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ASU adds punter to 2013 class

Arizona State added a punt to its 2013 class Tuesday when West Des Moines (Iowa) Dowling High senior Matt Haack committed to the program over Iowa State.
"They were super excited. I talked to coach (Joe) Lorig, he was super excited and they were talking about how great of a fit they thought I was for their program," Haack said. "I talked to coach (Todd) Graham and he was saying a lot of the same things and pretty soon a bunch of coaches where in there talking to me and giving me congrats and telling me they can't wait until I get there."
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Haack, 6-foot-1, 190 pounds, earned a scholarship from the Sun Devils soon after visiting the school for its kicking and snapping camp earlier this summer. He typical punts rugby style in his team's scheme, and is not a field goal kicker.
"I had a great time," he said. "It was a spur of the moment type deal. I was at Iowa State a few days before and that was the first time I met (kicking school proprietor) Jamie Kohl and he was like, you've got to come down there with me, telling me places I should go, and one of them was Arizona State. So I took off and went.
"After the camp I went on a tour of the facilities and campus and got to talk to one of the student advisors and coach Lorig. Coach Graham was out of down. I went on a campus tour and coach Lorig called my high school coach a couple days later and checked the kind of student I was and my character and after that they offered a scholarship. That was my first one."
Haack later took a tour of a number of colleges across the country while staying regularly in touch with ASU and Iowa State, his two offers. He believed he was ASU's top option and the school was looking for a decision before turning its attention elsewhere.
"It was a hard decision," he said. "I wouldn't say it was based on location because I have family in Arizona and was born there and visit a lot for spring break. I respect both coaches. A lot of it was academics, the opportunities I'll have at Arizona State. I'm thinking about sports management and the internship opportunities are incredible and I might want to live there one day. I loved coach Lorig and coach Graham and the other coaches I got to meet when I was there."
Haack said he wasn't sure, but believed he averaged between 37 and 39 yards on his punts last season at Dowling, where he earned second-team all-conference honors and also plays wide receiver.
"From what I've been told, the coaches like my athleticism and leg strength," he said. "I just need to keep working on technique stuff and flexibility is always a good thing and just being more consistent, hitting better and better balls every day, hitting them higher and just improving in everything."
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