Lehigh Football Preview: Special Teams
8/16/2019 11:05:00 AM | Football
Throughout the month of August Lehighsports.com will be taking a position-by-position look at the 2019 Lehigh football team. The Mountain Hawks, under the direction of first-year head coach Tom Gilmore, opened preseason camp on August 1 and are preparing for the 2019 season-opener August 31 versus Saint Francis at Goodman Stadium.
We continue wit a look at Lehigh's special teams.
The biggest question mark facing Lehigh on special teams is in the kicking game, where the Mountain Hawks must replace all-league performer Ed Mish who kicked for all four seasons and punted during the last three.
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Lehigh has a pair of kickers in camp, with senior Austin Henning serving as the veteran. Henning kicked and punted in place of an injured Mish in 2017, converting 14-of-18 extra point attempts.
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Freshman Dylan Van Dusen from Radnor, Pa., will challenge as both a placekicker and punter.
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"Austin Henning is a guy that did it all for us in the spring and we have a freshman coming in, Dylan Van Dusen, who is a multi-dimensional guy who will do that as well," Gilmore said. "Austin had a solid spring and a really good summer so I'm looking forward to him doing some big things. The punting game is huge from a field position standpoint, so it's something we're going to emphasize, maybe more than any other special team."
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Lehigh does return an experienced long snapper in Jack Dean, while sophomores Michael Laurencelle and Calvin Rivera could also fill in on long and short snaps if needed.
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In the return game, Lehigh has several returning veterans with experience. Senior Sam McCloskey and juniors Jaylen Floyd and Jorge Portorreal all returned kickoffs and punts at times last season. Floyd was the top punt returner, helped by a 32-yard effort at Penn.
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Senior Devon Bibbens, junior Evan Chadbourn and sophomore Rashawn Allen have also seen time returning kickoffs in previous seasons.
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"In the return game, we have a lot of guys coming back who have done that in the past," Gilmore said. "We used a lot of guys in the spring as well. Jaylen Floyd and Sam McCloskey did a lot of return work in the spring. Jorge and some of our other receivers returned kicks for us as well. It's also an opportunity for some of these freshmen to get in there. We know we have some freshmen who were very capable returners in high school that can fill in there as well."
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Gilmore emphasized the importance of special teams and notes that successful special teams operation is the byproduct of a complete team effort.
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"On special teams the two biggest things are you have to have a lot of pride in what you're doing and have outstanding effort," Gilmore said. "A lot of players use special teams as just something we do that we have to do and that's not the approach that we're going to take. It's an integral part of the game. It's anywhere from 20-25 percent of any given game. There are a lot of plays that you're missing out on if you're not trying to do a great job with special teams.
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"Part of it is putting the right personnel out there," he continued. "We're going to use some starters and some of our best players and put them in positions to make big plays on special teams. Coach DiMichele is going to be heading our special teams this year. His energy and his enthusiasm is going to help that as well. Just coming out with the right attitude and getting the job done, that's a critical part of the game, especially in a tight contest."
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We continue wit a look at Lehigh's special teams.
The biggest question mark facing Lehigh on special teams is in the kicking game, where the Mountain Hawks must replace all-league performer Ed Mish who kicked for all four seasons and punted during the last three.
Â
Lehigh has a pair of kickers in camp, with senior Austin Henning serving as the veteran. Henning kicked and punted in place of an injured Mish in 2017, converting 14-of-18 extra point attempts.
Â
Freshman Dylan Van Dusen from Radnor, Pa., will challenge as both a placekicker and punter.
Â
"Austin Henning is a guy that did it all for us in the spring and we have a freshman coming in, Dylan Van Dusen, who is a multi-dimensional guy who will do that as well," Gilmore said. "Austin had a solid spring and a really good summer so I'm looking forward to him doing some big things. The punting game is huge from a field position standpoint, so it's something we're going to emphasize, maybe more than any other special team."
Â
Lehigh does return an experienced long snapper in Jack Dean, while sophomores Michael Laurencelle and Calvin Rivera could also fill in on long and short snaps if needed.
Â
In the return game, Lehigh has several returning veterans with experience. Senior Sam McCloskey and juniors Jaylen Floyd and Jorge Portorreal all returned kickoffs and punts at times last season. Floyd was the top punt returner, helped by a 32-yard effort at Penn.
Â
Senior Devon Bibbens, junior Evan Chadbourn and sophomore Rashawn Allen have also seen time returning kickoffs in previous seasons.
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"In the return game, we have a lot of guys coming back who have done that in the past," Gilmore said. "We used a lot of guys in the spring as well. Jaylen Floyd and Sam McCloskey did a lot of return work in the spring. Jorge and some of our other receivers returned kicks for us as well. It's also an opportunity for some of these freshmen to get in there. We know we have some freshmen who were very capable returners in high school that can fill in there as well."
Â
Gilmore emphasized the importance of special teams and notes that successful special teams operation is the byproduct of a complete team effort.
Â
"On special teams the two biggest things are you have to have a lot of pride in what you're doing and have outstanding effort," Gilmore said. "A lot of players use special teams as just something we do that we have to do and that's not the approach that we're going to take. It's an integral part of the game. It's anywhere from 20-25 percent of any given game. There are a lot of plays that you're missing out on if you're not trying to do a great job with special teams.
Â
"Part of it is putting the right personnel out there," he continued. "We're going to use some starters and some of our best players and put them in positions to make big plays on special teams. Coach DiMichele is going to be heading our special teams this year. His energy and his enthusiasm is going to help that as well. Just coming out with the right attitude and getting the job done, that's a critical part of the game, especially in a tight contest."
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Players Mentioned
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