St. Paul’s Reynoso Does It All for Kicks

Randall Reynoso, a kicker, receiver, free safety and straight-A student at Santa Fe Springs St. Paul, pulled off the rarest of accomplishments one year ago.

He made his veteran coach, Marijon Ancich, leap off his feet during a football game.

“He’s the first guy,” said Ancich, a head coach since 1961.

Reynoso’s 47-yard field goal with 18 seconds left gave St. Paul a 24-21 Mission League upset victory over Sherman Oaks Notre Dame. It provided so much excitement and adrenaline to the 66-year-old Ancich that his pain from back surgery for sciatica suddenly vanished.

“I’ve never seen emotion like that before,” Reynoso said. “That was cool. In the chapel after the game, he said it was one of the greatest wins in St. Paul history.”

Reynoso, Ancich and St. Paul are hoping for a repeat performance Friday, when the Swordsmen (4-2, 1-0) take on unbeaten Notre Dame (6-0, 1-0), ranked No. 4 in the Southland by The Times.

Reynoso is one of the top kickers in Southern California, having made seven of eight field-goal tries this season. He also has three interceptions as a free safety. He’s so proficient academically that Harvard has invited him to make a recruiting trip for the Harvard-Yale game next month.

“He’s a guy who’s at the right place at the right time,” Ancich said.

Reynoso kicked his game-winner on live television and became a celebrity on campus.

“Oh geez,” he said. “Every class I went to, the teacher made me stand up and gave me applause. I was still getting hugs, and people were picking me up. There was no better feeling.”

Reynoso has the perfect mental makeup for kicking duties. He doesn’t seem fazed by pressure and enthusiastically accepts the fact that a kicker can be the hero or the goat.

“I sleep like a baby,” he said. “I’m not scared to do what I have to do.”

Most kickers are motivated to boot kickoffs into the end zone for a touchback so they don’t have to make a tackle. Reynoso, 6 feet 1 and 195 pounds, isn’t afraid to take on ballcarriers. At kicking clinics, he sometimes has to giggle because he’s out of place among the smaller, less athletic participants.

But his many tasks during games present a challenge. Every time he makes a tackle or gets hit making a catch, it takes time away from his focus on kicking. Last week against La Canada St. Francis, his legs were bruised and his arm hurt, but he still made two field goals. Soon, the time will come in college when he’ll only kick.

“I’m looking forward to it because I know how much better I’ll be,” he said.

High school has changed Reynoso. When he enrolled at St. Paul, he viewed himself as a bit of a loner.

“It went by too fast,” he said. “I love being at school. It changed my outlook. I’m more open to people. I was always sure people knew who I was, but inside I wasn’t as confident.”

Kicking has become a critical position for successful teams. Two weeks ago, at least five games were decided by field goals in the last two minutes. And Reynoso’s kicking counterpart Friday, Notre Dame junior Kai Forbath, might be the hottest kicker in Southern California, having made all 12 of his field-goal attempts.

Reynoso said the chance to be in the spotlight is encouraging students to seek out the kicking position.

“It comes down to kicking more often,” he said. “It’s kind of all or nothing, and a lot of people want that.”

Except Reynoso has become more than only a kicker for St. Paul. He’s a leader and an example of what a teenager can accomplish by embracing the high school athletic experience.