Josh Jasper was destined to be a place-kicker at the age of 3.He just didn’t know it yet.The LSU junior began his athletic career playing soccer as a toddler, and it wasn’t until middle school he picked up a football. A few years later, his parents suggested he put his kicking leg to another use.”We encouraged him to give kicking a try since he was a soccer player and could basically put the ball wherever he wanted to,” said Josh Jasper’s father, John.Josh Jasper said he caught on to kicking a different ball quickly.”I remember kicking off for the first time when I was in middle school,” he said. “I went to some kicking camps and progressed from there … If it weren’t for soccer, I wouldn’t be kicking.”Josh Jasper’s original football positions were quarterback and wide receiver before he focused solely on kicking in his junior and senior years at Ridgeway High School in Memphis, Tenn. He finished his high school career with a Tennessee state record of 44 field goals, and he was rated the No. 12 kicker in the nation by Scout.com as a senior.”I used a tee for field goals for a couple of years in high school, and then my senior year I kicked off the ground to get ready for college,” Josh Jasper said.Southeastern Conference blood already runs in the Jasper family, as Josh’s grandfather, Bill Jasper, was a center at Tennessee when the Volunteers won the 1951 national championship.Josh Jasper said he grew up a Tennessee fan and considered following in his grandfather’s footsteps, but he said LSU gave him a “good vibe” when he arrived for his official visit. ”[Former LSU kicker] Colt [David] was my host and [senior linebacker] Jacob Cutrera also,” Josh Jasper said. “And then when I walked into that stadium, it felt like that was the place for me to be. I’m sure that’s what everybody says when they come for their official visit, but it’s really true.”Josh Jasper has started all of LSU’s games this season after kicking just two field goals and five extra points in 23 appearances as a freshman and sophomore. He has handled the kickoff and extra point duties in 2009 and is 9-of-10 in field goals with his only miss a 19-yard kick at Mississippi State.”It was a good change in my life to move down here,” Josh Jasper said. “I saw Tennessee had been struggling, and my dad didn’t have any hard feelings about it. I had some scholarship offers from schools like Kentucky and Auburn, but LSU felt like the bigger school.”Josh Jasper said the special teams unit at LSU has gelled throughout the season both on and off the field.Junior punter Derek Helton said he and Josh are great friends.”Being the specialists, people think we’re different,” Helton said. “We mess with each other all the time. From my experience being a specialist so far, that’s who you hang out with most of the time.”Josh Jasper and Helton are both sports management majors, and Josh said Helton played a trick on him recently when he missed a class they had together.”The other day [Helton] texted me in the middle of class,” Josh Jasper said. “He was like, ‘Where you at? You better get here. We have a test.’ I rushed over there and he was sitting there laughing. I was like, ‘I hate you.’ That pretty much sums it up.”Josh Jasper’s longest field goal for this season and for his LSU career was a 52-yarder Sept. 19 against Louisiana-Lafayette. At the same time, he did not make excuses for his kick he hooked wide left against Mississippi State.”Based on what I’ve seen, coach [Les] Miles respects Josh and has a lot of confidence in his capabilities,” John Jasper said. “He’s getting to do the pooch kicks some, and he hit the 52-yarder. Josh just wants the chance to do more.”—-Contact Rachel Whittaker at [email protected]