Podlesh proves that Jews do play football

So in this game of offensive juggernauts, who ranks as the Terrapin football team’s most dynamic weapon, the guy who the crowd cheers a little bit louder for when the ball is in his hands? Punter Adam Podlesh, of course.

Podlesh, who describes himself as somewhere between a Reform and Conservative Jew, helped to win the field position battle for last year’s Terrapin squad. That team was led by a strong defense but had an offense that could rarely sustain a long drive.

“It was nice,” Podlesh said with a sheepish smile as he recalled the attention he received from Terp fans so rarely granted to punters. “Who doesn’t want attention like that? It’s certainly something I never expected, but it was a pleasant surprise.”

The redshirt sophomore from Pittsford, N.Y., was second team all-Atlantic Coast Conference for the second straight season. He finished second in the conference with an average of 43.7 yards per punt and recorded the longest punt in the ACC this season with a 70-yard boot against North Carolina State in mid-October.

In the Terps’ 20-17 upset of then-No. 5-ranked Florida State on Oct. 30, the school’s first-ever victory against the powerhouse Seminoles, Podlesh punted eight times for an average of 45 yards, and stuck three of his punts inside Florida State’s 20-yard line.

“His consistency is what’s so impressive,” said former Terp kicker Nick Novak, the ACC’s all-time leading scorer and Podlesh’s close friend and mentor. “He doesn’t have a gigantic leg, but he’s got great control. You tell him to put it in the corner, and he’ll put it in the corner.”

Podlesh is also a standout athlete, a phrase not often associated with punters. He set a school record for a punter by running a 4.48-second 40-yard dash — a time faster than some NFL running backs register. He also posted the second-highest bench press ever by a Terp punter, at 340 pounds.

“At any position in college, it’s good to be athletic,” Podlesh said. “If something goes wrong, it’s easier to recover. I take a lot of pride in the fact that I’m in there working out with the linebackers and [defensive] linemen.”

Podlesh’s athleticism dates back to his days at Pittsford Sutherland High School, outside of Rochester, N.Y. He was a three-year letter winner in football, and also played linebacker, fullback and kicker  in addition to his punting duties.

In fact, Podlesh, a soccer player in middle school, says he began playing football better at placekicking than punting because of the similar kicking motion to soccer. He credits his development as a punter to the two summers he spent in high school working with renowned coach Paul Assad in Modesto, Calif. Assad coaches both kickers and punters, and his previous clients include Sebastian Janikowski of the Oakland Raiders.

Podlesh relishes his role as the only Jewish player on the Terps and says his religion is important to him. “It’s definitely a part of me that I take a lot of pride in,” he said.  “There’s not a lot of Jewish football players.”

Observing the Sabbath is an obvious difficulty for a college football player, as the majority of games are played on Saturdays. But Podlesh, who became a Bar Mitzvah at Temple Brith Kodesh and attended Sunday school back home in Pittsford, said he does observe the High Holidays. When he is at home, his family observes other holidays as well, such as Passover.

Podlesh remains characteristically sheepish when speaking about his future. He’s currently a finance major, but his goal of one day playing professional football is obvious, even if he’s too humble to say it.

“I try not to think about [the NFL] too much,” Podlesh said with a knowing grin. “But I think all collegiate athletes at least think about the next level in the back of their minds.”