It's five years later and Kyle Brotzman still hasn't healed. Watching a replay of Michigan State-Michigan Saturday night didn't help.
“He's going to be struggling for the next couple of years,” Brotzman said of Michigan punter Blake O'Neill. “I went through hell for a couple of years.”
The former Boise State kicker came home from work Saturday night, flipped on his DVR and watched a replay of the Bobble At The Big House. Whatever you want to call it, he was drawn to O'Neill's mis-play of a snap that led to Michigan State's winning touchdown.
Five years ago, Brotzman missed two easy field goals at Nevada, wrecking the Broncos' chance for a BCS berth -- perhaps even a national championship.
Overnight, he and his plight became a national story. The reaction that followed is already being duplicated in vitriol being directed toward O'Neill from critical nut jobs.
“It's not a good feeling for that, I guarantee you,” Brotzman said. “It's not going to go away. Mine is never going away. Five years later, I'm talking to you about it.
“You're still really never over it. You can move on and live your life but you're constantly reminded.”
After the Nevada game, an overtime loss, Brotzman was not made available to the media. He quickly shut down his Facebook page as death threats poured in. He was surrounded by a loving family that spoke publicly on his behalf.
“Something needs to kind of be done,” Brotzman said. “You get death threats like that. There should be consequences for those people. They're really screwing with (O'Neill's) life, honestly. Hopefully, he's around people who are encouraging him. It's a dark, dark low place when all these people are saying all these hurtful things.
“I think something needs to change with that whole aspect of it. I think the police should be involved. It could be something that's worse.”
Brotzman, now 29, was a career 73 percent kicker and 44.6-yard punter in college. He missed seven of 23 field goals in 2010, but the two against Nevada were the difference between perhaps a Fiesta Bowl and the Las Vegas Bowl.
No one really cared that, at the time, Brotzman was the leading active scorer in then-Division I-A. An Oregon man called his mother saying he'd lost $250,000 on a bet.
The real pain, Brotzman said, didn't subside for years. He sought out counseling. He talked to Jeret Peterson, a three-time Olympic skier. Peterson, with a history of personal problems, killed himself in 2011.
Fellow Idaho resident Bill Buckner even weighed in with an opinion. Billy Buck ought to know about disappointment.
“I doubted myself for a couple of years after the fact,” Brotzman said. “You aren't confident when you hear a bunch of things said about you. It sucks. I'm just now getting back personally. I've been able to go out and be confident, just now getting myself back to normal. Time just helps everything heal.”
Australian rules past may have contributed to mishap
There's no guarantee O'Neill will have to go through any of this, but the early indicators aren't promising. The former Australian Rules player punted at Weber State last season (where he had a punt blocked), before moving to Michigan as a graduate transfer.
O'Neill had unleashed an 80-yard punt earlier in the game against Michigan State. With 10 seconds left against the Spartans, he dropped a punt snap then flung the ball into mid-air trying to kick it away.
Another unknown, Michigan State's Jalen Watts-Jackson, ran it back for a touchdown. Story of the day, week and perhaps season in college football.
Good luck, kid. Your life is about to change.
If Brotzman can be harassed at little old Boise, what happens at Michigan which has half a million living alumni?
All of it is part of what they don't tell recruit when they sign scholarship papers.
“It's an overwhelming experience,” Brotzman said of kicking. “You do get jitters and things do happen. You're only out there maybe four times a game. Everyone else is getting 70 plays.”
These days, Brotzman is trying to revive his career in the Arena Football League. He's recovering from two ruptured discs that slowed him from trying to make kicks between goal posts a mere nine feet apart.
Even though he's being paid, the pressure is much less.
“I've definitely changed since [2010],” Brotzman said. “I look at the big picture.”
“He's going to be struggling for the next couple of years,” Brotzman said of Michigan punter Blake O'Neill. “I went through hell for a couple of years.”
The former Boise State kicker came home from work Saturday night, flipped on his DVR and watched a replay of the Bobble At The Big House. Whatever you want to call it, he was drawn to O'Neill's mis-play of a snap that led to Michigan State's winning touchdown.
Five years ago, Brotzman missed two easy field goals at Nevada, wrecking the Broncos' chance for a BCS berth -- perhaps even a national championship.
Overnight, he and his plight became a national story. The reaction that followed is already being duplicated in vitriol being directed toward O'Neill from critical nut jobs.
“It's not a good feeling for that, I guarantee you,” Brotzman said. “It's not going to go away. Mine is never going away. Five years later, I'm talking to you about it.
“You're still really never over it. You can move on and live your life but you're constantly reminded.”
After the Nevada game, an overtime loss, Brotzman was not made available to the media. He quickly shut down his Facebook page as death threats poured in. He was surrounded by a loving family that spoke publicly on his behalf.
“Something needs to kind of be done,” Brotzman said. “You get death threats like that. There should be consequences for those people. They're really screwing with (O'Neill's) life, honestly. Hopefully, he's around people who are encouraging him. It's a dark, dark low place when all these people are saying all these hurtful things.
“I think something needs to change with that whole aspect of it. I think the police should be involved. It could be something that's worse.”
Brotzman, now 29, was a career 73 percent kicker and 44.6-yard punter in college. He missed seven of 23 field goals in 2010, but the two against Nevada were the difference between perhaps a Fiesta Bowl and the Las Vegas Bowl.
No one really cared that, at the time, Brotzman was the leading active scorer in then-Division I-A. An Oregon man called his mother saying he'd lost $250,000 on a bet.
The real pain, Brotzman said, didn't subside for years. He sought out counseling. He talked to Jeret Peterson, a three-time Olympic skier. Peterson, with a history of personal problems, killed himself in 2011.
Fellow Idaho resident Bill Buckner even weighed in with an opinion. Billy Buck ought to know about disappointment.
“I doubted myself for a couple of years after the fact,” Brotzman said. “You aren't confident when you hear a bunch of things said about you. It sucks. I'm just now getting back personally. I've been able to go out and be confident, just now getting myself back to normal. Time just helps everything heal.”
Australian rules past may have contributed to mishap
There's no guarantee O'Neill will have to go through any of this, but the early indicators aren't promising. The former Australian Rules player punted at Weber State last season (where he had a punt blocked), before moving to Michigan as a graduate transfer.
O'Neill had unleashed an 80-yard punt earlier in the game against Michigan State. With 10 seconds left against the Spartans, he dropped a punt snap then flung the ball into mid-air trying to kick it away.
Another unknown, Michigan State's Jalen Watts-Jackson, ran it back for a touchdown. Story of the day, week and perhaps season in college football.
Good luck, kid. Your life is about to change.
If Brotzman can be harassed at little old Boise, what happens at Michigan which has half a million living alumni?
All of it is part of what they don't tell recruit when they sign scholarship papers.
“It's an overwhelming experience,” Brotzman said of kicking. “You do get jitters and things do happen. You're only out there maybe four times a game. Everyone else is getting 70 plays.”
These days, Brotzman is trying to revive his career in the Arena Football League. He's recovering from two ruptured discs that slowed him from trying to make kicks between goal posts a mere nine feet apart.
Even though he's being paid, the pressure is much less.
“I've definitely changed since [2010],” Brotzman said. “I look at the big picture.”
