Q&A: Former Bruin Kevin McDermott talks playoffs, long snap techniques

It’s been well-documented that a pair of ex-Bruins – Anthony Barr and Eric Kendricks – have worked together to help anchor the Minnesota Vikings’ defense throughout the team’s playoff run. But the same can be said of Minnesota’s special teams unit, which features former UCLA roommates Jeff Locke and Kevin McDermott.

Locke, an economics major whose contributions to a scientific study and a popular documentary have helped advance the discussion about paying college athletes, has been the Vikings punter since being drafted in the fifth round of the 2013 draft.

McDermott did not join him until this offseason, when he was brought in to compete with veteran Cullen Loeffler after previous one-year stints with the San Francisco 49ers and Baltimore Ravens.

Daily Bruin Sports spoke to both of them about the Vikings’ success, their careers and their thoughts on the state of the UCLA football program.

Daily Bruin: This (is) your third playoffs in three years. … Are you a good luck charm?
Kevin McDermott: You know, we were talking about that in the locker room the other day, this is my third playoff team and each of the teams that I’ve left previously haven’t made the playoffs. It’s just a coincidence, but I’m very lucky that I’ve been able to play on three teams that have made the playoffs because there are many people who play their entire careers and don’t make the playoffs.

DB: Your rookie year, you show up with a 49ers team that had just been to the Super Bowl. How does that compare to the Vikings right now, who are kind of on the rise?
KM: Well, even when I showed up with the Niners, they hadn’t won the Super Bowl, so they were still striving, they weren’t resting on their laurels. And the Vikings are a team on the rise as well, so I think there’s some similarities there. But, you know, the Niners were an older team, we’re a younger team. So I think that has something to do with it as well.

DB: What’s it been like working with Jeff Locke, who you obviously worked with in college as well?
KM: It’s awesome – we were roommates for four years, so we have really good rapport and we work really well together. You know, he was in my wedding party so we’ve been great friends for a very long time. To work with him, it’s really awesome.

DB: Obviously, that relationship (between snapper and punter) is important. Does it help to be so close with him?
KM: Yeah, it helps. I think it definitely helps the transition – when I came in here, I didn’t have to make friends with people right away, (knowing Locke) helped me get into knowing everybody in the locker room a little quicker.

But then again, (kicker) Blair Walsh is someone that I’ve only known for a few months now but we’re great friends as well. It’s good to know somebody but it doesn’t mean that’s the only reason you’re able to fit into a locker room.

DB: You’ve snapped for several different kickers, several different punters now. How much of a difference is there from kicker to kicker, punter to punter, and what types of things might be different?
KM: Well, punter to punter is probably the biggest difference – some people like it a little lower, some people like it a little higher, that’s just personal preference from guy to guy. Kicker, there’s not so much a difference, but the holder, how they like the ball to be presented to them so that they can present it to the kicker.

DB: I found a quote from John Harbaugh in an old Ravens article. He was talking about how the Ravens do a lot with the long snapper in terms of mental responsibilities, different techniques. Can you elaborate on that a bit, in terms of what you might do as a long snapper that the average fan might not see or realize?
KM: On field goal, our job is to snap the ball to the holder and have the laces be – we say, at 12 o’clock, heading right back towards the field goal post.

But other than that, every snap, I’m looking around the field – you know, if it’s a longer field goal like what happened with Auburn and Alabama a few years ago, sometimes a team might put a returner back there and my job is to say, ‘Hey, guys, returner in the end zone, remember to cover.’

Or there’s some teams now that have athletic players that can jump over the center or over the line to block a field goal. So my job is to find those guys and have scouting reports, to know that they have that tendency and advise the other linemen, ‘Hey, watch the jumper, that kind of thing.’

And then on punts, the typical getoff time for a punt is 2.05 seconds so my snap has to be under 0.75 seconds, then the punter has to get the ball off in the amount of time that he has.

Then from there, we have blocking responsibilities – when there are eight guys rushing trying to block a punt, there’s a lot of game preparation that goes into it – watching film and knowing their tendencies and figuring out what look means what, what they might do.

And, you know it’s just making sure – the snap is always the most important thing but it doesn’t matter if the snap’s good if you can’t block. If you can’t block a look, then the punt’s going to get blocked, and you’re looking at a touchdown.

DB: You’ve faced a good amount of adversity in your career as far as being forced to walk on, going undrafted. What’s been the lowest point – did you ever question whether you wanted to or should keep going with football?
KM: I think from an early age, I had a good support system. You know, my parents and my coaches told me, I was playing tight end and defensive end at the time, but they – especially my high school football coach – kept telling me, ‘Hey, listen, you could do this at the next level,’ meaning college, long snapping.

And then when I got to college, I had great coaches who, you know, coach (Rick) Neuheisel, coach (Angus) McClure, who’s still there now, and then coach (Jeff) Ulbrich, who was the defensive coordinator and special teams with me – he’s now with the (Atlanta) Falcons. They said, ‘Hey, you’re good at this, you can do it at the next level.’ So, you know, there wasn’t any doubt that I could make it, and I think it’s definitely a process but it was fun.

DB: When you were at UCLA, you were kind of involved in the initial turnaround of the program, or getting back up to a more prestigious point. What’s it been like to see the program grow, and what was it like watching the team this year when it was kind of a disappointing season?
KM: Well, I look at it differently because my brother’s on the team. I’m very happy that I was able to be a part of the team that beat ‘SC for the first time in a few years, I’m happy that I got to beat ‘SC once. I’m happy that my brother came into a situation where the team was doing better.

For fans, they may have looked at it this year and thought, ‘Well, they didn’t meet expectations.’ But I looked at it as a positive. Ka’imi Fairbairn (won) the Lou Groza and that reflects on the snapper and the holder as well, who I’m close with – Chris Longo, he followed me (as the long snapper) and then Jerry Neuheisel (as the holder). And Ka’imi was my kicker my senior year so we’re all still very close.

My brother started all year and was lucky enough to play and play well, and I think there were some results that didn’t go our way but I think that the team is trending upwards.