Swenson gets kick out of last-second heroics

EAST LANSING - A kicker's worth tends to be of a fickle nature. It can sway with the slightest of breezes and change with the wickedest of weather conditions.

Yet in most fans' eyes -- even though it's a three-part process of snap, hold and kick -- all that matters is simply putting the ball between the uprights. Do that and you're a hero; miss and you're the villain.

All you needed to see was Brett Swenson riding around the field on his teammates' shoulders to know how his Saturday went.

A week after Swenson's usually reliable right foot missed three field goal attempts at Michigan, the junior booted his way to redemption against Wisconsin. His game-winning kick with seven seconds left salvaged a 25-24 victory for Michigan State.

"It was huge for him to come back and seal it with a 44-yarder," MSU coach Mark Dantonio said. "Just a great, great job. He's maybe one of the greatest kickers that's ever gone through here with the ability to focus like that and kick it up there."

Against the Wolverines, issues that were beyond Swenson's control -- a sketchy hold, a botched blocking assignment and a high snap -- all contributed to him missing twice and having one kick swatted away. The 0-for-3 afternoon ended the Pompano Beach, Fla., native's school record of 15 consecutive field goals.

It perplexed and perturbed the normally affable Swenson, who barked at holder Aaron Bates after his final miss, from 24 yards away in the third quarter. He also missed from 50 yards and had a 32-yard try blocked in the first half.

Swenson's performance Saturday, which included a career-long 50-yarder with a little more than five minutes left in the game, was one of of atonement. When Swenson and crew ran onto the field with time quickly running out, Wisconsin coach Bret Bielema opted to call two timeouts in an attempt to ice the kicker.

Swenson responded with what he said was one of his best kicks in recent weeks, sending it soaring with the wind right through the heart of the goal posts and plenty long enough. He didn't even need to watch to know it was good, turning to celebrate as the Spartan Stadium crowd erupted.

"It's great to bounce back with a great team effort on special teams -- the block schemes, the snaps, the holds," said Swenson, who made all four of his attempts against the Badgers

"We all kind of made little errors (at Michigan) and were able to come away with a win last week. It's nice now when it really counted. We needed every kick -- every point mattered -- so it was nice that we executed."

When time ran out and he was the last player off the field, Swenson received a rousing, standing ovation as he trotted toward the locker room. It also landed him a spot at the postgame podium, rarely reserved for the players who are generally the smallest on the roster.

That's the fine line on which kickers live.

"He doesn't make that kick, 'I'm gonna choke him.' That's what I thought" Spartan defensive end Trevor Anderson said, "Heck yeah (I hugged him). I'm thinking about buying him something to eat."

On this night, the hero would not be served goat.