By: Jeff Svoboda (Scout.com) –
Nothing has come easy for Aaron Pettrey through his first three seasons at Ohio State, so why should 2009 be any different? The senior finds himself competing with two fellow placekickers for the starting job, and he’s the first to say they’ve hit the ball well. However, the strong-legged Pettrey still seems set to be the Buckeyes’ starter.

Aaron Pettrey has always been modest, but a pronouncement after Ohio State’s kick scrimmage on Aug. 19 could have raised a few eyebrows.

Discussing the Buckeyes’ fall camp placekicking derby between himself, Ben Buchanan and Devin Barclay, Pettrey made it seem as though his claim on the top job as a returning part-time starter was something short of a lock.

“Right now, I might be third in the kicking battle,” Pettrey said. “I think Ben and Devin are a little bit more accurate than me right now, but we’re all right there together. We’re all pushing each other. Like I said, we’re all swinging really well, hitting the ball solid. I’m not the starter. We’re all battling right now.”

Part of that statement might have been borne out of a little frustration throughout camp, special teams assistant Chad Rogosheske said. It appears that dissatisfaction might have started to melt away after Pettrey was the star of that kick scrimmage, making 9 of 12 field goals and the scrimmage-winning 48-yarder.

“I think he’s been really striving for perfection this camp, and I think that maybe a little frustration has set in from time to time over the course of practice,” Rogosheske said. “I think if he kicks the ball like he did today he’s going to be fine. Hopefully this is a confidence-building experience for him, that he feels good about the way he kicked, and some of the frustration kind of fades away for him.”

It appears that Pettrey was never close to losing the faith of anyone associated with the program at any point in fall. Perhaps that’s because he’s shown he can perform in pretty much all circumstances.

After spending a year as a grayshirt, Pettrey went into 2006 locked in a battle with Ryan Pretorius and was the surprise winner, going on to make 8 of 11 field goals with a long of 51 yards for a team that made it to the national championship game.

After struggling through injury in 2007, Pettrey got back into the mix in ’08, making 7 of 8 field goals, including a long of 54 yards against Youngstown State and a 51-yarder in the Fiesta Bowl against Texas…….

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