Position Preview: Buffs Aim For Special Teams Improvement

BOULDER — It's no secret the Colorado Buffaloes' special teams haven't been up to snuff in recent years.

From field goals to punts to punt and kickoff coverage, the Buffs have encountered problems, often providing momentum-turning moments that have worked against them.

But indications are that may be ready to change this year, for a couple of reasons.

One is the arrival of special teams/inside linebackers Ross Els. After one year of divvying up special teams responsibilities equally among the staff, head coach Mike MacIntyre put the organizational duties in Els' hands (although other assistants are still involved with specific teams).

"Ross Els has done a great job running our special teams and organizing it," MacIntyre said. "I feel very good about where we are."

The second reason to believe improvement is on the way is simply the continued upgrade of ability throughout the Colorado roster.

Most coaches are hesitant to use too many first-team players on special teams because of fear of injury. It means those duties are handed to backups and players farther down the depth chart.

In years past, Colorado's lack of depth and comparative athletic ability showed. But now, because CU has steadily improved the talent level across the board over the last four years, it means better athletes are available for special teams duty.

"You have to have safeties and linebackers and running backs and big wideouts who can do those kind of things when you are talking about coverage teams," Els said. "It's a recruiting issue for a lot of programs. You need to be loaded at those positions. And then you have to keep kids healthy."

After three weeks of camp, what has been clear is that MacIntyre, Els and the rest of the staff are devoting plenty of time and effort to every little detail of the kicking games. In the first week of camp, MacIntyre said the Buffs had devoted more time to special teams at that point than in any past year; and that hasn't changed over the last couple of weeks.

"There's changes here and there over what they've done in the past," Els said. "The whole coaching staff is involved, which is good. There's been a good emphasis and it all starts with the head man. If the head man emphasizes it, the team will."

One position the Buffs did their best to address in the offseason was kicker, where they added former Australian pro soccer player James Stefanou to the roster. The 30-year-old Stefanou has displayed a powerful leg, but is still adjusting to the American game. CU's two returning kickers, Chris Graham and Davis Price, came back with stronger legs in 2017, but the key for whoever wins the job will be consistency.

"We've got a battle going on right now with our kicker position," Els said. "We'll just have to see how the rest of fall camp goes; it will really come down to the last couple of weeks. I don't know if it will be the same guy kicking field goals as it will be kickoffs. We may have to switch on that. But it's way too early to tell, a pretty even battle there."

One area that has improved dramatically is punter, where Alex Kinney has been having by far his best camp yet as a Buff. The junior is regularly hitting 50-yard kicks with good hang time, and has also improved his directional kicking, consistently pinning returners against the sidelines.

"Alex is booming them," Els said. "He's a good athlete, he's got good hands, so he can do some things for us."

The other key components of the kicking game are long snapper and holder, and the Buffs appear to be in good hands in both spots. Sophomore snapper J.T. Bale, who debuted last year, has handled both field goal and punt snapping and has had an excellent camp.

"J.T. is very solid," Els said. "His job is kind of like an official — if nobody every knows you worked the game, you did a great job. He's been that way for us."

Holding for field goals has been senior quarterback T.J. Patterson, who has proven adept at the position.

"He's done a good job there and it's a role he embraces," Els said. "You have to have a good one there, someone who can react and handle pressure."

On the return end of punts and kicks, the Buffs are still trying a variety of players at the spots, both veterans and newcomers. Els said it's likely the decision won't be made until the final week of camp. The Buffs did have a bright spot here last year, where Isaiah Oliver returned a punt 68 yards for a touchdown in a 20-10 win over UCLA, but with Oliver also now a starting corner, there's no guarantee he'll be back fielding punts.

As for coverage teams, Els has also taken a look at a variety of players, but has begun to solidify the players who will appear on those teams.

"You have to find the right guys that have that 'want-to,' that desire," Els said. "A lot of people look good running downfield — but do you really want to get through a block and throw your body in there, or are you faking it? It takes a great defensive mentality, that 'my job is to make the play.' You don't want someone who says, 'I did my job, I turned the play in.' You want someone who says, 'I have to do my job and then I have to finish off on the tackle.' Not everybody has that, but I think a lot of guys in our program do."

KEY RETURNEES: Senior kicker Chris Graham, sophomore kicker Davis Price, sophomore long snapper J.T. Bale, junior punt returner Isaiah Oliver, junior punt returner Jay MacIntyre.

KEY NEWCOMER: Freshman kicker James Stefanou.

STATS TO REMEMBER: Most folks remember the Buffs misfortunes in field goals, where CU hit just 17 of 26 tries last year (including the bowl game). They also remember that Colorado yielded four blocked kicks (field goals and PATs) and had an additional two punts that never got past the line of scrimmage. But CU also gave up three punt return touchdowns and an average of more than 25 yards per kickoff, putting them near the bottom of the nation in that category. All are areas in which Colorado must improve this year.

Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu