Travis Tripucka 6'1" 240
LS, Massachusetts
Rankings: NFLDraftScout: 10th-ranked long snapper. Free agent grade.
Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel ranked him the #2 long snapper.
Pro Football Weekly: not listed.
Biography/honors:
2011: Started 10 games at long snapper. 3 tackles. UMass averaged only 35.8 yards per punt and had two punts blocked. Placekicker was only 8-for-14 on FGs and 29-for-34 on PATs.
2010: Started all 11 games at long snapper. One tackle. Team averaged only 34.4 yards per punt and had four punts blocked. New placekicker was 29-for-31 on PATs but only 9-for-16 on FGs.
2009: Started all 11 games at long snapper. Team averaged 38.3 yards per punt (new punter) and had one blocked. Kicker was perfect on 33 PATs and made 20-of-26 FGs.
2008: Started all 12 games at long snapper. 2 tackles. UMass' punter led the country in punting average with 44.3. The kicker was 45-for-46 on PATs, 6-for-8 on FGs.
2007: Redshirted.
Father Kelly played in the NBA for 10 years and was a two-time All-Star. He led Notre Dame in scoring all four years of college and was second-team All-America twice.
Grandfather Frank was the first overall pick of the 1949 NFL Draft. He quarterbacked in the NFL, CFL and AFL for 15 seasons. The Broncos retired his number 18, which he allowed to be un-retired this year for Peyton Manning.
Major: sociology.
Injuries: none reported, though he missed one game this season.
Pro day stats: (participated in Boston College's pro day)
(Jake McQuaide's 2011 pro day numbers in parentheses)
5.15 40 (5.07)
1.69 10-yard split (1.68)
32” vertical jump (29”)
8'9" broad jump (9'1")
7.67 3-cone drill (7.10)
4.79 20-yard shuttle (4.48)
17 bench press (19)
Positives: Very athletic, plays with good energy. Gets perfect rotation consistently on field goal snaps. Accurate snapper on punts. Shows nice footwork in coverage and looks like a solid wrap-up tackler. Kicking game really improved in his first year at long snapper, per his coach.
Negatives: Has a hitch in his setup and delivery that teams will key on. Was high with some of his field goal snaps at the specialists combine. More wobbly snaps on punts than you'd like. Not enough velocity. Accuracy is just ok. Gets a little too pumped-up and loses accuracy when he's stressed, seen at the specialists combine. Not a factor covering punts, with only 6 career tackles.
Compares to: Jake McQuaide. I'm lazy, so sue me.
Fun Facts: Travis was recruited to UMass on an athletic scholarship. In lacrosse. He was one of the UMass lacrosse team's top defensemen and started 12 games his junior year. He was a decorated high school lacrosse player and a two-time New Jersey state champion. Travis' uncle Frank quarterbacked for the Minutemen in the 70s.
RamView: Long snapper's hardly going to be the most-watched battle in training camp, but there's a decent chance of it being a close one. Tripucka got a lot of good reviews after his signing. Special teams coaches like to develop their own guys, and John Fassel coached two-time Pro Bowler Jon Condo for three years, so he definitely knows what to look for. Rams incumbent Jake McQuaide got good reviews last year, though. He's a little more athletic and seems to be more of a presence covering kicks. And, unlike the dumping of Chris Massey last year, there's little salary cap benefit to dumping McQuaide. Keep an eye on this battle, but I suspect McQuaide will have to do a lot wrong to lose it.
Chance of making roster: 30%.
Sources: NFLDraftScout, University of Massachusetts athletics, Wikipedia, YouTube, Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel
Photo: The Republican (Springfield, MA)
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