Earlier this week Liberty picked up a commitment from North Carolina transfer kicker Teagen Lenderink.

The 6’1″, 175 pound kicker spent his true freshman season at UNC in 2021 where he did not record any stats. Originally from Belmont, Michigan, Lenderink moved to Tennessee after the 2020 football season was canceled in the state of Michigan due to the COVID pandemic. He then transferred to Brentwood Academy in Brentwood, Tennessee, located in the Nashville area.

Lenderink was selected the Tennessee Kicker of the Year at the 2020 Tennessee Titans Mr. Football Awards ceremony. He made 20 of 28 field goals at Brentwood, which was one shy of tying the Tennessee state record. He had a long of 54 yards and converted all 32 of his extra point attempts. He was ranked as the No. 8 kicker in the country by one recruiting service and was a Tennessee Division II AAA all-state selection. He kicked for two seasons at Rockford High School in Michigan, making 8 of 10 field goals as a junior.

Liberty recruited Lenderink out of high school and offered him a preferred walk-on spot in January 2021. He also had PWO offers from North Carolina and Wisconsin.

Lenderink will join Liberty’s specialists room and will be able to compete for the starting job as kicker. Brayden Beck took over those duties from Alex Barbir early in the 2021 season. Beck made 4 of his 5 field goal attempts during his true freshman season with a long of 43. He also connected on 34 of 37 extra points. The Flames also have Nick Brown and Jason Stricker as kickers that were on the roster at the end of spring practice.