Tennessee: Vols turn to walk-on K Derrick Brodus against Florida

(Video courtesy of UT Athletics)

Could the Tennessee-Florida game come down to a walk-on?

The Vols are turning the starting kicker job over to walk-on K Derrick Brodus, coach Derek Dooley announced Monday.

It's a bold move by Dooley considering the high probability that Saturday's game could come down to a field goal. His hand might have been forced by yet another bad performance by junior Michael Palardy on Saturday against Georgia State. He missed his second extra point of the season and pushed his only field goal attempt (a 39-yarder) wide left. Palardy is a career 64-percent field goal kicker.

Though he has made the two field goals he's attempted, Brodus previously has been in the spotlight.

You can read a longer account here, but he was part of one of the most bizarre stories in college football in 2011. In summary, the Vols had two kickers go down in pregame warm ups for a November game against Middle Tennessee in 2011. Brodus was on the roster, but not in uniform for the game. The Vols sent a police escort to pick him up from his apartment, and he dressed in time to hit three extra points and a 21-yard field goal in a 24-0 win.

The stakes are higher on Saturday against Florida, but Dooley likes Brodus' ability to stay calm under pressure.

“He kicks it high and he's made them every time he's been in there,” Dooley said Monday. “He's got a good calmness about him.”

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