Travis Baltz
Encyclopedia
Travis Baltz is an American football
punter who is currently a free agent
. He was signed by the Indianapolis Colts
as an undrafted free agent in 2011 after playing college football
for Maryland
.
to parents Jim and Debbie Baltz. He grew up in Waterville, Ohio
and attended Anthony Wayne High School
where he played football, soccer, basketball, and bowling. In football, he played as a punter and placekicker
. As a punter, he averaged 42 yards per punt
in his junior year and 40 yards per punt in his senior year. As a placekicker in his junior year, he made good five of nine field goal attempts. As a senior placekicker, he made good five of six field goal attempts and 78% of his kickoffs went for touchback
s.
As a junior in 2005, he was named an All-Toledo Blade punter. As both a senior and junior, he was named an all-state and Associated Press
honorable mention All-Ohio Division II punter. As a senior in 2006, he was named a first-team all-district and first-team All-Northern Lakes League
punter, and first-team all-conference and All-Toledo Blade placekicker.
Baltz was not actively recruited out of high school. He wished to attend Maryland and contacted special teams coach Ray Rychleski, whom he provided with film footage. Baltz's desire to attend Maryland was solidified after he visited its College Park
campus, and the nearby cities of Baltimore and Washington, D.C.
Baltz attended summer camp at Maryland where he received praise from former Maryland kicker Nick Novak
, but he still was not extended an offer. He considered Eastern Michigan
, Northwestern
, and Ohio State
, the latter of which had shown interest and requested film. He considered many schools in the country, with academics and football as the primary criteria. His father recommended giving up on Maryland, but Baltz said, "Every school could have offered me and I still would have chosen Maryland." Eventually, Maryland did extend a scholarship offer to Baltz.
, Baltz started in all 13 games and averaged 40.9 yards per punt. In Atlantic Coast Conference
(ACC) games, he averaged 43.1 yards per punt. Against FIU
, he placed five punts inside their 20-yard line, the most be any Maryland punter since Brooks Barnard
in 2001. During the course of the season, Baltz pinned 16 punts inside the opponents' 20-yard line. He recorded a career-long 65-yard punt against Georgia Tech
, which in the fourth quarter along with a 55-yard punt helped ensure a Maryland victory. He was named a The Sporting News
freshman All-American, The Sporting News freshman All-ACC, and Rivals.com
freshman All-ACC player.
In 2008
, Baltz punted 61 times for 2,506 yards, an average of 41.1 yards, with a long of 59 yards. He recorded seven touchbacks and 24 punts inside the opponents' 20-yard line. He also served as the back-up kickoff specialist
, and saw action usually in onside kick attempts. He executed five kickoffs for 243 yards, a 48.6 yard average, one touchback, and two out-of-bounds. He received first-team All-ACC honors. Baltz was named to the 2009 preseason All-ACC team. He was also placed on the Ray Guy Award
watch list. NFL Draft Scout rates Baltz as number-six out of 34 punters assessed for the 2011 NFL Draft.
as an undrafted free agent following the 2011 NFL Draft
on July 26, 2011. He was waived during final roster cuts on September 3, 2011.
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
punter who is currently a free agent
Free agent
In professional sports, a free agent is a player whose contract with a team has expired and who is thus eligible to sign with another club or franchise....
. He was signed by the Indianapolis Colts
Indianapolis Colts
The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. They are currently members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League ....
as an undrafted free agent in 2011 after playing college football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
for Maryland
Maryland Terrapins football
The Maryland Terrapins football team represents the University of Maryland in National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I Football Bowl Subdivision competition. The Terrapins compete within the Atlantic Division of the Atlantic Coast Conference...
.
Early years
Travis Baltz was born on November 18, 1988 in Toledo, OhioToledo, Ohio
Toledo is the fourth most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Lucas County. Toledo is in northwest Ohio, on the western end of Lake Erie, and borders the State of Michigan...
to parents Jim and Debbie Baltz. He grew up in Waterville, Ohio
Waterville, Ohio
Waterville is a village in Lucas County, Ohio, United States, along the Maumee River. The population was 4,828 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Waterville is located at ....
and attended Anthony Wayne High School
Anthony Wayne High School
Anthony Wayne High School is a high school located in Whitehouse, Ohio, a suburb of Toledo. The school has an enrollment of approximately 1,350 students in grades 9-12. The school is named for American General Anthony Wayne, who led troops in the nearby Battle of Fallen Timbers during the Northwest...
where he played football, soccer, basketball, and bowling. In football, he played as a punter and placekicker
Placekicker
Placekicker, or simply kicker , is the title of the player in American and Canadian football who is responsible for the kicking duties of field goals, extra points...
