For most kids straight out of high school, there is an adjustment period. 

Not for Riley Whicker. 

The Bingham High graduate and star kicker/punter and goalkeeper is already hard at work preparing for Weber State football’s upcoming season, according to kicking coach Jaxon Clark. 

“Now that soccer season is over, we’re excited to get back to working on the field and getting ready for this fall at Weber State,” Clark said. 

The reason? Rather simple, according to Clark who operates Rogue Kicking, an organization helping local high school punters and kickers advance their skills for college and the pros. 

“Right away he’s expected to compete for the punting and kickoff responsibilities,” Clark said. 

Whicker, who was Bingham’s starting punter, also blasted a career-high four field goals as starting kicker for a Miners team that finished with a 4-1 record in Region 2, 5-6 overall. The 6-foot-2-inch kicker also connected on 17 extra points for Bingham this past season. 

Whicker is also a terror on the soccer field. The three-year starter in that sport was named to the 6A first-team as a Bingham sophomore, was 6A second-team All-State as a junior and will likely be named to the All-State team as a senior when it is announced after he posted 20 shutouts over his high school career, setting a Bingham boys’ soccer program record in the process. 

As a senior, Whicker led the Miners soccer team to a spot in the 6A championship game after he stood on his head for two overtimes and a penalty kick shootout against Lone Peak in the 6A semifinals. Bingham fell 1-0 in the title game to American Fork, but it was Whicker’s leadership over the past three years in part that helped get the Miners to where they ended up during the postseason. 

Whicker the Kicker will now focus his attention on the Weber State football team, where summer training is already underway in Ogden according to Clark. 

“Training has already started! But he reports at Weber June 23,” Clark said. 

That’s because Weber has its first game on Aug. 30 at James Madison, a school that was a perennial power in FCS before moving up to the FBS several years ago. The Wildcats follow that game up with a trip down south to Tucson, Arizona to play the Big 12 University of Arizona Wildcats on Sept. 6. 

For the Wildcats under third-year head coach Michael “Mickey” Mental who’s guided Weber to 10 wins over his first two seasons and has also coached seven FCS Division I-AA All-Americans, year three is big. Mental was Jay Hill’s offensive coordinator at Weber before accepting the head coaching position in 2022 after Hill abdicated his to go to BYU. The Ohio native Mental comes from a winning culture, having led Division II Notre Dame to a 16-2 record as its head coach. 

For Whicker though, Clark said he has also set some goals with the Bingham graduate—the only Miner currently on the Weber State roster. 

“What I would like to see from Riley this year is to gain consistency with his kicks and to find his way on the field in whatever capacity he can help the team the most!”λ