Taking Stock: Special Teams
Blue White Illustrated finishes its multi-part series examining the Nittany Lion roster as it proceeds through winter workouts and into spring practices. Today, we'll finish with a look at Penn State's special teams situation entering the 2019 season:
KEY RETURNEES
Kick return: Journey Brown, K.J. Hamler;
Punter: Blake Gillikin, Cade Pollard;
Placekicker: Rafael Checa, Vlad Hilling, Carson Landis, Jake Pinegar, Justin Tobin;
Punt return: K.J. Hamler
KEY LOSSES
Kick return: Johnathan Thomas;
Long snapper: Kyle Vasey;
Punt return: DeAndre Thompkins
NEWCOMERS
Kick return: Daequan Hardy
OUTLOOK Admittedly, Penn State head coach James Franklin acknowledged quickly after his Nittany Lions’ Citrus Bowl loss that special teams were not up to snuff this past season.
"It's inconsistency. We punt the ball 73 yards once and then we shank the next. And that's kind of happened kind of throughout the year. It's our execution," said Franklin. "It's the responsibility for us as coaches to make sure they're confident and understand what their responsibilities are, but we haven't done it. We haven't done it consistently all year long, so it's a concern coming into the season.
"We knew relying on two true freshmen from the specialist position, that was going to be a little bit of a concern. But we also have had some opportunities that we haven't made. Haven't made plays, haven't done consistently what we need to do. Like everything, we'll evaluate it. We'll take a deep dive in it. We'll ask tough questions to ourselves and we'll look at everything, A through Z. We'll look at everything. We'll have tough conversations. We'll do what we've got to do to get better, but it was not up to our standards today. Wasn't up to our standards all year long."
While Franklin stood by assistant coach Phil Galiano in the season’s aftermath, Galiano decided last month to join the New Orleans Saints as an assistant special teams coach. The move meant a change for the Nittany Lions this season, and Franklin worked quickly to fill the position, naming former Memphis assistant Joe Lorig as the special teams coordinator and defensive assistant.
"We are looking forward to having Joe join our staff," said Franklin. "We conducted a comprehensive study of special teams coordinators across the country to find the best fit for our staff and identified Joe as the best candidate. His special teams units have a history of being among the best in the country and we know he can continue that success here. I have also known Joe for many years, dating back to when we worked together at Idaho State under Larry Lewis."
What’s it all mean for the Nittany Lions in 2019?
That remains to be seen, but Lorig will look to improve upon a mixed bag performance from the Nittany Lion special teams through the course of the 2018 season.
A bright spot emerged at kickoff return in K.J. Hamler, who made 20 returns for a 26.2 yards per return average, good for 18th nationally last season.
Kickoff return coverage, however, was less positive at 84th nationally on a 21.33 yards per return average while true freshman Rafael Checa booted six of his 79 kickoffs out of bounds for the season, to make matters worse.
Punter Blake Gillikin entered his junior season with high expectations, meeting some as he sent 15 of his attempts 50-or-more yards, but also fell short in other areas with just 20 punts downed inside the 20-yard line.
Finally, true freshman placekicker Jake Pinegar showed positives, sending home 16 of his 24 field goal attempts on the year including a stretch of 11 of 13 to round out the regular season, but connected on just 5 of 11 attempts between 40 and 49 yards.
And all of it seemed to culminate in a Citrus Bowl performance that contained a failed fake punt, a missed 40-yard field goal attempt, and a blocked 36-yard attempt. In a game that was decided by a score of 27-24, Franklin’s frustration with the third element of the game appeared justified, and Gillikin seemed to follow suit with some of his postgame remarks.
"We spend a lot of time on (special teams) in practice. We dedicated two practices to it for bowl prep because we knew it was a point of emphasis. And who knows, maybe all the players aren't engaged during those practices,” said Gillikin. “Trusting the coaching staff is also an issue. I think that's an area we need to improve as a program. But I think struggling on special teams kind of leads to struggling in all phases. So, I take a lot of responsibility for kind of what happened today."
With Hamler, Pinegar, and Gillikin all back for the 2019 season, the Nittany Lions would appear to be pretty well set at kick return, placekicking, and punting, respectively. The presumed leader of Penn State's wideouts, though, Penn State's use of Hamler could be in question with some of the other available options at kick return including Journey Brown, Ricky Slade, and the Nittany Lions' incoming duo of Noah Cain and Devyn Ford.
Many times over, Franklin has identified the team's backup running back as a quality candidate for returning kicks, though given Hamler's impact, it remains to be seen if the Lions' coaching staff would take that weapon off the field in favor of the other options.
In the absence of senior DeAndre Thompkins, the Nittany Lions will also need to replace the nation’s No. 24-ranked punt return specialist from the 2018 season. Finishing the year with 18 returns for 176 yards, Thompkins’ 9.8 yards per return were second in the Big Ten.
Hamler could be an option, as he also had 14 punt return attempts for a 6.86 yards per return average, and Jahan Dotson also was credited with a single punt return that went backward two yards in the Nittany Lions’ win against Kent State. John Reid was Penn State’s punt returner during the 2016 season before his April 2017 injury knocked him out for the entirety of the 2017 season. He finished the 2016 campaign with 22 returns for 166 yards and a 7.5 yards per return average.
Another possibility beyond Hamler, Reid, and Dotson returning for the 2019 season could be Mac Hippenhammer, who spent time fielding punts for the Nittany Lions in practice, but did not have any attempts in games last season.