Bonanza High School kicker Braeden Osotio is an emerging spot kicker prospect. He is pictured Aug. 17, 2026, connected the Bengals' field. Photo by: Ray Brewer
By Ray Brewer (contact)
Thursday, Aug. 20, 2026 | 2 a.m.
Sponsored by Zero Teen Fatalities
Bonanza High elder Braeden Osotio’s beingness was consumed by soccer: practice, idiosyncratic training, games and tournaments. Rinse and repeat.
That was his beingness for 10 years — and, helium admits, helium was acceptable for a caller challenge. He instantly fell successful emotion with kicking a antithetic benignant of ball, a football.
Two years later, Osotio is 1 of the apical spot kickers successful Nevada.
He opened the play past week with a 36-yard tract extremity against Chaparral. The crippled was called successful the archetypal fractional due to the fact that of inclement weather.
He’s rated a 4.5-star enlistee connected Chris Sailer Kicking’s six-star scale, meaning helium projects arsenic a Football Championship Subdivision starter oregon a preferred walk-on astatine the apical level, according to the group’s ratings description.
Not atrocious for idiosyncratic who taught himself however to footwear by watching explainer videos connected YouTube. Then helium took to societal media, posting videos of his attempts for feedback from the kicking community.
He was instantly hooked connected getting better.
“There’s specified an adrenaline unreserved erstwhile you footwear a tract extremity and the announcer says your name,” helium said.
Osotio spent the offseason showcasing his skills astatine assorted camps, including an awesome showing successful January astatine 1 of Chris Sailer’s valuation events. Sailer is the authorization connected prep kickers, and his rankings are utilized by assemblage recruiters.
Osotio besides took 2nd successful a contention astatine UNLV’s campy this summer, and besides participated successful events astatine the University of Oregon and the University of Arizona. He’s waiting for his archetypal assistance connection — which isn’t uncommon, since colleges capable roster spots initially with presumption players.
For Bonanza manager Jeremy Stiles, the tract goals are nice. But Osotio’s interaction connected the defence is much notable.
Kickoff returns for a touchdown are communal successful the precocious schoolhouse game, wherever teams often don’t person kickers and settee for squib kicks to forestall agelong returns. With Osotio, Bonanza has an borderline — each 3 kickoffs against Chaparral weren’t returned.
“The touchbacks (on kickoffs) are a immense woody successful flipping the field,” Stiles said.
The manager added that erstwhile Bonanza is connected offense, the squad is simply a archetypal down oregon 2 distant from being successful Osotio’s tract extremity range. Osotio has connected from 60 yards successful practice.
He went 3 of 5 connected tract extremity attempts successful his debut play past year. Stiles, successful his archetypal play arsenic Bonanza’s coach, senses he’ll get much opportunities successful the coming weeks.
“It’s (great) to spot a kid instrumentality thing truthful earnestly and privation to beryllium bully astatine something,” the manager said. “He is putting successful the work.”
Osotio has besides been called to marque a fewer tackles implicit the past 2 years connected peculiar teams. He proudly says he’s accounted for 3 tackles and a forced fumble successful his vocation — not atrocious for a 5-foot-8, 135-pound frame.
When the ballcarrier broke through, Osotio said helium wasn’t reasoning “oh no,” helium was conscionable acceptable to marque the play.
Osotio carries a 4.3 grade-point mean astatine West Career Technical Academy, a magnet schoolhouse without a shot team. Osotio plays for Bonanza due to the fact that it’s his zoned school.
He’s hoping the passionateness for kicking leads to a spot astatine the adjacent level. He’s inactive a enactment successful advancement based connected his tenure, but that tenure shows a agleam future.
English (US)·