Chris Huston (00:01.305)
The NCAA record for most field goals in a season is held by Billy Bennett of Georgia in 2003. That total was 31. Currently through seven games, Kansei Matsuzawa of Hawaii has 19 out of 19 attempts. He is on pace to set the all time NCAA record for field goals in a season and we welcome him to the Heisman Trophy podcast. Welcome to the show Kansei.

Kansei Matsuzawa (00:26.712)
Thank you for inviting.

Chris Huston (00:28.931)
They call you the Tokyo Toe. Who gave you that nickname?

Kansei Matsuzawa (00:31.278)
Me and my long snapper Jack Moley was eating lunch together and then he said, you're going to have a great year and so you have to have a nickname. And we kind of talked about it and then he came up with Tokyo Toe.

Chris Huston (00:52.269)
What do your friends back in Tokyo think about that?

Kansei Matsuzawa (00:55.182)
I think they liked it. Yeah, but it's spread so fast. whatever fans like it. So yeah, I love that.

Chris Huston (01:01.624)
Yeah.

Chris Huston (01:06.999)
Do people even shorten the name even further and just call you the toe?

Kansei Matsuzawa (01:11.916)
Yeah, yeah, and like a toe, T-O-E and -kyo. Toe-kyo.

Chris Huston (01:16.889)
Yeah. Yeah. yeah. That's great. Okay. So Tokyo to America is a huge jump. You went to Ohio for junior college and then ended up in Honolulu. What was the hardest thing to adjust to? Was it football? Was it language? Was it daily life?

Kansei Matsuzawa (01:33.294)
Definitely language is the hardest part. I couldn't speak English at all like five years ago and kicking and English is self taught and you know, just being the patient is the most important thing for me and I knew it was coming. So just hang out with my friend, play football, focusing on like what I can do right now and that helps me.

Chris Huston (02:01.475)
Yeah.

Kansei Matsuzawa (02:02.83)
to catch up all the English skills.

Chris Huston (02:06.905)
Yeah, it's pretty remarkable to learn it. I think you learned it over YouTube mostly, right? Were there specific channels that taught English for Japanese or did you watch a lot of American TV shows or videos to kind of get a sense of the patterns?

Kansei Matsuzawa (02:10.83)
Yeah, YouTube helps me a lot.

Kansei Matsuzawa (02:25.57)
Yeah, I watch a lot like American TV show. Like, yeah, those are helps me. And also, like, I watch a lot of like NFL games and then just so I like talking about like football, but like anything else is kind of like I have to.

Chris Huston (02:41.633)
Hmm. So you, so you're, you're football, you can speak football better than you can the rest of it. Okay. Yeah. Before Hawaii, what was your sports background like in Japan?

Kansei Matsuzawa (02:47.532)
Yeah, for sure. Yeah, better than anything.

Kansei Matsuzawa (02:55.875)
I used to play soccer until high school and so I kind of have like a kicking background so that's why I chose to be a kicker.

Chris Huston (03:02.851)
Mm-hmm.

What made you decide that you should be a football player and kick field goals in the United States?

Kansei Matsuzawa (03:12.334)
first NFL games, went to Oakland to watch my first NFL game in person and that experience like kind of stack with my head. And then I was like, I want to be an NFL player. You know, it's all of a sudden, you know, just, popped up in my head. And, I was already like 20 years old. So I was like, probably like kicker. I might be able to.

Chris Huston (03:26.136)
Yeah.

Chris Huston (03:31.992)
Mm-hmm.

Kansei Matsuzawa (03:40.93)
be an awful player, you like I gotta do it. I bought the football and started practice myself.

Chris Huston (03:42.219)
Yeah, yeah.

Chris Huston (03:48.683)
It seems like a goal that would have been so hard to achieve considering your background and where you were and you were already 20. You must have an amazing determination and you must have really visualized what you wanted to do and made a plan. Is that right?

Kansei Matsuzawa (04:06.402)
Yeah, honestly, like, acknowledgment is kind of helps me. I had no idea about like football and college football. So, you know, as soon as I decided my dream, I was like, yeah, I'm going to be an NFL player one day. just focusing on what I can do every single day. And I never doubt myself, you know, just believe myself and every single day and somehow the

Chris Huston (04:14.199)
Mm-hmm.

