Three steps back. Two steps to his left.
Aaron Sears' process has never changed, through the good or the bad.
He may tweak it some, of course. Those steps back could be longer. Those steps to the side could be as well, but the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga kicker isn't changing a thing when it comes to his approach to football.
That's true even as there could have been reasons to make adjustments - none bigger than the glaringly bad game he had on Nov. 13 against Mercer, when Sears missed two field-goal tries and an extra-point attempt in UTC's 10-6 loss to the Bears. That Southern Conference loss in Macon, Georgia, severely hurt the preseason league favorite's chances of reaching the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs.
Sears didn't change his process that day; the kicks just didn't go in.
He finished the season having made 12 of his 16 field-goal tries and all but two of his 37 extra-point attempts, but in a sport where players make mistakes all game long, missed kicks get highlighted like few others. His four field-goal misses came in two games, with the other two in a 37-34 loss at Virginia Military Institute in early October.
What's remembered about that game? The 37-yard miss in overtime that set up the Keydets' winning kick. What's forgotten? The 39-yarder Sears made to force the extra period.
The misses against Mercer - a 41-yarder on the Mocs' first possession (his first miss of the year from 40 yards or longer) and a 22-yarder at the end of the third quarter that would have given the Mocs the lead - are pointed out, too.
And yet Sears' season also included making three consecutive field goals to help the Mocs take a 16-14 fourth-quarter lead at Kentucky in mid-September before their Southeastern Conference hosts rallied for a 28-23 win. His two field goals provided the only points in the second half of UTC's 13-3 win over Furman on homecoming at the end of October.
But those missed kicks.
Sears looked to another sport when talking about what college football players go through. Unlike an NBA player or team that can shake off a bad shooting night leading to a loss, it's harder for Sears and the Mocs.
"We don't have the luxury of an 82-game season, or like in college basketball, a 30-, 35-game season where we can make up for stuff," Sears said. "We have 11 regular-season games, and I had a bad game where I didn't make plays. But I had probably only one make that didn't contribute to the outcome of the game, so when you look at that, when there are misses it is difficult, but after the game I think people could see in my eyes that I was just as mad as everybody else, more mad at myself than anybody else could be."
As has been the case with this UTC team all offseason, the disappointment of 2021 has served as motivation. Sears guesses he took no more than a week off before getting back to work, growing a bit stronger (he's put on 25 quality pounds since starting college in 2019) with hopes of trying to improve on what was a solid season - but one that could be better.
"I have intrinsic, extrinsic motivation, you name it, to get back on the field and prove who I am, because last year left such a sour taste in my mouth because I knew what I had going, and for that to kind of get spoiled at the end," Sears said. "Coach (Rusty Wright) talks about finishing everything that we do, finishing in school, finishing in the classroom. Last year we didn't finish how we wanted it to, I didn't finish how I wanted to, so now it's transitioning into that next step. I think we've put a good spring together, and we'll go out and try to be the best we can be.
"Maybe there is that chip on our shoulder. I think we'd be foolish not to have that chip on our shoulder, to know that last year we were supposed to be really good and we didn't meet expectations. So this year we're making sure we do what we can to be at the level we know we can be at. We probably won't get picked first in the conference, and that should provide some motivation to us to get after it. We have nothing to lose, so let's go out there and prove who we are. Prove what Chattanooga football is."
The Mocs are set to close one phase of the offseason when they hold their spring showcase at 1 p.m. Saturday at Finley Stadium. Players will begin warming up at 12:30 to take part in game-like situations and give fans a glimpse at the 2022 team, which will kick off its season Sept. 3 with a home game against Furman.
Saturday's activities will also include a one-hour football clinic for eighth graders and younger that begins at 11:30 a.m. Registration for the free event begins a half-hour before the kids' clinic, but parents are encouraged to pre-register online at gomocs.com.
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @genehenley3.