Robert Hammond III arrives in Manhattan with one job that jumps off the page: kick it deep and keep it out of harm’s way.
The transfer kickoff specialist from Toledo followed special teams coach Stanton Weber to Kansas State, bringing a résumé built around touchbacks and field position. Hammond, who is majoring in business management, played in all 13 games last season as the Rockets’ primary kickoff man and also handled place-kicking duties in the Boca Raton Bowl.
His numbers were strong across the board. Hammond averaged 62.9 yards on 71 kickoffs and produced 43 touchbacks, leading the Mid-American Conference in kickoff average, touchbacks and touchback percentage at 60.6%.
One of his biggest kicks came against Akron, when he posted a career-best 65.8-yard average. That game included a 90-yard touchback after he kicked off from the 10-yard line because of two personal foul penalties. It is believed to be the longest kickoff in school history, with the ball traveling 82 yards in the air, bouncing at the Zips’ 8-yard line and rolling into the end zone.
He also showed consistency in a few other spots last season, going 8 for 8 on touchbacks against Western Kentucky, 7 for 8 against Morgan State and six for seven against Northern Illinois. In the Boca Raton Bowl against Louisville, he made two field goals, including a 50-yarder, and added four touchbacks on five kickoffs.
Before his Toledo stint, Hammond redshirted in 2023 and did not play in 2024 at FAU.
A Fort Lauderdale native, he was coached at Cardinal Gibbons Catholic High School by Matt Dubuc and was ranked the 35th-best kicker nationally in the Class of 2023 by Kohl’s Kicking. Hammond earned all-state honors as a junior and senior, set a Chiefs school record with 57 straight extra points, drilled a career-long 53-yard field goal and finished with 62 touchbacks on 91 kickoffs, a 68.1% rate, with an average kickoff of 58.0 yards. He also played volleyball in high school.
Hammond originally committed to Tom Herman and Florida Atlantic as a preferred walk-on, turning down scholarship offers from Air Force, Army, Elon and Tennessee State, along with interest from Florida, Florida International, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Liberty, Memphis, South Florida and Temple.
In Other News...
Bill Snyder Just Sent Collin Klein A Massive K-State Signal
Collin Klein is getting ready for his first season as Kansas States head coach, and the timing of Bill Snyders backing matters. Klein arrives after a stint as offensive coordinator at Texas A&M, but he is hardly starting from scratch in Manhattan. He knows the program, he knows the expectations and he already has a working relationship with quarterback Avery Johnson, which gives the Wildcats a familiar foundation as they try to move forward from last seasons 6-6 finish.
Snyders support only adds to the sense that Kansas State is trying to make this transition feel like a continuation rather than a reset. The Wildcats are also already looking well beyond the immediate season, working on the 2028 recruiting class and extending offers such as one to tight end AJ Criss, a 6-foot-7 prospect from Krum, Texas. For a program trying to steady itself and keep momentum in the long view, the message around Klein is clear: the next chapter is being built with both old trust and new recruiting work. [Read more 🡒]
Kansas State Keeps Chasing Its First 2028 Commit With Another Offer
Kansas State is still early in the race for its 2028 class, but the Wildcats are making sure they are in the conversation with some of the cycles more intriguing young prospects. The staff has continued to hand out offers across the country, adding tight end AJ Criss, defensive lineman Ronald Crawford, cornerback Antonio Dural, edge rusher Steven McClendon and cornerback Bryce Willingham to a growing board as it tries to lay the groundwork for a future class.
The bigger picture is that these are not just placeholder names. Several of the players Kansas State has targeted already have multiple Division I offers, which means the Wildcats are competing with established programs for attention this early in the process. For a staff trying to build momentum in the 2028 cycle, the next step is turning those offers into real traction, and that part of the story is still unfolding. [Read more 🡒]