Kansei Matsuzawa (04:36.096)
you know, the 20 years old, like, himself, and then, can be another player one day. So, like, that mindset hasn't, like, never changed since day one.

Chris Huston (04:40.002)
Yeah.

Chris Huston (04:49.206)
Yeah. Well, you know, the oldest player to win a Heisman Trophy was 28 years old. So, so you're still, still young enough. Speaking of that, when did you first learn about the Heisman Trophy?

Kansei Matsuzawa (04:54.178)
Wow.

Kansei Matsuzawa (05:00.174)
Definitely like, so probably like 21 or 22. Yeah, since I watched first college football game and then I kind of, you know, getting learned about like college football.

Chris Huston (05:05.751)
Mm-hmm.

Chris Huston (05:18.23)
Yeah. You heard them talking about it and you kind of picked it up. Yeah. Yeah. who are some kickers in the NFL that, that when you first saw them kicking, you were like, wow, that guy has a great leg. That's something I can do.

Kansei Matsuzawa (05:20.449)
Yeah, yeah.

Kansei Matsuzawa (05:30.03)
I watch a lot of NFL kickers because like I said, I taught myself. So the best kickers usually in the NFL, right? So like I wanted to learn from the best through YouTube. like I watched a lot Jason Myers in Seattle Seahawks. Yeah, I think he's like pretty like fundamental and that's why I can apply his one.

Chris Huston (05:41.025)
Yeah.

Chris Huston (05:46.336)
Mm-hmm.

Kansei Matsuzawa (05:59.65)
fundamental to me and I kind of imitate him like every single practice and like record myself watching it later and just yeah.

Chris Huston (06:00.855)
Mm-hmm.

Chris Huston (06:10.006)
Yeah. Yeah. How did you like the other aspects of, of American football, the pads and the helmet and potentially you get, kick off, right? So, so you potentially would have to tackle someone. How do you like that whole aspect of football?

Kansei Matsuzawa (06:24.686)
That's pretty cool. Especially kickoff, I'm enjoying the time with my teammates. My kickoff team is so good. whatever happens, they're to cover kick for me. just encourage my teammates and just tackle. I want to see huge tackle by my teammates. And then I'm going to be a part of a kickoff team. So I'm just enjoying the time.

Chris Huston (06:46.807)
Mm-hmm.

Kansei Matsuzawa (06:53.582)
when I go to a kickoff. And also, I like the shoulder pads and helmets. I don't think I'd need it, but like, well, yeah, it's pretty cool.

Chris Huston (07:00.778)
Hahaha

So have you had to tackle a returner on the kickoff yet? you have, have you seen a player coming at you with his head down, getting ready to run through? Yeah.

Kansei Matsuzawa (07:13.198)
Yeah, yeah, yeah, A times. Yeah. Especially like when I was in junior college, I was like a kickoff kicker. So and then like I started kickoff through like, like, it was like two, three weeks ago. So yeah, some guys like trying to like protect, like, like blocking me. Yeah. It's fun. Like it makes me like I'm a football player, you know.

Chris Huston (07:19.66)
Mm-hmm.

Chris Huston (07:29.304)
Mm-hmm.

Chris Huston (07:35.978)
Yeah. What's the big, yeah, right. You get a little contact in there. What's the, what's the biggest difference between kicking a soccer ball and kicking a football for you.

Kansei Matsuzawa (07:44.311)
Yeah.

Kansei Matsuzawa (07:51.054)
Especially like for me, I stopped playing soccer and started kicking like football. I had like a two years gap. So I was not good at all. And then like I was not shaped. So I kind of feel weird to kick football when I did it first time. But like getting like, you know,

Chris Huston (08:00.524)
Mm-hmm.

You

Chris Huston (08:14.648)
Mm-hmm.

Kansei Matsuzawa (08:20.736)
understand, you know, like people plan on like leaning to the technique, you know, like the whole thing about about, you know, like the, you know, like, people think like kicking soccer ball and the football is like different. But I think it's ultimately is like same, you know, as hard as you can, you know, that power is nothing you can talk. So I was walking on like a kicking like as much as I can, and just like,

Chris Huston (08:27.34)
Mm-hmm.

Chris Huston (08:38.656)
Mm-hmm.

Chris Huston (08:46.583)
Yeah.

