, I know I'm the best if I do what I can do," Fields said. "It's just a matter of getting out on the field and doing my job. If I just go out there and relax and kick the ball like I can, then I'm going to be on top."

With a kicking unit that, besides Fields, has a total of four games of experience, the fifth-year senior has taken on a leadership role within the group.

"I'm definitely trying to help them out," Fields said of the kicking crew, which features two sophomores, a freshman and two upperclassmen who haven't seen game action. "I have a lot of game experience. I'm just trying to help them get mentally prepared come game time. Also, if I'm able to help them out by observing what they're doing right or wrong, or if I have little tidbits of what's worked in the past, I'll share that with them."

The Toledo, Ohio, native is certainly a good source for the young kickers, as he has been widely regarded as one of the best punters in the country since stepping foot in East Lansing five years ago. This season is no exception, as he is ranked sixth and ninth, respectively, among the nation's top college punters by Phil Steele's College Football Preview and The Sporting News. Still, during his final go-round as a collegiate athlete, he would like to both regain his All-America form and push to keep his punting average on top in the Big Ten's career record book.

"Right now, they don't really mean much," Fields said of his previous records and honors. "It's more the ones I can get at the end of this year. It's something I keep in the back of my mind to strive to be better and stay on top."

Fields, who played offensive tackle, defensive end, tight end and linebacker at St. John's High School, comes from a family of athletes, perhaps making up for his unusual stature as a punter who is taller than every wide receiver or secondary back on the team, save wide out Matt Trannon. His father David was a four-year letterwinner as a post player for Northwestern's basketball team from 1973-77. His sister Marissa is a sophomore on Auburn's volleyball squad. He also credits his older brother, Nathan, for motivating him as an athlete.

"When we play at Northwestern (Oct. 21), it's going to be their homecoming game and they're going to have all the basketball teams from the past come out on the field," Fields joked, "so you'll probably see a big 6-9 guy in Green and White out on the field."

And who knows, maybe you finally won't see the big 6-6 guy standing on the field, but kneeling, as another extra point flies through the uprights.

As far as future plans go, Fields' individual goal is as clear as his goal for the team, "I just want to get that chance to be able to punt the ball on Sundays."

By Joe Guistina, MSU Sports Information intern