2013 Virginia Football Previews: Special Teams

In 2012, the Hoos special teams were terrible. They were 111^th in punt returns, and 73^rd in kick returns. They were 69^th in net punting, which includes 81^st in punt coverage. They were 119^th in kick return coverage, giving up 2 KR TDs, and almost 10 yards per punt return. As a team, they were 11/16 in FGs, including a miss from just 22 yards out.

The only special teams unit that was any good was the FG defense, as opponents made just 14 out of 21 FGs (a slightly worse percentage than the Hoos made). That would be interesting if the Hoos had blocked some kicks, but they did not block a single kick all year.

And it wasn't just last year. Check out this chart below. The Hoos special teams have mostly been a disaster for some time now. When was the last time a Wahoo returned a punt for a TD? What about a kickoff? (Answers below.)

There are some bright spots in there, but the Hoos haven't been good, across the board, in special teams during this millennium. They've had some pretty good FG kickers, including Robert Randolph (2008-2011 46/60 FGs, 81/81 XPs), Chris Gould (2006-2007 27/39 FGs, 53/55 XPs), and most of all Connor Hughes (2002-2005, 66/79 FGs, 134/138 XPs). They've also had some good punters, including Mike Abrams (2000-2001, 42.6 ypa) and Ryan Weigand (2006-2007, 44.3 ypa).

That chart is sad, but the saddest year is last year. The Hoos special teams were terrible, and directly cost the team wins. Something had to be done. The Hoos needed a real special teams coordinator. Enter Larry Lewis. The chart below shows Larry Lewis' special teams ranks over the past five years.

Well that's disappointing. His teams were pretty solid at returns, but pretty terrible at stopping the other team's returns. I guess that's progress, considering the Hoos were bad at both.

Lewis also spent 7 years as the head coach of Idaho St, an FCS school. Let's take a look at how those teams faired on special teams. These are ranks among FCS schools. Stats for 1999 (Lewis' first year at the helm) are not available.

Not a ton to work with here either. The numbers are all over the place. The KR defense is particularly troubling, considering how bad the Hoos were in that phase last season. Once again, Lewis' teams tend to be pretty solid in the return game, especially punt returns. That is promising, considering how long it has been since the Hoos had a strong PR unit.

Well, our new hotshot Special Teams Coordinator is a bit of a disappointment, at least on paper. In coaching circles, for some reason, Lewis is highly respected in the coaching community as a special teams guru. Let's take a quick look at what Lewis has to work with.

Trivia Question Answers

The last Punt Return TD for the Hoos was Alvin Pearman in 2004. The last Kick Return TD was Raynard Horne in 2010 (prior to that was Marquis Weeks in 2004).

Personnel

The first name on everybody's mind when it comes to special teams this year is Smoke. Taquan Mizzell is likely to begin the season as the primary PR. He's the best open field runner on the team, and the coaching staff needs to find ways to get the ball in his hands. We haven't had a guy with his ability returning punts in quite some time.

Khalek Shepherd will likely be the primary KR guy, a role he was solid in last year. He broke the team record for KR yards, but averaged only 22 yards per carry, good for 68^th in the nation. Not great, but solid.

For the coverage teams, Coach Lewis has been promised he can use anybody he wants. That means we should continue to see TE Jake McGee in punt coverage, a role he has excelled in for 2 years now. Hopefully, it also means some of the more talented DBs such as Wil Wahee and Maurice Canady will be involved on coverage units. LBs such as D.J. Hill and Kwontie Moore should also be involved.

As for the specialists, we know that Alex Vozenilek will be punting. The junior averaged over 40 yards per punt last year (65^th in the nation) and did not have a punt blocked. Sadly, he was the high point of the special teams last season. RS freshman James Coleman would be the punter should something happen to Voz.

The PK position, however, is up for grabs. Last year, Ian Frye was the backup PK and primary KOS (kick off specialist). Frye, however, wasn't great at either role, and could be supplanted by RSFr Dylan Sims in either (or both) of those roles.

Matt Fortin is the long snapper for both FGs and punts, a role he excelled in last year, and should continue to this year. Fortin was so good that he's earned himself a scholarship. He's also just a junior, so we know that position will be steady for the next 2 seasons.

Sadly, that's about all we can be confident in when it comes to special teams.