. As a punter, he averaged 42 yards per punt
Punt (football)
In some codes of football, a punt is a play in which a player drops the ball and kicks it before it touches the ground. A punt is in contrast to a drop kick, in which the ball touches the ground before being kicked....
in his junior year and 40 yards per punt in his senior year. As a placekicker in his junior year, he made good five of nine field goal attempts. As a senior placekicker, he made good five of six field goal attempts and 78% of his kickoffs went for touchback
Touchback
In American football, a touchback is a ruling which is made and signaled by an official when the ball becomes dead behind or above a goal line and the team who is attacking that goal line is responsible for the ball being there. Responsibility is determined by which team gave the ball the impetus...
s.
As a junior in 2005, he was named an All-Toledo Blade punter. As both a senior and junior, he was named an all-state and Associated Press
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
honorable mention All-Ohio Division II punter. As a senior in 2006, he was named a first-team all-district and first-team All-Northern Lakes League
Northern Lakes League
The Northern Lakes League , is an OHSAA high school athletic conference that was formed in 1956 and comprises eight high schools in Northwest Ohio.-Current members:-Former members:-1950s:...
punter, and first-team all-conference and All-Toledo Blade placekicker.
Baltz was not actively recruited out of high school. He wished to attend Maryland and contacted special teams coach Ray Rychleski, whom he provided with film footage. Baltz's desire to attend Maryland was solidified after he visited its College Park
College Park, Maryland
College Park is a city in Prince George's County, Maryland, USA. The population was 30,413 at the 2010 census. It is best known as the home of the University of Maryland, College Park, and since 1994 the city has also been home to the "Archives II" facility of the U.S...
campus, and the nearby cities of Baltimore and Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
Baltz attended summer camp at Maryland where he received praise from former Maryland kicker Nick Novak
Nick Novak
Nicholas Ryan "Nick" Novak is an American football placekicker for the San Diego Chargers of the National Football League. He was signed by the Chicago Bears as an undrafted free agent in 2005...
, but he still was not extended an offer. He considered Eastern Michigan
Eastern Michigan Eagles
The Eastern Michigan Eagles, formerly known as the Eastern Michigan Hurons, are the athletic teams for Eastern Michigan University. Altogether, they have won three NCAA Division II national championships and 13 NAIA Division I national championships in five different sports The Eastern Michigan...
, Northwestern
Northwestern Wildcats
The Northwestern Wildcats are the athletic teams that represent Northwestern University, a founding member of the Big Ten Conference and the only private university in the conference. Northwestern has eight men's and eleven women's Division I sports teams. The mascot is Willie the Wildcat...
, and Ohio State
Ohio State Buckeyes
The Ohio State Buckeyes are the intercollegiate sports teams and players of The Ohio State University, named after the state tree, the Buckeye. The Buckeyes participate in the NCAA's Division I in all sports and the Big Ten Conference in most sports...
, the latter of which had shown interest and requested film. He considered many schools in the country, with academics and football as the primary criteria. His father recommended giving up on Maryland, but Baltz said, "Every school could have offered me and I still would have chosen Maryland." Eventually, Maryland did extend a scholarship offer to Baltz.
College career
As a true freshman in 20072007 Maryland Terrapins football team
The 2007 Maryland Terrapins football team represented the University of Maryland in the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I Football Bowl Subdivision college football season. It was the Terrapins' 55th season as a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference and its third within the...
, Baltz started in all 13 games and averaged 40.9 yards per punt. In Atlantic Coast Conference
Atlantic Coast Conference
The Atlantic Coast Conference is a collegiate athletic league in the United States. Founded in 1953 in Greensboro, North Carolina, the ACC sanctions competition in twenty-five sports in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association for its twelve member universities...
(ACC) games, he averaged 43.1 yards per punt. Against FIU
FIU Golden Panthers football
The FIU Golden Panthers football team represent Florida International University in Miami, Florida in the sport of college football. The FIU Panthers are a mid-major NCAA FBS college football team in the Sun Belt Conference led by Mario Cristobal and play at the on-campus FIU Stadium.-History:On...
