MAPLE — Every time Northwestern starts an offensive series, sophomore student manager Adeline Pooler is paying close attention.

Whenever the Tigers get into the end zone, Pooler looks over to see if coach Jovin Kroll is holding up one finger or two. If Northwestern goes for the kick, Pooler has to meet senior running back Tanner Kaufman to help him change his shoe for the kick.

If it’s a two-point conversion, Pooler waits for the end of the play and then meets Kaufman near midfield to change his shoes.

The reason for all this hubbub is for the first time in eight years, the Tigers don’t have a soccer-style kicker — or any kicker at all. Last season, Dawson Kriske was nearly automatic on extra points and just as reliable for kick-offs, with most going through the end zone for a touchback. Isaac Nichols, Nate Pearson and Jordan Orme were also among the tradition of quality kickers at Northwestern.

“We’ve been blessed the last probably eight years with soccer-style kickers, who grew up playing soccer in the youth leagues and kept the ability to kick and did a great job for us,” Kroll said. “Year after year, it hasn’t been something we’ve had to really think about or worry about and then this year happened. To say it’s somewhat chaotic in those moments when we actually go on defense is probably quite an understatement.”

Kaufman had kicked some in middle school football, but not as a soccer-style kicker. When he saw the team struggling, however, he volunteered.

“We were doing kick-offs one day and I just didn’t think it was great,” Kaufman said. “Any way I can help, I want to help. The square-toe kind of started as a joke. Kroll said we had one and asked me to see if the shoe fit and it fit, so we just went with it from there.”

The black square-toe shoe looks like something straight out of Jerry Kramer’s locker in Green Bay.

“I tried to kick with the regular shoe, but I can kick it way farther with this heavy shoe on and that’s why I don’t play with it,” Kaufman said. “It’s super heavy, it’s a noticeable difference.”

Complicating matters even further, with his gloves on, Kaufman doesn’t have the dexterity to tie his shoes. Plus, the Tigers score — a lot. In fact, Northwestern is averaging more than 40 points per game and Kaufman leads the team with nine total touchdowns in the first four games.

During Northwestern’s 37-8 win over Ashland in the season opener, Kroll was trying to help Kaufman with his shoes until Pooler intervened.

“Week one was a mess, I was a shoe-tying failure and eventually Adeline just kind of kicked me out,” Kroll said. “She just told me to step aside, took over and things started to move a lot quicker.”

Pooler thinks the change between her and Kroll was a little more friendly than he tells it, but at the end it was about speeding up the process and taking something off Kroll’s plate.

“Mr. Kroll is kind of a stressed-out person when it comes to games in general,” Pooler said. “It makes me feel like I’m taking a little bit of stress off him by tying the shoe. If it gives Tanner a break and Mr. Kroll a break at the same time, that’s like killing two birds with one stone.”

The Tigers need Kaufman back on the field, so getting through the shoe change as quickly as possible is key. He leads the team with three tackles for a loss. Kaufman also has a sack and a fumble return for a touchdown.

“The reality is Tanner Kaufman is a returning All-Region linebacker for us,” Kroll said. “A failure to have him on the field may result in some bad things happening to our defense.”

It was a tough process in the Tigers’ opener against Ashland, but Pooler and Kaufman have been working out the kinks, with an assist from freshman coach Byron Nollett.

“Our freshman coach said, ‘Let me take it up to Superior — I know a guy,’” Kroll said. “He came back and there was the cinch you’d see on some of those open-toed sandals. You could cinch the laces up on top, so that shaved a little time off. That was a very big move.” Kaufman says typically the change after kickoffs requires him to sit out two plays on defense, but as a two-way player for the Tigers, it’s a welcome chance to take a quick break and get a little water before heading back out on the field.

The first few times they were going through the process, Pooler said she was slower, but now things are moving better and better. During the Tigers' 36-28 win over St. Croix Falls Friday, Pooler had to perform the shoe change five times and got her time down from 18 seconds to 10.

“The first official time I had to tie the shoe, I was nervous because I knew everybody was watching,” Pooler said. “I knew if I couldn’t tie the shoe super-tight, the shoe could fall off and then we could get in trouble. I guess that was the time where it was slower than expected, but I’ve definitely picked up the pace and I think I’ve gotten better at it. I mean, the shoe stayed on.”

The pair are getting more efficient at the process and Kroll said he hopes the Tigers’ offense gives them plenty of opportunities to practice during games.

“These are the things I’d never thought about,” he said. “You plan all the Xs and Os, who’s playing where, but what I needed to maybe focus on a little more in the offseason was how quickly you can tie a square-toed shoe.”