For Iowa Hawkeye and former Central Michigan punter Ron Coluzzi, playing at the top level of college football had always been a goal of his. His path to get there was a tad bit unorthodox.

“I always had dreams and aspirations of playing in the Big Ten,” said Coluzzi.

 A Naperville North alum, Coluzzi graduated from the class of 2012. He received offers from multiple schools for placekicking and punting, eventually committing to Central Michigan. After being redshirted his freshman year, Coluzzi handled the field goal kicking duties in 2013. In 2014, he was delegated to punting and kickoff duties and was named their Special Teams Player of the Year, according to CMU Athletics. Coluzzi maintained the same role the next season before graduating and transferring to the University of Iowa.  

Coluzzi was able to continue his football career at Iowa because he had received his degree from Central Michigan and still had a year of eligibility left. This gave him the chance to go to graduate school at Iowa, where he is currently double majoring in marketing and logistics management while finishing off his fourth and final season.

“When I went to Naperville North, seeing Matt LaCosse go to Illinois and watching him on TV and hearing his name on TV, it made me feel kind of jealous and think why can’t that be me,” said Coluzzi.

LaCosse, who played quarterback at Naperville North, is one of many former Huskies to play at the collegiate level. After playing tight end at Illinois, LaCosse went undrafted into the NFL and is now on the New York Giants. At Iowa, Coluzzi made a name for himself when he was named the Big Ten Special Teams Player of the Week against Rutgers in week four. Still, that did not hold him back from thinking about his missteps.

“After the game, I remember being on the plane and almost tearing up because I was upset with the way I performed,” said Coluzzi.

Coluzzi is motivated to play at the highest level for his teammates, school and family, especially his younger brother, Naperville North senior Marshall Coluzzi. Like Ron, Marshall is on special teams, but is a long snapper.

“We grew up as kids in the backyard with me snapping to him,” said the younger Coluzzi. “He’s five years older than me so we didn’t get to play football together, but when he was kicking well his senior year of high school, I had just started long snapping.”

Marshall also made note of how Ron has helped him with the recruiting process and how to be successful when it comes to football. Ron’s hard work, dedication, and easy-going nature have helped him to reach this level. Ron’s loose and goofy personality helps him deal with the stressful job of kicking.

“You’ve got to be kind of weird [to be a kicker], that’s why I carry around a football and named it Naomi,” said Coluzzi.

As they say in sports – whatever works. Coluzzi and the Hawkeyes are currently sitting at 6-4 (4-3 in the Big Ten West) after upsetting Michigan 14-13. During the game, Coluzzi tripped over his own feet, doing a somersault before Michigan linebacker Devin Bush hit Coluzzi with a helmet-to-helmet hit. Yet Coluzzi continued to play, pinning Michigan inside their 20-yard line three times. Coluzzi is currently being evaluated for a possible concussion from multiple hits throughout the game. The Hawkeyes will need him as the team faces tough challenges ahead against Nebraska and a bowl game in the coming weeks. All this means is Coluzzi has to “kick” it up a notch.