UNC Football Spring Game: A closer look at the special teams

With the 2021 spring practices nearing completion and the Spring Game this coming Saturday, we continue our series on taking a closer look at each position group throughout the UNC football program. Today we will focus on the third and final aspect of football on any level as we examine the special teams unit.

Quarterback | Running Backs | Wide Receivers/Tight Ends | Offensive Line | Defensive Line | Linebackers | Defensive Backs

Special teams coordinator Jovan Dewitt is now entering his second season with the UNC football  coaching staff, but the first in which they were able to have spring practices. While he does have some capable and experienced pieces in place, there are still a few holes that he will be looking to fill. We will focus this article on the punter, place kicker, deep snapper and kick returners.

Junior Ben Kiernan averaged 43.7 yards per punt in 2020. Out of his 34 punts, he was able to place 16 of them inside the opponent’s 20-yard line. Ten of the 16 punts were actually spotted inside the 10-yard line. Eight of his 34 punts were for a staggering 50-plus yards each. His best game was against Notre Dame, where he averaged 50.6 yards on seven punts. He placed five of the seven punts inside the Irish 20 yard line, with three of them traveling more than 50 yards. That performance earned him the Ray Guy Award Top Four Player recognition for the week. Junior Adam Buck provides a capable replacement should Kiernan be unavailable.

Super senior Grayson Atkins is returning for the placekicker duties. He converted all 63 of his PAT attempts in 2020, which is the second highest total in UNC football history. He connected on 12-of-18 field goal attempts with a long of 51 yards against the University of Virginia. While a 66 percent field goal conversion rate is acceptable, the team will need to have that above 80 percent in 2021.

Junior Jonathan Kim performed the kickoff duties in 2020, and will be back in 2021 to build on that momentum. His 89 kickoffs averaged 64.5 yards each, resulting in 76 touchbacks. Those 76 touchbacks led the nation, and helped the Carolina kickoff coverage team rank second in college football. For good measure, he also recorded three tackles for the season. Redshirt freshman Noah Burnette, who was a five-star kicker in high school that was ranked 20th in the nation, is waiting in the wings.

Nothing positive happens on a punt, PAT or field goal attempt without a great snap from the long snapper. Junior Drew Little is entering his third season with that responsibility, and has done a remarkable job to this point. Providing insurance at that position is redshirt freshman Spencer Triplett, who was the top long snapper in the state of North Carolina, and No. 16 nationally as a high school senior.

There are question marks in the punt return and kickoff return game. Both Dazz Newsome and Michael Carter have moved on to pursue a career in the NFL. Newsome’s 9.88 average per return was good enough to rank 13th nationally, while Carter averaged 19.5 yards per kickoff return. The only returning player that returned a kick in 2020 is sophomore running back D.J. Jones, which was a single 18-yard kickoff return against Western Carolina. This will not be finalized until this summer.

Despite the kick return situation, this is still a group that is experienced and looking to improve in 2021. With a dominant offense led by Heisman candidate Sam Howell, and a defense that has NFL talent on all three levels, if the special teams unit finishes anywhere near the top ten then UNC football could very well be primed for an opportunity to challenge Clemson for ACC superiority and a spot in the College Football Playoff.

You can watch the 2021 Spring Game on the ACC Network Saturday April 24 at 3:00pm.

For more information on the UNC football program, check back with at Keeping It Heel.