In 2021, Arizona State began its season under a microscope with the lofty expectations set upon them by fans and media alike. One particular area that was under immense pressure was the special teams unit, who instantly sputtered, putting the opening kickoff of the season out of bounds.
A unit that looked to be one of the team’s brightest after an opening kickoff return against Arizona in 2020 would struggle in 2021, ranking last in the Pac-12 field goal percentage and PAT percentage and 10th in kickoff return average.
With several new faces stepping into key roles in 2022, the group hopes to shed that perception and return to calmer seas in the upcoming season.
Headlining the group is redshirt sophomore return man and defensive back DJ Taylor. The Tampa, Florida native had massive goals in 2021, hoping to break the kickoff return touchdown record of six after a Preseason All-Pac-12 First Team selection as the conference’s highest-graded kick returner in 2020. Those lofty expectations didn’t pan out, as Taylor never reached the endzone on kickoffs or punts, struggling with his decision-making on the fly. Taylor sometimes struggled to find the ball too – his worst offense being a muffed punt just before halftime against UCLA, resulting in a Bruins field goal.
Taylor recognized his mistakes and is looking to improve on them in 2022.
“(Special teams coach Shawn Slocum) tells me all the time to do the little things well,” Taylor said on Wednesday. “I just try to perfect my craft – (making sure) I go through with the catch, take the angle to get the touchdown, just being my best self every play and trying to be as perfect as I can.”
“One of my key things now is making better decisions – knowing where I am at, knowing the time of the game, just every little detail that goes into it. The main thing is the catch; it’s not what you do after the catch, but make the catch and get the possession first. I’m trying to get the best field position for my team.”
Taylor has also been putting significant focus on playing on the defensive side of the ball as a safety instead of exclusively being a returner. In that arena, the most formidable challenge is learning the playbook.
“The past year, I’ve just been trying to learn the plays,” Taylor said. “Just get as much knowledge as I can to being around the defense and being back on defense again, just trying to make myself available to play on D.”
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The other familiar face on special teams is sophomore punter Eddie Czaplicki, who averaged 43.4 yards per punt in 2021, good enough for sixth in the Pac-12. In order to get those numbers up, the sophomore has put serious time in off the field, as well as zeroing in on technique in spring practices.
“I’ve been working on getting my body weight up, working on my efficiency and my form,” Czaplicki said. “I want to do things that are consistent and repeatable – so that’s the speed of my hands, reference points on my body being in alignment, working on the muscle memory and making sure that time after time that alignment and the height with my drop (is the same), little things like that.”
One thing that Czaplicki really wants to improve on in 2022 is a term that his predecessor, Michael Turk, mastered – hangtime. The higher the ball goes, the longer it remains in the air, thus resulting in a punter’s favorite term.
“I want to improve my hangtime this year,” Czaplicki stated. “I’ve been pushing my limits with my body in terms of hangtime on my punts. For reference, a 5.0 is a pro punt. I’ve been pushing my limits to get into the 5.3s, 5.4s and be able to hit those consistently.”
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The other kicking role is still up for grabs, but ahead of the arrival of hotshot kicking recruit Carter Brown, the on-campus favorite is redshirt freshman Jace Feely, son of 14-year NFL veteran Jay Feely. The young kicker has gone through some profound changes with his kicking motion in recent months, focusing on his approach and being smooth all the way through the ball.
“It allows me to be more accurate instead of kicking the big ball,” Feely said of his new approach. “Coming in, you want to be the guy that can hit 60-yarders; now I’m developing where I’m good from 55-in, and I can hit that consistently.
The son of an NFL kicker, it’s not always easy for Feely to work quietly. Not only is the older Feely his father, but also his coach for life.
“Since I started kicking, he’s been there and has always been there as I’ve progressed and grown,” Feely said of his father. “He gets to tell me more about the mental side of things and more like what he did at the professional level and allows me to grow in that aspect.”
In order for Czaplicki to boot the pigskin into the heavens as well as complete his duties on the field goal unit as the new holder and for Feely to kick it through the uprights, the group must connect and time things up with their long snapper, redshirt sophomore Gage King, who takes over for the graduated Erik Dickerson.
“I learned a bunch behind Erik,” King said. “He taught me the intricacies of the position and how to lead the group.”
Snapping to both the kicker and punter, it’s imperative King has his timing and connection down with both players. In order to do that, it requires a connection both on and off the field, and according to King, the special teamers are all on the same page.
“It’s all one unit with us,” King said. “We mesh well with the other guys. I think people respect the work we do. As specialists, sometimes you get the ‘they don’t work hard’ or ‘they slack off’ type of mentality, but we don’t get that with our group.”
“Everything has to do with trust. Trusting me and me trusting them. (Trusting) that Eddie can get the holds, I can get the snaps, and Jace can make the kicks, and Eddie can punt. It all goes hand-in-hand. We spend a lot of time together, and that’s what it’s all about.”
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