The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
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90 ■ THE WOLFPACKER FOOTBALL PREVIEW 2015 BY JACEY ZEMBAL T he key roles on special teams will get a fresh look this fall. NC State could have three freshmen handling the punting, kicking and long snapping duties for the second time in the last five years. Punter A.J. Cole III, kicker Kyle Bambard and long snapper Tyler Griffiths — all freshmen — impressed NC State coaches enough in high school to earn scholarships. Walk-ons will push the trio during fall camp, but the three freshmen represent the next wave of the future. Bambard made a 28-yard field goal, and Cole had nine punts for a 42.4-yard average and a long of 57 during the Kay Yow Spring Game April 11. "We are going to have some freshman growing pains as we go," NCSU co-special teams coordina- tor and fullback/tight ends coach Eddie Faulkner said. "We know that. They are also very good. It is just something that we have to go through now in terms of who is going to end up taking that job, and who you have confidence in. I am very confident [about] what they can do." NC State's coaching staff was a different one four seasons back, but playing three freshmen at the same time on special teams isn't some- thing new to Wolfpack fans. Punter Wil Baumann, kicker Niklas Sade and long snapper Scott Thompson broke in together in 2011. Baumann averaged a modest 37.7 yards per punt, but dropped 21 inside the 20-yard line and had 31 fair caught. Sade nailed 11 of 16 field goals with a long of 45 and only one miss inside 40 yards. Sade also had five touchbacks on 70 kickoffs, but the kickoff rules were not as touchback-friendly that season. Flash forward to Baumann's and Sade's senior years — both exited NC State among the best in Wolfpack and ACC history. Baumann earned first-team All-ACC honors and was sixth in the nation in averaging 45.4 yards per punt, plus he landed 23 inside the 20-yard line. Baumann finished as the NCSU record holder in both punts (266) and punting yards (10,868), which also were among the best in ACC history. Sade finished his NCSU career with a school-record 332 points, breaking Ted Brown's career re- cord from the late 1970s. Sade also finished seventh in ACC history in points. Sade went 55 of 79 on field goals and 167 of 172 on ex- tra points, and nailed a long of 50 yards his sophomore year. Sade also had 47 touchbacks on 74 kick- offs his senior year. Thompson also became a favor- ite of Phil Steele's College Foot- ball, which named him a 2013 first-team All-American. Faulkner knows it could take some time for the new freshman trio to grow up, if recent history is any indication. "I think all three of them, and I am including the long snapper with that, are good players and will be fine," Faulkner said. Redshirt freshman Jackson Maples will push Bambard at kicker and on kickoffs, and redshirt junior William Stephenson is compet- SPECIAL TEAMS STARTING OVER Freshmen Will Play Crucial Roles For NC State Special Teams Roster STARTERS No. Name Pos. Yr. Ht. Wt. Hometown 92 Kyle Bambard K Fr. 5-8 190 Walled Lake, Mich. Bambard signed in the class of 2014 and enrolled this past spring. The prep quarterback went 11 of 18 on field goals his senior year, plus passed for 1,721 yards and 21 touch - downs while rushing for 1,485 yards and 14 scores. 90 A.J. Cole III P Fr. 6-4 238 College Park, Ga. Cole signed with NC State in the class of 2014, but delayed his enrollment until the 2015 spring semester. He averaged 40.1 yards per punt on 26 punts his senior year, and also went 7 of 9 on field goals and 33 of 38 on extra points at Woodward Academy. 57 Tyler Griffiths LS Fr. 6-2 230 Monroe, N.C. Has been clocked with an average 15-yard snap time of 0.70 seconds during the summer of 2014 (0.65-0.80 is considered good). WAITING IN THE WINGS No. Name Pos. Yr. Ht. Wt. Hometown 52 Ben Garnett LS R-Jr. 6-0 238 Charlotte, N.C. Garnett is a walk-on long snapper from Rocky River High, who redshirted last year. He played against Florida State during the 2013 season, which was his first year on the team. 97 Jackson Maples K Fr. 5-10 195 Southern Pines, N.C. Maples is a preferred walk-on kicker who redshirted last year. He booted a 60-yard field goal as a junior at Pinecrest High, and was ranked as the No. 23 kicker in the country per KohlsKicking.com for the class of 2014. 47 William Stephenson P/K R-Jr. 6-3 195 Raleigh Stephenson, who is nicknamed "Scooby," is a walk-on from Wakefield High. "We are going to have some freshman growing pains as we go. We know that. They are also very good. It is just something that we have to go through now in terms of who is going to end up taking that job, and who you have confidence in. I am very confident [about] what they can do." ■ Co-special teams coordinator Eddie Faulkner ■ Preseason Analysis **** Among country's best; *** Among ACC's best; ** Solid or has potential; * Too unproven Starters ** NC State has gone from proven commodities to newcomers who have potential, but are also obviously unproven. The Wolfpack coaches had punter A.J. Cole III and kicker Kyle Bambard, both freshmen, attend camp. The latter was also a prep teammate of NCSU redshirt sophomore strong safety Josh Jones. Rubio Long Snapping ranked freshman long snapper Tyler Griffiths No. 7 in the country at his craft in the class of 2015. NC State could also revive its return game thanks to the explosiveness of redshirt freshman Maurice Trowell, plus rookies Nyheim Hines, Brian Sessoms, Freddie Simmons and Johnny Fraiser. That group will challenge junior kick returner Matt Dayes and junior punt returner Bra'Lon Cherry. Experience * The previously mentioned Dayes and Cherry have experience in the return game, but NC State is likely starting over at all the other key spots. Departed punter Wil Baumann and kicker Niklas Sade both got better as their NC State record-setting careers went on, and that will likely be the case with the various newcomers. Depth * Redshirt junior long snapper Ben Garnett, redshirt freshman kicker Jackson Maples and redshirt junior punter William Stephenson will all get the chance to challenge the scholarship performers. It's also clear that the return game should have good depth. Overall grade ** The overall grade is down because as co-special teams coach Eddie Faulkner men - tioned, until players do it in front of 65,000 screaming fans, it's hard to know how players will react. Because each member of the freshman trio is on scholarship, they will all be expected to deliver.