Special teams making a difference
9/14/2009 10:45:00 AM | Football
By Cody Stark, Huntsville Item Assistant Sports Editor
It is not very often when a college football coach gets excited talking about a place kicker during his press conference on national signing day.
Most comments are about a promising young quarterback, an elusive running back or a hard-hitting linebacker.
But when you are Sam Houston State head coach Todd Whitten and the Bearkats, signing a player that can boot the ball to the end zone on kickoffs is a top priority.
Last season the Bearkats went 4-6 and lost three games by a combined eight points and two of those came in overtime. Sam Houston State's defense ranked near the bottom nationally in the Football Championship Subdivision in several categories.
While there were some other issues that led to the defensive struggles, one of the biggest reasons the Bearkats did so poorly was because opposing teams did not have to cover much ground to put points on the scoreboard. It might sound like an exaggeration, but the opposition's average starting field position in 2008 was around its own 40-yard line.
The Bearkats did not have anybody that could kick the ball past the 15 and that led to trouble.
"I bet the kicking game cost us at least two games a year ago," Whitten said Friday afternoon after Sam Houston finished up final preparations for today's game against North Dakota State at Bowers Stadium.
So Whitten and his staff made finding a kid with a big-time leg one of the top goals when they hit the road to recruit.
The Sam Houston State coaches did not have to go far, but they found their guy in an unlikely place. Most people have never heard of Lovelady, a small Class A school located between Trinity and Crockett, and the ones that have probably only know the town because they saw the city limit sign when passing through or have grown up in East Texas.
But it is were the Bearkats stumbled upon freshman Miquel Antonio, a four-time all-district kicker and punter with a career-long 47-yard field goal to his credit.
Pair Antonio with junior punter Michael Capparelli, who missed last season, and Sam Houston State now has the leg power to force opponent's to put together long drives this season.
"Two guys with talented legs are truly going to improve our kicking game," Whitten added. "We have a nice range for long field goals now. Cap has a great leg and gets a lot of height on his punts. They are really going to help us.
"We are covering kicks better. The main thing is you get a lot of height with a nice hang time that gives your coverage time to get down the field. Those two guys are truly valuable to out football team."
To further prove the point that the Bearkats' kicking game was so bad last season, fans that attended Sam Houston's first intrasquad scrimmage in fall camp cheered when Antonio reached the end zone on a kickoff.
Antonio also brings more to the team this season than that. He booted a 48-yard field goal in the second quarter of the North Dakota State game and, with 26 seconds remaining, provided the winning points with a 24-yard field goal. Six of his eight kickoffs were fielded by the Bisons inside the eight-yard line.
A number of times in practice he has split the uprights from 55 yards out. The kicks would have easily been good from further out.
That is another new weapon.
"I have the leg to make long kicks," Antonio said. "If they want me to kick it from 50 or 55, I feel confident. The guys feel confident in me. I'm just trying to learn from the coaches and they are learning from me. I can kick the ball a long way, but they also want me to work on different directions. I'm working and working."
The Bearkats did not struggle in the punting game last season, but not having Capparelli in the mix hurt because he handled kickoff duties in 2007.
With Antonio taking over, Capparelli can shift all his focus to punting, and it is paying off. He had a huge night in the Bearkats' loss to Western Illinois with an average of 45.5 yards on four punts.
Capparelli uncorked a 50 yarder when Sam Houston was backed up inside its own 10 following a goal-line stand, which protected a 14-7 lead, in the second quarter. It did not help that the Bearkats gave up a 49-yard touchdown on the next play, but Capparelli came up with a clutch kick.
He also had a 46-yard punt in the fourth quarter that pinned the Leathernecks inside their 15 on a fair catch. Western Illinois went three and out, and the punt ultimately allowed the Bearkats to have decent field position on their final drive that almost tied the game before stalling out at the 1.
"It was so hard sitting out last season. I felt like something was missing," Capparelli said. "But it allowed me to get things in order and work on my punting. I feel like I'm a better punter now than I was before. Miquel and I have a chance to help out this team. Last season, the kicking game was a problem. If we can do our part, we will definitely benefit from it."
Sam Houston's next game is at Tulsa on Sept. 28. The Bearkats return home to play host to Saint Joseph's on Saturday, Oct. 3 at 2 p.m. at Bowers Stadium.
Live coverage of all Bearkat football games is heard on KSAM 101.7 FM and on the internet at either www.ksam1017.com or www.gobearkats.com. Home games also will be streamed live on Bearkat Vision on the Sam Houston State athletic web site www.GoBearkats.com.
Bearkat single game tickets are on sale Monday-Friday at the Sam Houston athletic ticket office in the Ron Mafrige Fieldhouse south of Bowers Stadium. Fans can also purchase tickets by phone at (936) 294-1764 or online at www.GoBearkats.com.