Kansei Matsuzawa (08:50.734)
And then, you know, like, find the, like, comfortable, like, you know, like the movement. How do I say it? It's like 80 to like 90%. Not always like 100 % is the best, you know, but you got to do like 100 % the first time. So like I try to take as much as I, as much as hard as I can. Yeah.

Chris Huston (08:57.368)
Uh huh. The movement. Mm hmm. Yeah.

Yeah.

Chris Huston (09:13.238)
Yeah. What was it like the very first time you tried to kick a field goal? How did that end up for you?

Kansei Matsuzawa (09:20.206)
I was so bad. I was looking for the field that I can kick and I didn't know what was going to happen. It was so bad. only goes 15 yards. It's not even like a PAD.

Chris Huston (09:25.389)
Mm

Chris Huston (09:35.904)
Yeah.

Yeah. Yeah. And then the first time you had to come out for a football game to kick, were you nervous? Did it feel weird being out on the field for the first time in front of crowds?

Kansei Matsuzawa (09:50.606)
in Hawaii.

Chris Huston (09:51.96)
In the US, whether in a junior college or at Hawaii.

Kansei Matsuzawa (09:57.016)
Yeah, junior college, my first year I didn't kick field goal. My second year I did. It was all right, know, like kind of like small town and nobody watching me. But like in Hawaii, it was, yeah, I was so, yeah, novice.

Chris Huston (10:00.843)
Okay.

Chris Huston (10:07.788)
Mm-hmm.

Chris Huston (10:14.902)
Yeah, you had that, the game winning field goal against Stanford this year. Were you nervous before that kick? you, what were you thinking about as you lined up, to try to win the game for Hawaii?

Kansei Matsuzawa (10:26.242)
yeah, that moment is so glibable for me. I like, I was not novice at all, honestly. I practice a lot on and off the field, so I have confidence to make the field goal. I like just telling myself some positive affirmation and cue words, and that helps me to kick the game-winning field goal. And that was a, yeah, amazing moment for me.

Chris Huston (10:48.546)
Mm-hmm.

Chris Huston (10:55.446)
What are some of those keywords and affirmations that you use that you tell yourself when you're getting ready to kick?

Kansei Matsuzawa (11:01.938)
I have three positive self-talking. First one is telling myself I am elite. And second one is focus on myself. And third one is I make this feel good. Just telling me and yeah.

Chris Huston (11:18.391)
Mm-hmm.

Chris Huston (11:22.52)
Well, you're 19 out of 19 so far this year, your, your affirmations and your, and your words are doing pretty well, but what does your weekly training look like, for leg work, flexibility? Do you watch a lot of film of yourself and other kickers? what is your process for, training for field goals?

Kansei Matsuzawa (11:43.31)
I'm a like, barely like routine guy. I have, I created like routines and habits a lot off season and also like from last year. And I do a lot like warmup before practice in the morning and we had a meeting before practice. So in practice, I kind of limit myself to kick especially in the season.

Chris Huston (11:53.848)
Mm-hmm.

Kansei Matsuzawa (12:12.728)
So I don't kick much, but Tuesday I kick, Wednesday, Thursday off and a Friday kick before game day. And Saturday, you know, we expect it like we're to kick a lot of kicks. So that's kind of my schedule. But like I do a lot, like mental thing. I do like twice in a week, especially in this. And those are helps me. Yeah.

Chris Huston (12:21.175)
Mm-hmm.

Chris Huston (12:35.328)
Mm-hmm.

Chris Huston (12:39.552)
Yeah. Have you ever had an opposing coach call a timeout before it's time for you to kick? Yeah.

Chris Huston (12:51.308)
Yeah. Did, does that, did that time out work on you? It's I know obviously you made the Stanford kick, but did did it make you think more? Did it, did it ruin your, your, routine as far as what you typically do? Did it, did it make it more difficult for you?

Kansei Matsuzawa (13:07.054)
I don't think so. We're expecting they might, but if not, just executing my job one time. Our special teams coordinator, Coach Sheffield, told us one shot, one kill. We only have one opportunity to perform. So whatever happens, and if I get an extra kick, I just kick it. And if not, focusing on doing my job one at a time.

Chris Huston (13:36.527)
Mm-hmm. You know, we talked earlier about football language being tough to learn. What were some terms that took you some time to learn? When you know, you hear your coaches talk and they say, they bark at you, hey, go do this or go do that. What are some things that took you a while to figure out what they were saying?

