Penn State special teams coordinator Stacy Collins talks Lions' kicking game, Barney Amor, and more

Penn State special teams coordiantor Stacy Collins was on the line with reporters on Thursday. The conversation started with a question about how close starter Jake Pinegar and backup Sander Sahaydak were coming out of camp in the field goal department in addition to where things stand now.

“It was a very good competition as they rolled through camp,” Collins said. “It was pretty neck and neck. At the end of the day, you get a large volume of kicks through camp, and we determined where Jake was at from a certain landmark and then when we went to the deep, deep field goals, we decided to go with Sander.

“So that’s an ongoing evaluation. We kick field goals throughout the week, and as we can continue to do that. That’s where they came out of camp. As we progress with the season, we’ll work through it each week.”

In other words, it doesn’t sound like a change is imminent at Penn State, even if Pinegar is three of five on field goal tries and has had two extra points blocked. The latter issue, and certainly the one in last week’s Penn State win over Central Michigan, seems to be protection based versus Pinegar’s fault.

“We’ve got to get that cleaned up,” Collins said. “You cannot have a kick blocked. We’ve got to be clean with our set, fundamentals, and techniques. There are certain things that we can do from an alignment standpoint that will work to try to help those guys out from an interior standpoint.

“We’ve worked at it. We’ve had a really good week of practice. But, that’s got to be more consistent. We’ve got to be more sound with it from a fundamental and technique standpoint.”

Collins touched on other Penn State topics.

On punter Barney Amor

Amor, who transferred in from Colgate, has been stellar so far. He has a top-10 punting average nationally of 46.06 yards per boot. He also has seven 50-plus yard punts through four weeks and, along with his Penn State teammates, has forced opponents to start inside their own 20-yard-line after a punt 10 times.

“I think it starts with his makeup and how he works every day,” Collins said. “He’s very, very consistent with what he’s doing.

“And,when he has days that are off, he finds ways to get it corrected. What’s been very productive for us when we talk about the field position standpoint is the punts he has inside the 10-yard-line, because those are game changing plays when you’re trying to work to get the hidden yardage. So, that’s what I’ve been most impressed with.”

Covering the Penn State kickoff situation

Penn State head coach James Franklin has made clear that he is not pleased with how kickoffs have gone through four weeks. Collins is happy with how they are being covered. But, too many have to be. It’s why Pinegar joined a kickoff specialist rotation last week that also includes Sahaydak and Gabe Nwosu.

“We’ve got to make sure that we’re consistent with where we’re putting the football,” Collins said. “We’ve got to be more consistent in location. It is frustrating pace. But, we continue to work that we’ve got guys with good legs. Jake came in and did a nice job. But one positive with it is we are covering the ball well.

“So, as we hit some of these missed kicks in areas that are not where we want them to be, give credit to the kickoff team, because we’ve covered them now and allowed the starting field position to be inside the 25 yard line. But, it starts with a kick. We need to get that cleaned up. We need to get that fixed. And, we need to be consistent with that across the board.”

Expect that to be a continued work in progress moving forward.

Singleton changes Penn State kick return approach

It goes without saying that the analytics that have taken over college football suggest that it is almost always better to fair catch a kickoff than to return it. But, when a game-changer like Singleton is back deep, the numbers can sometimes go out the window.

“Nick’s done an unbelievable job,” Collins said. “When he catches the ball, you know, he does a great job catching number one. And two, getting vertical, which is so important from a kickoff return standpoint, he’s been real close on a couple this year.

“We were just a hair off on the one at Auburn which he had a chance to get up to speed. Nick’s done a great job with that. he takes a ton of pride in it. He’s a big physical player with great speed, which is what you’re looking for in a kick returner.”

One final note: Collins said the program is pleased with the progress freshman specialist Alex Bacchetta has made since arriving on campus.