Dominik Eberle: Beautiful game to the gridiron

“I knew I could kick the ball far from soccer, but kicking a football was so different at first that I wasn’t used to it.” Those are the words of Utah State football senior kicker Dominik Eberle, who’s become somewhat of a living legend among Aggie fans due to his superb record as the team’s trusted specialist. But Eberle’s journey to becoming possibly the program’s best kicker ever wasn’t one that started with dreams of playing football. 

Eberle grew up in Nuremberg, Germany, a city in the northern end of Bavaria that claims the 14th largest population in Germany. Bavaria, much like any other German city, is built on its love of football, just a different kind than Eberle is used to playing now. Bavaria is home to the largest, most iconic German soccer club – Bayern Munich. The Bavarian giants have won the German first division championship a record 29 times — 20 more than any other club in the region — and an additional 10 European trophies. 

But that didn’t appeal to Eberle. Instead, he chose to support his hometown club, FC Nürnberg. 

Allianz Arena — home of Bayern Munich. Photo by: Uwe Lein/AP

“We have Bayern Munich about two hours away, so some of my friends are Bayern fans. But that’s kind of like the biggest team, the most successful team, so people choose to like that,” Eberle said. “But just being from a smaller city just going to the games with my dad since I was about four years old, was just a different experience. And I’m never going to turn my back on them, no matter how they do.”

As a child growing up in Germany, he naturally took to soccer. And, in some ways, how he played and who he idolized shaped him into the football player he is today. 

“Even when I was young, Christiano Ronaldo was one of the top guys but when I was really young I always tried playing like Thierry Henry,” Eberle said. “That’s really who I tried to mark my game off and the things that he did with the ball, as a defender you wouldn’t always know where he’d go.” 

Strikers are masters with a ball at their feet. Not all strikers possess extreme pace, great passing or dribbling. But what they all have in common — the good ones at least — is the ability to hit the ball at any angle, from any body position, with extreme precision. 

Kickers are expected to be able to make kicks from anywhere on the field. Left hash, right hash, center. They have to be relied upon to execute in the biggest moments. That doesn’t scare Eberle. 

“Mentally you’ve got to be strong; you’ve got to be calm in certain situations, and you’ve just gotta constantly envision that. Because without that, most of the time it’s not going to happen,” he said.

Forwards are some of the most powerful strikers of the ball in the world, and Eberle’s background is partially to thank for his ability to drive the ball at an elite level. And that’s evident in some of the records he holds at Utah State. This past season, he became just the sixth kicker in NCAA history to make three field goals of 50-plus yards in a single game. 

“From anyday, I’d probably say around 60 yards. But if there’s wind at my back, I’d say 65-70. I’ve worked on the longer range kicks, that was really my focus,” he said. “I wanna be more accurate from 45-50 yards out than I have, but being smart about it, not trying to over-kick it.”

Photo by: Megan Albrechtsen. Dominik Eberle smiles as he pauses from keeping warm to watch the game against Air Force this past season.

Eberle moved to California when he was 14 years old, and it wasn’t long after that he stopped playing his childhood sport. Based on a suggestion from a friend, Eberle tried out for the football team. His friend was so impressed after Eberle kicked a ball over a golf netting, he knew his talent to strike a ball could translate to another sport. But it wasn’t necessarily an immediate fit at first. 

“I mean I could kick the ball 50 yards but I’d make it once out of every 15 tries or so,” Eberle said. “But once I got into my junior year, that’s when the consistency really started showing up and not only on kick-offs, but on field goals. And that’s kind of when I had an idea that I might be able to go somewhere.”

Coming to Utah State has worked out well for Eberle. He’s facing the inevitability of breaking seven career kicking records this season. Statistically — and in the hearts of Aggie fans — he’s the most prolific, most iconic placekicker in school history. For years, Utah State struggled with its special teams, finishing an average of 97th in field goal conversion percentage in the NCAA in the four years prior to Eberle taking over the starting role. Over the past two seasons, he’s boosted the Aggies to 70th and 44th in the nation while converting 75 percent of his field goals. He’s cultivated an impressive resume to show scouts at the next level, which he says is his goal after the season, to be an NFL kicker.

But he hasn’t done it alone. Although his route to Logan wasn’t traditional, the fact he ended up there has been vital to his success. 

“From just knowing how hard one plays to the willingness to learn, the willingness to do certain things right. That’s kind of what coaches want to ingrain in you,” he said. “Not being able to criticize him, but being able to coach him on what he can do to be better, that’s kind of what I feel the coaches do really well here.”

For those that don’t know much about the German Bundesliga, the club Borussia Dortmund has a rich history of success in European football. Four-time German cup champions, eight-time league champions and the 13th ranked club in the world, according to UEFA’s coefficient. But unlike Bayern Munich who typically goes out and buys the best talent, Dortmund invests in uber talented youth who eventually become the players every other club in the world wants to buy. The club operates in a similar way to Eberle’s hometown club FC Nürnberg; making the most of what you have through coaching and hard work, producing high-quality players and people. 

And thanks to his love of both kinds of football, Eberle was able to point out the similarities between Dortmund and Utah State.

“They really focus on player development rather than just going after the highly sought out recruits,” he said. “They would always just trust their players, trust their system, and everyone’s kind of together like a brotherhood. And when they come together, that’s when they’re kind of unstoppable.”

Twitter: @dren_sports