Australian punter hopes to make big impact in Riderville

For those who punt the football for a living, trying to get noticed can be pretty tough.

But for the Saskatchewan Roughriders, it was hard to ignore the talents possessed by Adam Korsak.

On Monday, Korsak joined the team for training camp at Griffiths Stadium in Saskatoon. He was selected third overall in the 2023 CFL global draft after spending the previous five seasons punting at Rutgers University.

The 25-year-old from Melbourne, Australia is coming off a historic college career at Rutgers.

In 2022, he was the recipient of the Ray Guy Award, which is presented to the best punter in college football. He held his opponents to -11 return yards that season, and allowed only a single positive return in his 75 attempts.

After five years at Rutgers, Korsak left the school as its all-time leader in both punting attempts and yardage.

That is an impressive feat, especially considering he faced top-tier schools like Michigan, Ohio State and Penn State along the way.

His success punting the football earned him an invitation to the Senior Bowl, and mini-camp appearances with the NFL’s Kansas City Chiefs and Pittsburgh Steelers.

Korsak said it’s been a unique road that brought him to Saskatchewan.

“I played Australian rules football (growing up) – which most kids do,” he explained after his second day of training camp on Tuesday.

“It’s kind of a mixture of rugby and soccer, and you possibly have to punt it. All of the Australian punters you see at college or the professional levels pretty much played Australian rules football.

“From there, there is an academy called ProKick Australia. I went there when I was 17 and 18 for a couple years and then got recruited to Rutgers when I was 19.”

ProKick Australia’s success has resulted in seven punters winning the Ray Guy Award.

According to Korsak, the route for Australians to transition from playing Australia rules football to becoming a punter is a lot more clear and popular now than ever before.

“I always knew that would be a possibility for me with my skill set. I’m glad I chose this way, and after five years of going to Rutgers, I’m now in Saskatchewan and excited for what’s next,” he said.

Korsak said his goals for camp are pretty simple.

“I’m just trying to do the best I can and be a good teammate,” he said.

He’s battling fellow global player Kaare Vedvik to be the Roughriders’ punter.

Training camp update

Tuesday morning’s practice was a windy one at Griffiths Stadium.

The wind could’ve played a factor in practice, as there were several throws to open receivers or defenders that were dropped.

It’s been more than a week since training camp got underway in Saskatoon, and head coach Craig Dickenson said he feels his players are all itching for a chance to play a game.

“I thought the guys were moving around well. (Monday) was a tough day. I wasn’t sure how they’d bounce back from back-to-back practices in pads,” Dickenson said.

“Execution was a little bit sloppy at times, but they’re anxious to play a game so we’ve got try to get them to that B.C. game at this point. I think the dog days of summer are here for training camp.”

The Roughriders are to play host to the B.C. Lions in a pre-season game Saturday.

Going forward, the head coach said his team will focus on getting ready for that game against B.C.

But while the Riders will be spending the remainder of the week preparing for their game on Saturday, the team’s new starting quarterback won’t be there.

Trevor Harris will be heading to Columbus on Wednesday morning so he can be with his wife as they get ready to welcome their new baby boy into the world.

“It’s a tough time to leave, but at the same time the team’s done a great job telling me they weren’t going to let me miss this thing,” Harris said when asked about leaving camp to be with his family.

He added the club had no plans to play him in Saturday’s game against B.C.

With Harris missing Saturday’s game, that leaves Mason Fine, Jake Dolegala and Shea Patterson as the team’s three quarterbacks. While his plan for Saturday wasn’t confirmed yet, Dickenson suggested all three will see some playing time.

“We’re going to try and give them equal reps,” said Dickenson.

Down south, the XFL season is now over and there are some in Riderville wondering if the team will try attracting linebacker Darnell Sankey back to Regina. Dickenson poured cold water on those suggestions, saying it’s not something he has thought about.

“We haven’t gone there. I’m sure Jeremy (O’Day, the general manager) and Kyle (Carson, the assistant GM) have talked about it, but I’ve got enough right now,” Dickenson explained.

“I’m just trying to make sure we get to that first pre-season game and have the best roster we can for that first week against Edmonton.”