MISSION — Sharyland High senior Mikaeli Nguma grew up with soccer as his main sport.
He began playing football during the third grade and immediately fell in love with playing wide receiver. Once junior high came around, however, his parents told him he could only play football if it was as a kicker and punter.
Nguma didn’t agree at first and sat out his seventh-grade season, focusing on soccer. Once eighth grade rolled around, Nguma felt he was missing out, so he joined the football team to play special teams.
After four years as the starting kicker and punter for the Sharyland Rattlers, Nguma signed to play college football at North Texas on Tuesday with his family, friends and coaches by his side.
North Texas is an NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision school located in Denton that competes in the American Athletic Conference.
“I’ve been waiting for this day for a long time, and I’m just excited to get to work over there,” Nguma said.
He finishes his career at Sharyland as a four-time all-district player, a three-time all-area selection and a three-time all-state honoree.
Nguma, who goes by Kali, tallied 232 points throughout his four years kicking for the Rattlers. He recorded 64 touchbacks on kickoff, 19 of his 66 punts landed inside the 20-yard line, and he made 28 field goals and 125 extra points. His career long field goal is a 53-yarder during his junior season.
His impact on the game helped lead Sharyland to back-to-back district championships in 2021 and 2022.
“I’ve always kind of thought of it as Kali’s been the face of our special teams the last four years,” Sharyland head football coach Craig Krell said. “To lose him is going to hurt, but it’s great to see him move on to a program that’s going to utilize him and it’s exciting to see him grow.”
Nguma realized he could play college football after attending a Kohl’s Professional Football Kicking Camp as a sophomore. Kohl’s is a top resource for training camps and college exposure of high school kickers, punters and long snappers.
“I went to Kohl’s camp my sophomore year and realized how good everyone around the nation was. But even at my first camp, I ranked as the 36th punter in the nation and it made me realize I could play at the next level, so I’ve been pushing for it ever since then,” he said.
Nguma’s father, Mesika, was a soccer coach and saw a path early on for his son to become a kicker. The two would sneak onto football fields when Nguma was younger to practice kicking. The vision has now led to the opportunity to play for the North Texas Mean Green.
“They have top-tier coaches — the best of the best — and they made me feel at home. They treated me really kindly, the whole staff over there — the trainers, support staff, coaches, everything over there. It’s where I want to be the next four or five years,” Nguma said.