Alabama's kicker of the future learned a valuable lesson from one of the Crimson Tide's greatest kickers of the past.

Hoover's Will Reichard committed to Alabama earlier this week and said he relies on advice he received from Leigh Tiffin, Alabama's kicker from 2007-10 who graduated as the school's all-time leading scorer.

"One of my kicking coaches was Leigh Tiffin, and one of the best pieces of advice he ever gave was that being a kicker is like being an assassin: You only get one shot," he said. "So, I keep that with me. Every time I go to a game, I know I have to put all my focus into this kick because it might be the only one I get all game. So, I guess having that in the back of my mind has helped me a lot."

Last year, Reichard punted 41 times for 37.9-yard average, had more than 40 touchbacks on kickoffs and had 12 punts downed inside the 20 yard line as Hoover won a second straight Class 7A state title. He made his lone field goal attempt, while splitting the kicking duties with Nebraska signee Barrett Pickering, and he picked up a key first down on a fake punt in the 7A semifinal playoff victory over Thompson.

Reichard is Alabama's 14th commitment for the Class of 2019, joining a heavy list of in-state prospects that include 5-star Hewitt-Trussville lineman Pierce Quick, 4-star quarterbacks Paul Tyson of Hewitt-Trussville and Taulia Tagovailoa of Thompson, and Clay-Chalkville defensive lineman DJ Dale.

Sailer Kicking has Reichard ranked as the No. 1 kicker nationally in the Class of 2019, and he's No. 2 according to the to the 247Sports Composite rankings.

Reichard talked to AL.com about 24 hours after making his commitment public. Here's excerpts from the conversation:

What's life has been like in the 24 hours after your commitment?

"It's been pretty hectic. My phone has been blowing up. There's so many notifications coming through. I've done a lot of interviews with different people. It's been really humbling, knowing I've gotten a lot of attention from it, and the work kind of starts now because in January I enroll and start competing for the job."

Was early enrollment always the plan or did you make that decision because you're going to Alabama?

"It was the plan if I knew I could compete for the job my freshman year. If a school wanted me to come in a redshirt, I wouldn't do it. But if I knew if I could have a chance to compete for the job, I'd early enroll."

You punt, kick off and place-kick. So, when you talk about competing for the job, are you talking about all three or specifically about the place-kicking job?

"For me, I want to focus on my place-kicking and kickoffs, but if they need me to punt, I'd come in and do it. Whatever I can do to help the team is what I'll do. If it were my decision, I'd just like to do kickoffs and field goals."

What other schools did you seriously considered?

"I think Oregon, LSU and Georgia."

What made you feel like Alabama was the right place for you?

"Just it being so close to home, my family can come and watch me all the time. I know Coach (Jeff) Banks has a good track record of developing kickers and punters, and he's sent almost everybody to the NFL, which is really intriguing. And Coach Saban is a guy who develops you on and off and the field and gets you ready for life after football, and I wanted to see myself in that situation."

(Editor's Note: Banks is Alabama's new tight ends and special teams coach. He joined the staff this spring after five seasons at Texas A&M.)

How important was it to make your decision before your senior high school season started?

"It was very important. Ever since I started getting recruited, I knew I wanted to commit before the summer before my senior year. I'm a big team guy. I can now focus on the season with all my teammates, and I feel like they kind of deserve that. Originally, I thought I'd commit in the winter, but I wanted to be 100 percent with my decision. Once I committed, I knew I didn't want to de-commit or get into the business. I'm 100 percent about where I want to go."

This 2019 class has about half of the class right now from Alabama, including a couple of quarterbacks who play in your region. Did the high number of in-state commits to Alabama influence your decision?

"It really didn't have an influence, but I can say it's like a perk. It's a good thing that there are a lot of guys in state. I guess, we grew up playing against each other, and it's good that I knew a few guys that are going in there, but it wasn't really a big factor or anything."

What's your summer schedule: Will you camp at Alabama or does your commitment change your summer schedule?

"Not really. I'm going to go to a camp at Alabama, I think, in early June, so I can get some time one-on-one with Coach Banks. That's really the only way I can get that, to go to camp on campus. I'll probably go off to the side and get some work in with him. I can get his take on things I can work on. Other than that, I'll go to a showcase camp in Wisconsin at the end of July for the Under Armour All-American spot. For kickers, it's a lot different, and you have to try out for the spot. That's the only two things I'll go to."

Hoover is very active in the summer 7-on-7 world. Do you go to that and catch passes or anything?

"No, but I am going to go with them this year and just hang out with the team. Coach asked me if I wanted to go, to just hang out with everybody. You're there with the team. I won't be doing very much, just helping out where I can."

Looking ahead to the 2018 season, what kind of expectations do you have for yourself, what kind of expectations do you have for your team?

"For the team, I think we can be really, really good this year. Really, the expectation at Hoover is if you don't win a state championship, it's a bad season. So, that's always our goal, but you have to take one game at time. You can't look too far ahead.

"For myself, I guess, I want to have 100 percent touchbacks. On field goals, I'd like to be 100 percent from 45 and in. I'd like to be 100 percent for the whole season, but 45 and in is a good, reasonable goal for me. And, plus, a couple of kicks of 50-plus."

At Hoover, you guys play in front of big crowds, but it's nothing like the 100,000 in Bryant-Denny Stadium. How or can you prepare yourself for the larger crowd and the atmosphere you'll be required to kick in?

"I feel like growing up I've been a in a lot of pressure situations. Thinking back to when I was 6 or 7, our soccer team went nationals every year. ... Putting myself on that stage, it's something I've gotten used to. I don't get affected by much, even going to showcases and camps and being put in front of a lot of people. I know that's not a comparison to the number of people at (Alabama) games, but we had somewhere around 20,000 at our Thompson game last year, and when I go out of the field, I don't hear any of that. I block it out and focus on what I have to do. So, at Alabama, I don't feel like I'll be affected by how many people are there."

What was the emotion when you made your commitment public? Some players say they're anxious, some say it's a sense of relief. What was that like for you?

"I'd say it was a sense of relief and it was a weight lifted off my shoulders. I kind of knew where I wanted to go for the last three weeks. I guess that was the anxious part. You have people asking you all the time, it's a big weight on your shoulders. Letting everybody know is a big weight off my shoulders and this summer I can hunker down and work hard and not worry about any of the recruiting stuff."

Q: Will you spend some time trying to convince George Pickens to join you at Alabama instead of Auburn?

"For sure, that's already started."

Q: What's the pitch you're giving him?

"I told him if he comes to Alabama, there's a really, really high chance he'll be a first-round draft pick. The success rate they've had, and I'm like, 'Your build is a lot like Julio Jones,' which he actually said Coach Saban told him he's a lot like Julio. Me and George, ever since we've been at Hoover, we've talked about going to the same college together. I think Alabama has a real good chance to land him, but I know he likes Auburn a lot, too. It won't be easy, but I think Alabama has a chance."

See Reichard's highlights: