By Dan Fleser
There is a story behind Job Matossian’s first name, one that warrants telling for practical purposes.
“I get a lot of like mispronunciations,” the William Blount High kicker said. “And then I explain it and they’re like: Oh.”
Matossian said that his parents’ choice for his given name came down to either Saul or Job. Those were quite the options. In a biblical sense, Saul was the first king of the kingdom of Israel and Job was the central figure of one of the oldest books in the Bible.
Matossian didn’t characterize their decision, though, as necessarily befitting such history.
Job Matossian, a sophomore kicker at William Blount High School has displayed phenomenal talent thus far in his varsity career. (Photo: submitted).
“They went with Job,” he said. “They just liked it.”
Upon first meeting, James Wilhoit hadn’t been debriefed and approached Matossian with due caution.
“I waited for his dad to say something,” Wilhoit said.
From there, the former University of Tennessee kicker and the 5-foot-9, 164-pound sophomore were on familiar ground at Wilhoit’s kicking camp this summer. Wilhoit noticed that, along with a unique name, Matossian possessed an athleticism capable of separating him from the pack.
“No pun intended, but (athleticism) puts you a leg up on another kicker,” Wilhoit said.
William Blount coach Philip Shadowens puts Matossian’s range at 60 yards. He nailed a 44-yarder against Alcoa last Friday in the Blount County jamboree with yards to spare. His kick even sounded different than the others.
Prior to William Blount, Shadowens coached at Blackman High in Murfreesboro and was familiar with Wilhoit, who was a high school All-American kicker at Hendersonville High before going to UT and rising to third among career scoring leaders.
Former Tennessee football coach Phillip Fulmer also heard a difference in Wilhoit’s kicking when he was recruiting him.
“He said it was like a cannon going off when I kicked it,” Wilhoit said.
Of all the kickers he’s either coached or coached against, Shadowens said that Matossian reminds him the most of Wilhoit as a high school kicker. Furthermore, he echoed Wilhoit’s estimation of Matossian’s athletic abilities.
“They talk about him as a kicker but he’s a special athlete,” Shadowens said. “He does more than just kick. He’s obviously one of our best receivers. He could be one of our best d-backs. I just don’t let him do that. He’s just a special talent.”
He caught a pass during the jamboree. Matossian, a 2018 Mr. Football kicker semifinalist, also won the kicking and punting portions of the skills competition.
Athletic ability, Wilhoit explained, enhances a kick via leg whip and ball striking. Sounds like a football version of a golfer’s 300-yard tee shot.
@WBHSGovernors William Blount HS (TN) kicker Job Matossian ranks #1 nationally for 2022 recruiting class & earns 2nd Ray Guy @Prokickercom Top Prospect Award! He now gets to compete at national Top Prospect Camp in Nashville TN this summer! https://t.co/kUWubeqhiM pic.twitter.com/go6NOA3DhK
— Ray Guy Prokicker Kicking Camps (@Prokickercom) March 12, 2019
Wilhoit estimated that the pool of potential super kickers nationally in a given year to be roughly 40 in number. Those are the kickers who will contend for Division I collegiate scholarships.
“Your natural talent is only going to get you so far,” Wilhoit said. “You have to develop your craft. What’s going to separate you from those 40 guys?”
Matossian, who traces his kicking history back to the fifth grade, said that he’s interested in seeing how far he can go with it. Wilhoit isn’t yet convinced, however. He thinks that his advice is interpreted more like a sales pitch at this point.
“I don’t think he truly understands how good he can be,” Wilhoit said.
The coming year might offer more clarity, regarding Matossian’s first name for others and his football future for him.