Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1472993
A U G U S T 2 0 2 2 7 9 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M SPECIAL TEAMS "Our impact is going to be winning the hidden yardage to put our offensive and defensive units in a position to be successful. I think that's what it's all about." C O L L I N S PERSONNEL POSITION COACH Stacy Collins: A 24-year coaching veteran, Collins arrived at Penn State in January after a one-year stint with Boise State as its special teams coordinator. The Sutherlin, Ore., native had previously been at Utah State, where he coached special teams, in- side linebackers, running backs and safeties during his five seasons with the Aggies. Almost all of Collins' coaching career has been spent on the West Coast. He broke into coaching in 2003 at his alma mater, Western Oregon. Collins also spent time at Western Washington, Idaho State, Southern Oregon, Central Washington and Portland State. He has been a head coach, too. Collins ran the football program at the South Da- kota School of Mines from 2012-15, serv- ing as both head coach and special teams coordinator at the Division II school before moving on to Utah State in 2016. RETURNING SCHOLARSHIP PLAYERS JAKE PINEGAR R-Sr. | 6-2 | 206 • Ranks fourth all-time at Penn State with 138 extra points and sixth with a success rate of 74 percent on field goal attempts. • Hit 9 of 13 field goals in his last full sea- son of work in 2020. SANDER SAHAYDAK R-Fr. | 6-4 | 202 • Rated a five-star prospect by Kohl's Kick- ing before enrolling at Penn State ahead of the 2021 season. • Had a career-long field goal of 53 yards while at Liberty (Pa.) High. CHRIS STOLL Sr.+ | 6-2 | 262 • Handled snapping duties on field goals and punts in all 13 games last season. • Earned a scholarship ahead of the 2020 season, in which he served as long snap- per in all nine games. NEWCOMER ALEX BACCHETTA Fr. | 6-5 | 229 • Ranked as the nation's No. 8 punter ac- cording to the On3 Consensus, with a three-star rating. • Picked Penn State over offers from Clem- son, Arkansas and Virginia, among others. • Was a three-time Class 3A all-state selec- tion in Georgia. PREFERRED WALK-ONS BARNEY AMOR R-Sr.+ | 6-1 | 193 • Received second-team All-Patriot League honors from Phil Steele following the 2019 season at Colgate. • Won Academic All-Big Ten honors in his first season at Penn State. GABRIEL NWOSU R-Fr. | 6-6 | 278 • Averaged 41.3 yards per punt as a junior at The Bullis School in 2019. (His senior season at the Potomac, Md., high school was canceled due to COVID-19.) BY THE NUMBERS 1 The national ranking for true freshman Alex Bacchetta as a punter by Kohl's Kicking, fol- lowed closely by his spot at No. 8 among all kickers in the class of 2022. 35 Career games played by senior long snap- per Chris Stoll, who returns for his sixth year of college football. 244 Total points that redshirt senior place- kicker Jake Pinegar has scored in his career to date. He ranks eighth on the Nittany Lions' all-time scoring list and is the 14th player in school history to surpass 200 points. Quick Facts: Special Teams Position coach: Stacy Collins (first season) Returning starters: KR Devyn Ford, LS Chris Stoll Departing starters: KO/P/PK Jordan Stout, PR Jahan Dotson Projected new starters: P Alex Bacchetta, PK Jake Pinegar, PR Parker Washington Top reserves: P Barney Amor, Gabe Nwosu, PK Sander Sahaydak Newcomer: P Alex Bacchetta Moved in: None Moved out: None Coming off a redshirt year in 2021, freshman Sander Sahaydak is looking to challenge veteran Jake Pinegar for the starting placekicker job. PHOTO BY STEVE MANUEL