Kicking ideas around: Stacy Collins keeping field goal options open

Stacy Collins isn’t limiting his kicking options ahead of the 2022 season. In a transition year, Collins assuming Penn State’s role as special teams coordinator and do-everything specialist Jordan Stout off to the NFL, decisions will need to be made.

But in evaluating the performers vying for an opportunity to perform kickoffs, place kicking, and punts, Collins isn’t set on his options or even the approach he’ll take.

“It’s gonna all be about who our kickers are,” Collins said. “Each situation is different.”

Specific to place kicking, that’s particularly important in light of Penn State’s varied approach for the past few seasons.

Penn State’s kicking approach

Sending out Jake Pinegar for every field goal attempt during the 2018 season, the Nittany Lions split the duties moving forward. While Pinegar handled field goals shorter than 50 yards, Jordan Stout moved in to take attempts past that threshold. Pleased with the results, Pinegar hitting an improved 11-of-12 attempts and complemented by Stout’s 2-of-3 makes beyond 50, Penn State followed in 2020 with the same aims. Then, Pinegar knocked home 9-of-13 attempts, all 46 yards and under, while Stout served to handle a 47-yarder and a 50-yarder during the season. 

With Pinegar utilizing a redshirt season in 2021, the responsibility fell completely to Stout until late in the season. Finishing the year hitting 16-of-23 attempts with a long of 52, Pinegar stepped in against Michigan State and Arkansas to close out the campaign. He hit one of his two attempts before entering the offseason.

Simultaneously, while Collins was serving in the same ST coordinator role at Boise State, the Broncos shared Penn State’s prior approach in the kicking game.

“I’ve done it both ways,” Collins said. “Last year at Boise State, we had a kid named Jonah Dalmas. He led the nation in field goals made, he was 26 of 28. But, we had a line of demarcation with him. 

“Now, he’s really good. And I felt good from a pretty deep range with him. But we also had our punter, who had a big-time leg, and if we had to hit a 61-yarder in those situations, that’s the route we would have gone.”

Next steps

Not needing to turn to punter Joel Velazquez for any of the Broncos’ attempts, the mindset is one Collins is open to considering again with Penn State this season.

At Penn State, Collins won’t need to extend the competition to the punters, though. Instead, he’ll need to choose between the primary competition of Pinegar, who returns for a fifth-year senior season, and redshirt freshman Sander Sahaydak, the nation’s No. 2-ranked kicker in the Class of 2021 according to the On3 Consensus,

With one year under his belt, having worked closely both with Pinegar and Stout, Sahaydak said the entire room of kickers has benefited from the competitive environment that has emerged.

“That’s a thing that I love about being here is I have someone to really push me. And also, he has someone to push him,” ’Sahaydak said. “It’s a great thing to go back and forth. We’re making each other better, seeing improvements, bouncing ideas off of each other, and stuff like that. 

“So, I think it’s been really helpful for me, especially, and you could ask him, I think he’d agree it has been helpful for him to have someone to compete with, someone that you can, at the end of the day, say, ‘Hey, Did I beat this guy today? Did he beat me today?’ And just kind of go back and forth.”

Determined to keep an open mind not only heading into the preseason, but as it goes along, Collins is eager to see how his competitors approach the opportunity at hand.

“I believe in us making sure we put our guys in the best position to be successful,” Collins said. “And so for me, that’s a unique. fluid situation each place you’re at, and the personnel you have.”