, he placed five punts inside their 20-yard line, the most be any Maryland punter since Brooks Barnard
Brooks Barnard
Brooks Alexander Barnard is an American football punter. He played professional football for the New England Patriots in the National Football League and for the Rhein Fire in the NFL Europe...
in 2001. During the course of the season, Baltz pinned 16 punts inside the opponents' 20-yard line. He recorded a career-long 65-yard punt against Georgia Tech
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football
The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football team represents the Georgia Institute of Technology in collegiate level football. While the team is officially designated as the Yellow Jackets, it is also referred to as the Ramblin' Wreck. The Yellow Jackets are a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference...
, which in the fourth quarter along with a 55-yard punt helped ensure a Maryland victory. He was named a The Sporting News
The Sporting News
Sporting News is an American-based sports magazine. It was established in 1886, and it became the dominant American publication covering baseball — so much so that it acquired the nickname "The Bible of Baseball"...
freshman All-American, The Sporting News freshman All-ACC, and Rivals.com
Rivals.com
Rivals.com is a network of websites that focus mainly on college football and basketball recruiting. The network was started in 1996 and currently employs more than 300 personnel.-Schools:The individual collegiate sites can be found...
freshman All-ACC player.
In 2008
2008 Maryland Terrapins football team
The 2008 Maryland Terrapins football team represented the University of Maryland in the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I Football Bowl Subdivision college football season...
, Baltz punted 61 times for 2,506 yards, an average of 41.1 yards, with a long of 59 yards. He recorded seven touchbacks and 24 punts inside the opponents' 20-yard line. He also served as the back-up kickoff specialist
Kickoff specialist
A kickoff specialist is a seldom-used position in American and Canadian football. Kickoff specialists are members of the special teams. They are responsible to kick the ball in the kickoff...
, and saw action usually in onside kick attempts. He executed five kickoffs for 243 yards, a 48.6 yard average, one touchback, and two out-of-bounds. He received first-team All-ACC honors. Baltz was named to the 2009 preseason All-ACC team. He was also placed on the Ray Guy Award
Ray Guy Award
The Ray Guy Award is presented annually to college football's top punter by the Greater Augusta Sports Council. The award is named after punter Ray Guy, a former All-American at Southern Mississippi and an all-pro player for the Oakland Raiders.-Criteria:...
watch list. NFL Draft Scout rates Baltz as number-six out of 34 punters assessed for the 2011 NFL Draft.
Indianapolis Colts
Baltz was signed by the Indianapolis ColtsIndianapolis Colts
The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. They are currently members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League ....
as an undrafted free agent following the 2011 NFL Draft
2011 NFL Draft
The 2011 NFL Draft was the 76th installment of the annual NFL Draft, where the franchises of the National Football League select newly eligible football players...
on July 26, 2011. He was waived during final roster cuts on September 3, 2011.
External links
- Freshman Baltz kicks for two spots, The Washington TimesThe Washington TimesThe Washington Times is a daily broadsheet newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States. It was founded in 1982 by Unification Church founder Sun Myung Moon, and until 2010 was owned by News World Communications, an international media conglomerate associated with the...
, April 18, 2007. - Anthony Wayne's Baltz gets kick out of life: Maryland-bound senior excels in football, soccer, The BladeThe BladeThe Blade may refer to:* The Blade , a 1995 martial arts film directed by Tsui Hark* The Blade , a 1997 album by British neo-folk band Sol Invictus* The Blade, a stage name of Brian Gamble, an American professional wrestler and martial artist...
(ToledoToledo, OhioToledo is the fourth most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Lucas County. Toledo is in northwest Ohio, on the western end of Lake Erie, and borders the State of Michigan...
), October 12, 2006. - Baltz steady under pressure, The DiamondbackThe DiamondbackThe Diamondback is the independent student newspaper of the University of Maryland, College Park. It was founded in 1910 as The Triangle and renamed in 1921 in honor of a local reptile, the Diamondback terrapin...
, October 19, 2007. - Baltz no longer a rookie, Rivals.comRivals.comRivals.com is a network of websites that focus mainly on college football and basketball recruiting. The network was started in 1996 and currently employs more than 300 personnel.-Schools:The individual collegiate sites can be found...
, December 12, 2007. - No sophomore slump for Baltz, Rivals.com, November 27, 2007.