2017 BC Football Camp Insider: Specialists

It's easy to take special teams play for granted. A kickoff or a punt bridges the gap from the last defensive series to the next offensive series, changing the pace of the game from one way to another. It looks basic, especially in the face of an overarching game story.

For the athletes on the field, however, special teams represent so much more than that. It's an opportunity, a place where heart, hustle and grit mean more than possibly any other position. Good special teams can become the hallmark of a winning program, while a failure to execute can become magnified.

"You see kids on the field, and they're not on offense or defense," coordinator Ricky Brown said of his special teams players. "If they can inject energy, speed and toughness into special teams, they have a place on this team. A kickoff is one football play, which makes it the same as one offensive play or one defensive play. With special teams, there's just as many opportunities, if not more, to impact a game on that one play. So for us, we have a bunch of football players who like to play football, and special teams is included on that list."

For the Eagles, it's an attitude helping them maintain a steady consistency within the unit. Entering his senior year, Mike Knoll carries a career 82% field goal rate. Coming off of 2015, where he went 9-9 on extra points, he went 6-6 on field goals within 30 yards last season. His 85.7% accuracy rate on field goals ranked best in the ACC and 17th best in the nation.

A testament of consistency, Knoll pulled triple duty by handling punts and kickoffs. He finished first in the ACC in punts and yards punted in his first year on the job. His second career punt, in rainy conditions in Dublin, Ireland, pinned Georgia Tech at their one yard line. A week later, he registered a 63-yard boot against UMass. He kicked off 55 times, averaging 60 yards per kick, with just under 30% landing for touchbacks.

"You're never done developing in football," Brown said. "If you're Tom Brady turning 40 years old or a freshman, a guy's skillset is always developing. I see how this group grows every day, how they develop in their mental toughness. This is an entire unit that's tight-knit, and they compete with each other (in practice). That's been awesome to watch."

Though the incumbent Knoll gets the bulk of attention, there's depth driving the position forward. Colton Lichtenberg saw action in nine games during his freshman year in 2015, going a perfect 6-6 on point after attempts. He averaged 60 yards per kickoff, including four touchbacks, and registered a long field goal of 43 yards on natural grass at Fenway Park against Notre Dame. This came during an adjustment following a high school career where he kicked a 51-yarder and earned small school All-American status by MaxPreps.com.

But Eagle fans might become most enamored by a new, yet familiar, arrival in football camp. After spending the bulk of his college career on the Boston College soccer field, German import Maximilian Schulze-Geisthovel switched over to football for the 2017 season. In 19 games last year, including six starts, he tied Zeiko Lewis for the team's lead in goals with seven. Opening the season with four goals in four games, he added two against Albany on three shots. As he switches to American football, he'll become a major asset, projected already to make kickoffs for the Eagles in 2017.

But special teams aren't limited to just kickers. The entire unit is needed for its success, from gunners running downfield on punts to coverage players making tackles on kickoffs. A kick needs to be appropriately placed for coverage to prevent runbacks, with the same split-second decision making required as any other part of the field.

It requires a desire to learn and a hunger to play. That's something their coordinator, Ricky Brown, knows something about. Brown was immensely successful at linebacker for the Eagles, playing four seasons from 2002-2005, winning the Scanlan Award in his senior season. An undrafted free agent, he signed and played six seasons for the Oakland Raiders, where he played primarily on special teams.

"Al Davis and the Oakland Raiders changed my life," Brown said. "I had the best coach I've ever had in Oakland in (linebackers coach) Don Martindale. He was an Ohio guy, so I made an instant connection with him when I joined the Raiders. With him and (then-defensive coordinator) Rob Ryan, they taught me how to be a player. I gave the Oakland Raiders special teams, and they taught me how to play linebacker (at the NFL level). I'll always have a special place in my heart for the Oakland Raiders."

The Raiders taught Brown that in order to succeed, there needs to be sacrifice on every play for the betterment of the team. It's something he's brought with him back to Chestnut Hill, where he works for a head coach who stresses the same values.

"What's really cool is that I work for a head coach who understands that special teams are a major point of emphasis for our program," he said. "Good special teams can really be a hallmark of a program, and I work for a guy who knows how to use the special teams. Every single person is geared towards winning. When you talk about Coach Addazio's program, every single guy has to be pointed in that same direction, and that includes the special teams unit."

2017 BC Football Camp Insider: Specialists

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Mike Knoll

Colton Lichtenberg

Maximilian Schulze-Geisthovel

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