USF Football Player Profile: #35 K Emilio Nadelman

#35 K Emilio Nadelman - 5th Year Senior, 5’6”, 173 lbs.

2016 Stats: Nadelman had a fantastic year. He made 52 of 53 extra points and all seven field goals he attempted. (The only kick he missed was blocked. And USF was so good at scoring touchdowns that he didn’t get many field goal chances.) Emilio was also much improved on kickoffs, with a 61.5 yard average and 20 touchbacks. Unfortunately, he hurt his knee on a fourth-quarter kickoff against Navy and missed the last four games of the season.

2015 Stats: In his first season as USF’s kicker, Nadelman made 15 of 23 field goals and 53 of 54 extra points. His 98 points were the third most in school history. After a rough midseason stretch that bottomed out with a missed 23-yard chip shot at East Carolina, Emilio rebounded to make his last nine field goals of the regular season, including a career-long 49-yarder against Cincinnati and three 40+ yard kicks at UCF.

Nadelman was also given kickoff duty late in the season, but he didn’t do much better than the player he replaced, outgoing senior Michael Hill.

2014 Stats: Emilio did not attempt any place kicks, but he did kick off three times with a 65.3 yard average, including a touchback.

2013 Stats: Redshirt season.

How He Came To USF: Emilio played at Miami Central High School, where he was a two-time Class 6A first team all-state kicker. He scored 210 points in his last two seasons, making 27 out of 40 field goals and 129 out of 131 extra points. Nadelman also handed kickoffs and punting for the Rockets. Even though Nadelman’s high school coach was former running backs coach Telly Lockette, it was a coincidence they both ended up at USF in 2013. Emilio had already committed to the Bulls by the time Willie Taggart took over.

Recruiting Rankings: Most kickers are unrated walk-ons, but Nadelman was a legit kicking prospect. He was a two-star recruit across the board at a position where recruiting stars are hard to come by.

Follow Him On... There’s an Emilio Nadelman on Twitter, but it looks like it’s his dad. Our Emilio has a Instagram account at ejnadelman.