Will Stone remembers the moment he committed to Texas pretty well.

The high school senior kicker said he had just finished kicking practice in June when he received a call from special teams coordinator Jeff Banks.

“I just thought it was going to be another call,” Stone said. “A few minutes later, (Banks) said, ‘Never mind. Sarkisian’s going to call you straight from his phone.’ I kind of got the idea of what was probably going to happen.”

But hearing those words come out of Texas football head coach Steve Sarkisian’s mouth still meant the world to the local Austin product and five-star kicker.

“He was like, ‘Hey Will, how have you been doing today?’” Stone said. “I said I was kicking and he said, ‘Did you miss any?’ I said, ‘Of course not.’ Then he was like, ‘That’s good because you’re going to get a full scholarship to Texas.’”

Stone committed on the phone directly after the offer.

The lefty kicker said one of the big reasons he committed was the coaching staff.

“I think the combination of coach Crosby, coach Banks and coach Sarkisian is something you can’t get anywhere else in the country,” Stone said. “It’s one of the best coaching staffs Texas will have in a really long time. There’s not really any other guys I’d rather be developed by than those people.”

Current Texas kicker Cameron Dicker said Banks came in and understood the position well when it came to developing his own leg and managing fatigue while handling punting duties. 

Stone has also shown an ability to punt along with place kicking and kicking off. 

The Regents High School senior hopes he’ll be next in a long line of Texas greats, including Dicker and future Hall of Fame member Justin Tucker, who Stone said is his favorite kicker of all time.

“Thinking about how the chain of the kickers from Texas includes one of the best kickers ever to be in the NFL down to Cameron Dicker, who’s easily one of the best kickers in college football,” Stone said. “It doesn’t hurt having some of the best kickers in the footsteps behind you.”

And while he continues his senior year at a private high school, kicking in front of around 500 fans, Stone said he feels like he’s ready for the bigger stage of 100,000 fans at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium.

He said he’s visited DKR for a couple of games every year and will be in attendance during Saturday’s season opener versus Louisiana.

“I’ve always wished I had more people watching the games,” Stone said. “I’ve said this point a couple of times, but I think pressure is a privilege, … and I’m pretty excited to feel that pressure up at Texas.”

But the kicker still has a state high school championship title to defend. Last Friday, he drilled every single one of his six extra points and a 35-yard field goal with ease in a 45-8 win.

“Nothing’s really set because I want to have a really fun senior year with all my friends before we all leave each other,” Stone said. “But I think going perfect inside of 50 (yards) is nothing that’s out of the question.”