North Carolina State University Athletics
Sade Now a Seasoned Veteran on the Field
8/7/2012 12:00:00 AM | Football
Aug. 7, 2012
Raleigh, N.C. -
Starting college as an 18-year old freshman and being on your own for the first time can be a daunting task for anybody. For kicker Niklas Sade, last year was just a confidence builder for what's to come on the football field.
After moving to the U.S. from Germany in 2002, Sade enjoyed a successful high school career at local Wakefield High School.
"I actually had zero knowledge of football before moving to the U.S.," said Sade. "My friends pretty much taught me everything and helped me get acclimated.
Sade played soccer up until his freshman year of high school before switching to football full-time.
"I decided I had a better future in football so I went that route," said Sade.
Sade had the accolades coming out of high school. Scout.com rated him the third-best kicker in the country, and he also played in the U.S. Army All-American bowl.
Big things were expected of Sade before he even stepped on NC State's campus last August, as the Pack had no returning scholarship kickers heading into fall camp. He became one of only six freshmen nationally to start at placekicker.
He finished the season hitting 11-of-16 field goals, including 9-of-10 under 40 yards. He also hit 46-of-47 PATs, which ties as the second-most made in a single season in school history.
When talking about his experiences kicking as a freshman, Sade definitely took the whole experience in stride.
"It was on a bigger scale. More people watching, and of course higher expectations," said Sade. "It was a good experience
"It was helpful, as the year went on, I got more of a veteran state of mind and that helped me out a lot."
Special teams coordinator Jerry Petercuskie was pleased with Sade's performance last season and expects his contributions to grow this season.
"He did a great job last year having to come in and kick as a true freshman," said Petercuskie. "He is strong willed, and has good confidence in his ability. He put on about 15 pounds this offseason, so he is getting stronger and I expect for him to improve even more since he has a full year of experience under his belt."
Sade credits his work in the weight room as his biggest improvement since last season ended.
"This offseason I have worked on my strength an awful lot," said Sade. "Not only am I working on my leg strength, but also my upper body. I already feel like I am getting more distance on my kicks, so the effort in the weight room has helped me out.
I'm trying to get my upper body to match my lower body. This was I can take the aggressiveness off my leg swing, yet get more distance and height on my kicks."
Sade, along with long snapper Scott Thompson and punter Wil Baumann all started as true freshmen last season, making NC State the only school to have freshmen start at all three special teams positions.
The Pack's now sophomore trio are now roommates, and all looking forward to making the Pack's special teams one of the top units nationally.
"We have great chemistry, since we are around each other almost all day," said Sade. "I just know that the snap is going to be perfect and the hold is going to be perfect."
Coach Petercuskie also expects the kicking game to be one of the top units on this year's team.
"Like most positions, you see so much growth from the first year as a starter to the second year," said Petercuskie. "Their confidence has gone up since they started last August, and we are looking forward to them performing even better this season."
