Penn State Football Spring Preview: Special Teams
Penn State’s special teams, though often overlooked, face major turnover after a run of successful seasons. The biggest change came abruptly, when two-year coordinator Stacy Collins returned to Boise State in January, and Penn State football coach James Franklin quickly replaced him with Vanderbilt coordinator Justin Lustig.
On the field, Penn State returns its starting punter and top kickoff returner, in Nicholas Singleton, while losing its standout kicker and punt returner. Changes on Penn State's offense and defense might garner more attention, but special teams will generate plenty of offseason attention. The Nittany Lions ranked 12th nationally in special teams efficiency, according to the ESPN FPI, and want at least to maintain that level. We're examining a few questions the Lions and Lustig will address this spring.
Who's competing at placekicker?
Alex Felkins is out of eligibility after turning his rental season at Penn State into All-Big Ten second-team honors. Transferring from Columbia, Felkins maximized his chance in Happy Valley by taking the starting job during the opener against West Virginia and making 79.2 percent of his field goals. Three of his five misses were from 50-plus yards.
Franklin and Penn State will do this offseason exactly what they did last year. Sander Sahaydak is on the roster and will compete for the job, which he actually won in 2023 before missing two short field goals to start the season. But Sahaydak will compete against a transfer, giving Lustig options in 2024 and increasing intrigue around an important position.
Tulsa transfer Chase Meyer, who committed to Penn State in December, racked up All-AAC third-team honors by converting on 17 of 20 field-goal attempts. Meyer, whose season-long was 47 yards, has transferred for the second time after starting his career at Penn.
Is Kaden Saunders still the punt returner?
Daequan Hardy was one of Penn State’s best stories in 2023 after taking over punt-return duties and scoring twice in a single game. He usurped the role from wide receiver Kaden Saunders, who was mostly sure-handed as a returner (the reason he won the job) but not particularly explosive.
Saunders returned 13 punts for 88 yards, including a long of 37. The third-year receiver is on the verge of breaking through offensively and seems aligned to recapture his special teams role in 2024. But are there other options who could replicate Hardy’s big-play ability?
A couple of young players could be factors here, notably defensive back Elliot Washington II and running back Cam Wallace. Washington, while burning his freshman redshirt in 2023, was the subject of a debate with Hardy for Penn State's fastest player. Wallace is a versatile athlete who could play both sides of the ball.
The pair seems like a good bet to at least compete with Saunders. Meanwhile, don't count out incoming freshman running back Quinton Martin, formerly the No. 1 prospect in Pennsylvania, who has elite athleticism.
Which Riley Thompson will Penn State fans see in 2024?
The good news is, the NCAA approved a two-year eligibility waiver for punter Riley Thompson after his ability to return in 2024 was a subject of confusion all year. That means Penn State’s starting punter is here to stay for the foreseeable future. The flip side is, Thompson had a pretty up-and-down season in 2024.
Thompson averaged 45.63 yards per attempt, fourth in the Big Ten, thanks in large part to a blistering pace over his last four games, during which he averaged 49, 52, 47 and 49.4 yards. But through the Ohio State game, Thompson's average fell below 45 yards per attempt in four games.
With Collins out and Lustig in, it will be important for Thompson to continue his end-of-year pace. An easy note to overlook, too, is the departure of special teams assistant Eric Raisbeck, whom a number of past Penn State punters have praised for his work with group. Raisbeck became special teams coordinator at UC Davis in January.
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Max Ralph is a Penn State senior studying Broadcast Journalism with minors in sports studies and Japanese. He previously covered Penn State football for two years with The Daily Collegian and has reported with the Associated Press and Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Follow him on Twitter (X) @maxralph_ and Instagram @mralph_59.
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