When little-known freshman walk-on kicker Nate Whitaker trotted onto the field in the first quarter against Stanford, it marked the fourth player Charlie Weis had used for kickoffs in six games.

Whitaker, a "recruited walk-on" from San Diego, followed Bobby Renkes, Carl Gioia and Ryan Burkhart to the kicking tee with disappointing results.

Renkes had 21 kickoffs to his credit and appeared to have the position nailed down. Then he suffered a quadriceps strain that kept him out of the Purdue and Stanford games.

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