Kansei Matsuzawa (13:54.702)
The great thing, I'm a kicker. So coaches just told me like kick field goal, know, make field goal. My first two years, I had no idea what the coaches said in junior college. And even like I got here, kind of overwhelmed a little bit because the difference at junior college and here, you know, more meetings, more football.

Chris Huston (14:02.968)
But they leave you alone,

Chris Huston (14:19.682)
Mm-hmm.

Chris Huston (14:23.084)
Yeah.

Kansei Matsuzawa (14:24.206)
So I need to learn football 101 even when I got here at And Coach Sheffield, Coach Stimmi teach me football 101 in person. So it's easy to understand what the football is. also, especially like the special teams meetings is going to help me what the other player does on the field.

Chris Huston (14:39.232)
Mm-hmm.

Chris Huston (14:43.991)
Yeah.

Kansei Matsuzawa (14:53.89)
So, I'm a kicker and then my job is making field goal. But I understand what the other players do in full special teams. So I appreciate a lot to my teammates.

Chris Huston (15:04.064)
Mm-hmm. Yeah.

Are you a backup punter or anything like that? Do you do other things during special teams periods in practice?

Kansei Matsuzawa (15:15.918)
I'm an emergency partner, so I'm not even like a second string, but sometimes like work on like it catches, know, for punning, like catches it really important, like hand staying. So yeah, I do work like sometimes like emergency like situation.

Chris Huston (15:18.57)
Emergency puncher, yeah, yeah.

Yeah.

Mm-hmm.

Chris Huston (15:30.839)
Yeah.

Chris Huston (15:36.46)
Yeah. You're located in Hawaii directly between the mainland US and Japan. Seems like a perfect situation for you. You know, it's not so hard to go back and see your family potentially, and then you could also go to the mainland. What's it like going to college in Hawaii and living that Hawaii lifestyle?

Kansei Matsuzawa (15:57.324)
It's amazing, honestly. You know, like my family loves Hawaii. And then when I got offered from Coach Sheffield, I was like, is Hawaii the best place to play college football? That was the biggest question for me. Because I was in Ohio and then I wanted to come back mainland to play college football. But the biggest thing is not even like

culture or food or like Hawaii is the best places. The people in this building that coaches the biggest reason why I chose and coach Sheffield and coach Timmy is the only coach that believed in me from day one. It's not an easy thing. I barely speak English.

Chris Huston (16:38.103)
Mm-hmm.

Kansei Matsuzawa (16:52.992)
And I'm a Japanese and then when I was recorded, I was in Japan. So there's a time difference. It's not easy to record the kid like from Japan and just spend like two years in junior college. But Coach Sheffield and Coach Timmy gave me so much love and show me what they can do it for me. And that's the biggest part. Like, yeah, like Hawaii is going to be the place and play and

Chris Huston (16:59.01)
Sure.

Chris Huston (17:06.711)
Yeah.

Kansei Matsuzawa (17:22.783)
and develop myself as a player and the person.

Chris Huston (17:28.79)
Does it help that you're a little bit older than most of your teammates? Like, do you think you could have done the same thing that you did, gone on this journey at 18, as opposed to being a bit older, being more mature? Do you think that was a big factor that helped you?

Kansei Matsuzawa (17:41.646)
Mm-hmm.

Yeah, definitely. I started 20 years old and then I was like, this is going to be my life, being a football player for next 20 years, 40 years. I'm going to live as a football player. So that was my mindset and nobody can ruin my life. I'm going to make the goals and I'm going to create my life. So that was the mindset. I think because I can do it.

I could do it so any other Japanese player can do the same thing. You know, just have a strong mindset and like determination is going to help it like like every single one. Yeah.

Chris Huston (18:25.822)
I was actually going to ask you if a kid in Japan wanted to be the next Tokyo Toe, what three simple tips would you give him?

Kansei Matsuzawa (18:36.622)
Important thing is believe yourself. Just believe yourself. And I think that's the most important thing. And don't get, you know, like just disciplined.

You know, it's small things. It's all small things, but like, yeah, I think believing in yourself is the biggest part and just, yeah.

Chris Huston (18:55.384)
Mm-hmm.

