Dino Babers sums up Andre Szmyt in just a few words.

“Neener, neener, neener, he kicks field goals through the goal post,” Babers said after SU's 22-20 win over Virginia on Friday.

Szmyt, a senior kicker, has nine makes this season and just one miss.

“Mmmm, I like that number," Babers said.

But it was during the win over Virginia that Szmyt painted his early season master piece, finishing the day five for five and tying the program record for most makes in a single game.

“I didn’t really know," Azmyt said of tying the record. "I’ve had four field goals in a game before, I think it was my most before. I knew it was the most I’ve ever had in a game, but I didn’t know it was tying a school record.”

For the last six seasons, Szmyt has been a steady rock for the Orange special teams. His contributions include that magical 2018 campaign, when he became the first Syracuse player to ever win the Lou Groza Award for the nation's top kicker.

But it's a journey that’s seen him constantly evolve.

“You’re not going to be the same kicker every year for six years in a row," Szmyt said. "There are always minor adjustments you have to make, and obviously the mental game is huge. And coach Licht came in and instilled that situational football, and how important it is. Out there in practice, I’m going through mental reps as if I’m in a game, so when I get to the game, I'm not like, ‘Oh, I’m not used to it.’ I've already been there in practice.”

As steady as he’s been, it hasn’t always been smooth sailing.

In 2021, the kicker finished just nine of 14 on field goals. He could have left for the professional level given his overall body of work, but like many others who returned, he felt there was more to be done.

“I felt there was unfinished business," Szmyt said. "A lot of the guys stayed too. We talked and I talked to my family a bunch, and it was the best decision for me to come back.”

The decision is paying off for him and the program.

“He changed," Babers said of Azmyt. "He says, ‘I need to go back.’ And he went back to his old way. And Lord behold, we’ve got ole Andre back.”

While the team is still writing its story, Szmyt sees similarities to the 2018 team that finished the season with 10 wins.

“We feel like we’re a team now and that's the biggest thing," Szmyt said. "There’s obviously people excelling at every position group, and I remember in 2018, coach Babers was always saying how every position that was competition for, and that’s how it feels this year.”