CHERRY TWP — For three years, Ethan McDeavitt had wanted to put on football pads.

When he finally got the opportunity Monday, the Moniteau senior needed some help.

“I never even put pads on before,” McDeavitt said, chuckling. “I didn't even know how to put all my gear on when I got here.”

McDeavitt is the newest member of the Warriors' football team.

A standout basketball player and track and field athlete at the school, McDeavitt will handle all the kicking and punting chores for the team this fall.

A soccer player for 10 years until the 10th grade, McDeavitt has a strong leg.

It was enough to pique Moniteau coach Bob Rottman's interest.

“He asked me if we needed a kicker, and I said we do need a kicker — we struggled there last year,” Rottman said. “He took one kick in practice Monday and I said, 'Yeah, you got the job.'”

For now, kicking is all McDeavitt will do.

It was kind of the compromise he made with his parents to be able to play this season, his last at Moniteau.

“Senior year came around and I decided it's now or never,” McDeavitt said. “It was a lot of convincing the parents and the family to let me do it.”

Now that he's doing it, McDeavitt is all in.

He said leading up to the opening of heat acclimation week, he took a football and a tee to a field and practiced booting field goals and kickoffs.

His longest made field goal while doing this was 40 yards, he said.

“With spikes and adrenalin, I think I can make one from 45,” McDeavitt said.

It's still a work in progress.

McDeavitt is working on his mechanics, trying to repeat his kicking motion over and over again.

It's been a process.

“They make it look easy, but if you miss the ball just and inch left or right, then it's terrible,” McDeavitt said. “To get that thing spinning and get it high enough, it's definitely difficult.

“Consistency is what I'm looking for right now,” McDeavitt added. “Once I get the technique and form down, then I'll start trying to kick them longer and farther.”

McDeavitt should help address a troublesome area for Moniteau last season.

The Warriors converted just five extra points and no field goals last season. Often, Moniteau opted to attempt a two-point conversion after a touchdown.

“I'm just hoping to help them,” McDeavitt said. “If we get in a tough situation, I hope I can go out there and put some points on the board.”

McDeavitt certainly did that on the basketball court.

He averaged 12.5 points per game to go with five rebounds, 5.2 assists and three steals her contest.

On the Moniteau track and field team, McDeavitt landed on the Butler Eagle honor roll in three events: 300-meter hurdles, high jump and triple jump.

“The core strength and leg strength to be able to play basketball and also track transfers over to kicking,” McDeavitt said.

He's also working on the mental aspect of kicking.

McDeavitt said he realizes kicking in a game will be different than kicking in practice.

“I've been thinking about how I'm going to be able to kick with actual pressure,” he said. “Right now I feel super comfortable kicking, but I don't feel pressured.”

McDeavitt will also try to keep his urge to play other positions in check.

Rottman said with McDeavitt's athleticism it is going to be hard limiting him to just kicking.

“(Rottman) thinks I'm going to get too excited on the sidelines and want to play more positions,” McDeavitt said, chuckling. “I see those wide receivers doing drills and it looks fun. I'm not gonna lie.”

But the plan is still for McDeavitt to kick.

Nothing more.

And that might be enough to help the Warriors improve on a 7-5 season in 2018, a campaign in which they won four of the last five, including a big playoff win over Clarion.

“I just want to kick to start,” McDeavitt said, smiling. “We'll see.”