Taylor Mehlhaff

K · Wisconsin
Taylor Mehlhaff teamed with punter Ken DeBauche to form what many experts felt was the best kicking tandem in college football in recent years. DeBauche left the school ranked second in punting average and total punting yards. Mehlhaff finished his career as Wisconsin's second-leading scorer in school history (295 points) and tied for second all-time in field goals (50). He also holds the Badgers' all-time record by making 145-of-148 extra point attempts. The 2007 Lou Groza Award semifinalist, given to the nation's premier place-kicker, Mehlhaff also garnered All-American first-team honors as a senior. A three-year starter who handled all field goals and extra-point attempts, Mehlhaff was a major reason the opposition consistently had poor field position. In handling kickoff chores, 123 of his attempts were touchbacks and 160 of those kicks were returned for a 19.75-yard average, none for touchdowns. Mehlhaff was a decorated kicker during his time at Aberdeen Central High School. He was rated the premier place-kicker in the prep ranks by Rivals.com, earning All-American first-team honors from Ridell and second-team accolades from USA Today. He was a two-time All-State, All-Area and All-Conference choice on special teams and added All-Conference honors as a quarterback. South Dakota's 2003 Gatorade Player of the Year, he helped lead his team to 12-1 record and runner-up finish in 2003 Class 11AA state finals as a quarterback, strong safety, kicker and punter. The national kickoff champion at Chris Sailer's Kicking Camp, Mehlhaff had more than 93 percent of his kickoffs go for touchbacks and he made 6-of-14 field goals, with a long of 52 yards and 35-of-36 PATs as a senior. He also passed for 1,359 yards and 12 touchdowns, while making 55 tackles on defense. The team captain and MVP lettered four times each in football, hockey and track. He also earned All-State Academic team recognition. Mehlhaff enrolled at Wisconsin in 2004, though Mike Allen was holding down the job as the team's place-kicker. Mehlhaff took over kickoff chores for the Badgers, handling 53 kickoffs for 3,266 yards (61.6-yard distance average) with 18 touchbacks, as the opposition averaged 20.1 yards on 33 kickoff returns. He also made two assisted tackles. In 2005, Mehlhaff handled field goal, placement and kickoff duties. He scored 98 points on 14-of-20 field goals and 56-of-58 PATs. He ranked second in the Big Ten Conference, as he kicked off 81 times for a 60.9-yard distance average, as 45 were returned for an 18.9-yard average and 36 boots resulted in touchbacks. He also posted four tackles (two solo). Mehlhaff was named the team's Special Teams Player of the Year. The Lou Groza Award semifinalist added All-Big Ten Conference second-team honors, as he ranked second on the team with 92 points. He was successful on all 47 extra-point tries and on 15-of-20 field goals. He produced one solo tackle and saw just 32 of his 76 kickoffs (61.6-yard distance average) returned, with 42 resulting in touchbacks. Mehlhaff's senior season was his finest, picking up All-American and All-Big Ten honors. He tied for the conference title and ranked 16th nationally with an average of 1.62 field goals per game. He finished 23rd in the country with just 50 kickoffs returned for a 19.64 average on 77 kicks, with 27 touchbacks. He led the team with a career-high 105 points scored, connecting on 21-of-25 field goals and 42-of-43 extra-point attempts. His 21 field goals rank second on the school single-season list. He also made two tackles. In 51 games at Wisconsin, Mehlhaff handled kickoff duties in each of those contests and field goal/PAT chores in 39 clashes. He connected on 50-of-65 field goals (76.92%) and 145-of-148 extra-point attempts (97.97%) for 295 points, the second-highest total on the school's career scoring list. He recorded nine tackles (four solo) and kicked off 287 times for 18,018 yards (62.78-yard distance average), as 123 of those boots resulted in touchbacks, six were kicked out of bounds and 160 were returned (55.75%) for 3,160 yards (19.55 avg) with no touchdowns, as the opposition's average start point was the 23-yard line.