By: Nolan Alexander
Over the course of preseason practices, Nolan Alexander of KSUOwls.com previews each Kennesaw State football position group.
KENNESAW, Ga. - "Good, better, best. Never let it rest. Until your good is better and your better is best."
The popular quote has been attributed by the internet to either St. Jerome or NBA legend Tim Duncan, which will begin and end as the only controversy in this preview. The triumvirate of Kennesaw State specialists return this spring after having a good 2019. They have improved their craft to be better this spring, and by season's end may be the best unit.
"When we time our short snaps, we time the whole operation. Last season, 1.19 seconds was the average. This fall, it was at 1.15 seconds. There were several 1.09 seconds. The kick has to be off at 1.25 or it is a block risk," said special teams coordinator Tim Glanton. "1.25 is an SEC (Southeastern Conference) time. We're getting it off around 1.15 seconds and the chance of getting it blocked, especially from the edge, isn't happening."
It starts with the snap from junior Jacob Potter.
"He's a workaholic. He loves doing what he does, is a master at his craft and his long snap times are as good as anyone we have had here. He's worked on his short snaps velocity, not that he needed to because he is accurate, but he can hit the specific spot we aim for our short snaps to be at 10 out of 10 times."
Then, Nicholas Jones places the ball down as the holder. Jones, however, is better known as the Owl punter. He showed off his powerful leg last season with 37 punts for a 40.8-yard average. He owned two punts of over 50 yards and pinned 10 punts inside the opponent 20-yard line. The Grayson native also handled kickoff duties with 25 touchbacks and a 58.5-yard average on 77 kickoffs.
"He's one of the better punters in the conference. He has great hang time, get-off times, a quick leg and has been one of our more consistent specialists we have had here. His biggest asset is his consistency. He has also done a phenomenal job of holding since we have been here. He's a weapon for us on special teams, especially on kickoffs."
Finally, junior kicker Nathan Robertson lets it rip. Robertson was 10-of-14 on field goal attempts in 2019 with a career-long 46-yarder against Charleston Southern that set a KSU record. He converted 68 of his 70 PATs, both of which counted in the record books. The 68 conversions tied a school-mark, and the 70 attempts set the record. Robertson also handled 18 kickoffs.
"He's been pretty consistent overall. The one thing we worked on in the fall with him is there are certain kicks on the field he must be more consistent with the angles. He worked very hard this fall on it. I look for him to have a breakout season as a kicker. He has a big leg."
The kickoff and punt return game also feature veterans in Isaac Foster and Shaq Terry. Foster is a two-time All-Big South Special Teams honoree. In 2019, he set the KSU program record for yards per punt return at 18.6 when he returned six punts for 112 total yards. As a freshman, he was named the Big South Special Teams Player of the Year after becoming the first player in league history to record two 100-yard kickoff returns for touchdowns in the same season. Foster was the only FCS and FBS player in the nation with two 100-yard kickoff returns for TDs during the 2018 campaign.
"Isaac is so dynamic with the ball in his hands. We like setting up returns because when he has the ball in his hands, he can house it anytime. He's good about setting up blocks, has the speed to go the distance and will field the ball and make sure we don't have negative yards."
Terry returned five kickoffs for 108 yards and added 16 returned punts for 224 yards last season. As a freshman in 2017, he finished sixth in the conference in average kick returns at 26.0 per return on 11 attempts, including a 97-yarder against Texas Southern.
"He does a great job fielding, pressing vertical and hitting the seams. I can promise you; you can look forward to some big returns this spring."
"I'm very excited about the four core phases of our kicking game. I think it's going to be something special to watch this season."
Kennesaw State begins its spring schedule at home Feb. 27 against Shorter University. Tickets are available by clicking here.
