By Mandy Housenick
GoLeopards.com Featured Columnist

Everything was in place for a successful sophomore season for kicker Jack Simonetta.

The Florida native had wrapped up a freshman campaign for the Lafayette Leopards in which he made 6 of the 10 field goals he attempted and 46-of-47 extra point tries.
Then it all fell apart.

In 2024, Simonetta made only 3-of-8 field goal attempts, including two that were blocked, while converting 38-of-39 extra points.

"I was focused on the wrong things," the senior admitted. "My mind was not in the right spot. That was the biggest problem. Mentally, I wasn't there. It was the weakest I have ever been."

Knowing he needed some guidance, Simonetta reached out to Lafayette's coaching staff after his sophomore campaign. Head coach John Troxell had just the guy for him – Dr. Jarrod Spencer, a sports psychologist and president and founder of Mind of the Athlete, LLC, a sports psychology company committed to improving the emotional health of athletes.

Spencer and Troxell not only were teammates back when the two were at Lafayette, but they also played together at Phillipsburg High School. The trust and admiration runs deep both ways. Troxell requires all of his incoming freshmen to read Spencer's book, "The Mind of the Athlete," and Spencer still talks about the impact Troxell made on him dating back to when they were children.

"He will do anything you ask of him," Troxell said of Spencer.

Every week for months, Spencer worked his magic with Simonetta, who opened up about what he needed to change, improve upon and let go of. The list wasn't a short one.

Each week, the duo tackled the list. Little by little, Simonetta started seeing improvement. And when he needed a pick-me-up between sessions, he'd send Spencer a text, just as he does now.

"That (sophomore) year definitely took a toll on me," Simonetta said. "I wasn't there for the team as I wanted to be. I have talked to Jarrod every single week since then. He's awesome. During that first session, I guess it's like a diagnosis in a way. Let's get to the root of the problem, and we did. The biggest thing was I had to find the joy again.

"I was coming off a solid freshman year, but it wasn't even that great. It was solid, but it was God's way of telling me I needed to be humbled. I think that laid the foundation for my junior year to be able to turn it around."

He certainly did.



As a junior in 2025, Simonetta made all six FGs – including a career-best 49 yarder (fourth-longest in school history) and 53-of-54 extra points.

So far this year, he is 5-of-6 on field goal attempts and 9-of-9 on extra point attempts. After what he did in practice recently, he just might set a new career-best and keep climbing higher in the Lafayette record books. The former high school soccer player, who took all of his team's free kicks and corner kicks, nailed a 54-yarder last week.

"He was either going to fight through it or quit," Troxell said. "He actually put in a ton of time with Jarrod Spencer. I knew Jack needed help. It wasn't his ability. It was all a mental thing for him. I saw a huge difference in him his junior year."

Spencer, nationally known for treating clients in the NFL, NHL, MLB, NWSL, the Olympics, etc., said Simonetta was open and willing to his guidance and expertise. Never once did he oppose or debate Spencer's technique or approach.

"Jack's a very, very elite-level athlete, and kicking is one of the most mental positions in all of sports," Spencer said. "He knows to be consistent you have to do the little things every day. We talk about how nothing from yesterday matters and nothing about tomorrow matters. The only thing that matters is right here, right now, this moment."

This moment right now is something Christian Bush is extremely appreciative of. It's something that almost didn't happen.

Bush, Lafayette's senior punter and holder, was initially slated to go to the University of Delaware when he got a call in August of his senior year of high school while he was sitting at the beach with his family.

Then things got even better. A short time later, he got a voicemail from one of the Leopards' coaches while working in the freezer department at Acme wondering if he was interested in being a part of the football team.

But that spot didn't come with a jersey, pads or cleats.

Instead, it came with a video camera.

Bush was asked if he'd film home and away games and even practices. Saying no wasn't an option. He wanted an in to the team any way he could. It meant after practices, he made his way onto the field to practice punting and kicking.

By the spring, the coaching staff invited him to workouts. He made such an impression that when a roster spot opened up for the fall, Troxell offered it to him.



"He is a kid who will do anything for our team," Troxell said. "He did a fantastic job in a role that probably no one would embrace. But he has done so much better over the course of time, and I think he's one of the best in the country. As a holder you have to be steady and put the ball down. The two of them (Bush and Simonetta) are like brothers. Jack, I think, got better because Christian was there. If Christian is holding, Jack is automatic."

Bush could have become discouraged. He could have walked away when he had to watch everyone play, put on their uniforms and celebrate after victories. That thought never crossed his mind.
"I feel like God has a plan and I put it in His hands and He gave me the opportunity," Bush said. "I try to control what I can control and let the rest be up to God. I always knew everything would end up right and work in my favor. I feel like everything will work out. I just got a chance and I kind of went out on a limb. I got into (Lafayette) super late and didn't know what would happen. This is definitely a sign that I had to work my butt off and keep going."

Simonetta talked extensively about how much of an impact Bush makes on his success as a kicker.

"I can confidently say he puts the ball just like my kicking sticks," Simonetta said of the contraption that allows him to practice kicking without a holder. "It's a great feeling. He makes my job look easy. There's a reason for that. He's phenomenal at what he does. I know the ball is going to be there. Bush gets happy about it when he perfects it. He takes pride in it. He practices punt drops 500 times a day wherever he's living. He won't tell you that, but he does. Even in the offseason, if he already punted, he would still come out and hold for me. We just always have each other's backs. Even in the games, after a punt, I make sure to go out and talk to him; I just let him know, 'You're good, you've got this.' I know how much that helps."


Featured in the game program vs. Richmond on Oct. 3