Chris Huston (19:05.016)
What do you your family and friends in Tokyo think when they watch you kick? of all, is it is it hard for them to find a? Streaming to be able to watch live do they come to the games? Your family very much Or is it mostly I assume it's what is it like almost 24 24 hours? difference right so Yeah, so how do they watch the games?

Kansei Matsuzawa (19:24.088)
Yeah, yeah, not 19 hours. Yeah

Kansei Matsuzawa (19:30.67)
My family watched a game on the stream in Japan, but not many people know how to watch my game in Japan. I think Mountain West has a host of the game, every UH football game, but nobody knows how to watch it. It's kind of tough, but my family was here, first three games, and then they watched the...

Chris Huston (19:35.159)
Mm-hmm.

Chris Huston (19:46.925)
Mm-hmm.

Chris Huston (19:53.11)
Yeah.

Kansei Matsuzawa (20:00.142)
Yeah, it's time for the game. So it was a special moment for my family.

Chris Huston (20:04.831)
Nice. Do you have any message in Japanese you want to share with your family and friends back in Japan? Yeah.

Kansei Matsuzawa (20:10.158)
in Japanese? Okay. Arigatou. Kampe yo. Arigatou gozaimasu.

Chris Huston (20:20.999)
All right. Okay. Big picture before we go. What are your, what are you, rest of your goals this season? You're already off to an incredible start. Uh, and what's your dream? I mean, you talked about going to the NFL. So, so what are their goals for the rest of the season? And, and what, what is your goals after, after, uh, football?

Kansei Matsuzawa (20:40.834)
Yes, I'm telling myself, you I'm going to NFL, but like, this is the kind of different thing. You know, that's my dream, but like I'm a college football player right now. And then I want to focus on right now. So that's going to lead to like my dream. But, that my goal is this year is I make every single field goal. And so just telling myself, that's the biggest goal and that's going to lead.

you know, the future like dreams. So the most important thing is just one by one and show up to field and then do execute my job. And that's the biggest goal of the season. Yes.

Chris Huston (21:23.829)
Yeah. When the offense is, is driving down the field and they get into third down on, you know, 30 yard line on the other teams, 30 yard line or so. And field goal alert, right? You have to be ready just in case you have to come out. Are you, you know, everyone has, I guess I want to, how do I say this? you know, you want the offense to score touchdown. Sure.

But do you secretly, when it becomes fourth down, are you like, you know, this is, this is great. get to kick a field goal or are you, you know, or you're not that upset that you get to kick, right? Yeah.

Kansei Matsuzawa (22:01.73)
I'm not upset. Yeah. Albums always like welcoming, like kick, field goal, you know, like just if it's all first done by third on, you know, I'm ready. I'm always ready. So like, let me kick field goal, you know, whatever like distances, you know, it's so enjoying in the like, the moment is like super beautiful, you know, like, I think the kicking is the art. So like creating by like 11 players and especially like

Chris Huston (22:22.486)
Yeah.

Kansei Matsuzawa (22:31.052)
long snapper, holder, and kicker. It's so beautiful moment to kick Fyogo every single game day.

Chris Huston (22:32.321)
Mm-hmm.

Chris Huston (22:39.351)
Yeah. Yeah. You recently had a career long 52 yarder. How long do you think you can kick a field goal? What's range do you think?

Kansei Matsuzawa (22:49.006)
Uh, like 60? Yeah, 60. I would say 60. Yeah.

Chris Huston (22:52.138)
Yeah. So are you ready to tell coach that, that you want to try a 60 if, if, the chance comes.

Kansei Matsuzawa (22:57.74)
Yeah, coaches believe in me, so I believe in myself. So the distance, when I need to kick a long field goal, I'm ready for it. one day, if I have a chance, I want to kick a longer field goal.

Chris Huston (23:14.327)
Well, we look forward to seeing that Kansei Matsuzawa 19 of 19 field goals, the first field goal kicker to come on the Heisman Trophy podcast. We've talked to a punter and you're the first field goal kicker because you've been so amazing this year. And the Tokyo Toe is certainly someone who is, you know, I think is becoming more and more known in college football and also in Japan. So thank you for coming on the show and good luck the rest of the year. And, yeah, thanks for everything for coming on. Thank you.

Kansei Matsuzawa (23:27.79)
appreciate it.

Kansei Matsuzawa (23:41.966)
Thank you

Chris Huston (23:45.942)
All right, hey, that was very good.