A closer look: Iowa special teams 2017

IOWA CITY — Good luck to LeVar Woods. As Iowa's newly minted special teams coordinator, it's Woods' job to keep Josey Jewell from playing on various return and coverage units.

This clever ruse has run its course. That is not Woods' job. His job is to put Iowa's special teams in the best possible position for success. To do that, of course, Woods could plug Iowa's all-Big Ten linebacker into everything but kicker, punter and long snapper.

Jewell is kind of busy playing middle linebacker, so Iowa should throttle his snap count and keep him off the field for special teams.

That makes the most sense, right? It doesn't to Jewell.

'Hopefully, Coach gives me a shot,' Jewell said. 'As a player, you always want to do as many things as possible. I hope I get the chance and I hope Coach puts me out there.'

Jewell plans to play special teams. In 2015, he was on most coverage units and punt return. Last year, Jewell was taken off kick return. This year, his hand is up for anything and everything.

'If there's somebody better, that's fine, they can take it,' Jewell said, 'but you still hope to be on the field, that's for sure.'

This is a senior linebacker, a two-time second-team all-Big Ten pick and a player who's talented enough to have considered an early entry into the NFL draft last winter.

And he wants on as many special teams squads as he can get. Welcome to Iowa's special teams 2017. The stakes have been raised.

Iowa was OK in special teams last season, with Desmond King returning punts and kicks, Ron Coluzzi steadying the punt job and then-true freshman Keith Duncan sending a 33-yard kick through the uprights to beat then-No. 3 Michigan as the clock expired.

Head coach Kirk Ferentz wants more. He believes his team needs more.

'We did have a pretty good year, but we still can do more,' Ferentz said. 'A lot of what we all learn is from our past. I'm not a dean and I'm an authority, but one thing I probably know the most about is Iowa football. I just think from our vantage point, if we're not really getting that edge — we still have a couple of steps to go — returners come and go, good punters and kickers come and go, but the rest of the whole operation, if there are some areas we can do a better job in, we've got to home in and get that edge.

'We're not going to be one of those offenses that cranks out 550 (yards) a game. It's unrealistic to think we're going to hold people to under 10 points. Not many people can do that in college football anymore. We've got to hit every edge we possibly can.'

Ferentz admitted he got lucky when he was able to add veteran special teams coach Kevin Spencer as a special teams quality control assistant this summer. Spencer, 63, was named the NFL's special teams coach of the year with Pittsburgh in 2003. He began his career alongside Ferentz on the Cleveland Browns staff in 1991.

'All of the sudden, we get a guy who has a wealth of knowledge and expertise, he wasn't looking to coach here, just wanted to help out,' Ferentz said. 'He's never been a Division I coach, he's been in Division III. This is something he hasn't done, so he's excited about that. He's a football guy and just a good guy.'

Woods will be the long-term voice for Iowa's special teams. When schools are allowed to hire a 10th assistant in January 2018, Woods will be the special teams coordinator, leaving tight ends likely for the new hire.

Woods embraces the 'all in' note that Ferentz struck. Iowa needs special teams to be an edge.

'Anyone who can help, we're looking at everybody,' Woods said.

If we're talking core special teams players, like Jewell has been in his four years at Iowa, you automatically look at linebackers. Including Jewell, Iowa has three senior starters at the linebacker spots. So, Iowa does have a small army of reserve linebackers who should be somewhat eager to show something on special teams. That will likely be their early application for a starting spot in 2018.

Yeah, linebackers are definitely part of the plan, Woods said. But he doesn't stop there.

'Every day we have competitive drills (block and hold up) to develop skills and talent for special teams,' he said. 'We try to translate what a guy on offense to special teams and vice versa for defensive guys, how that translates to special teams.'

• A closer look: Iowa linebackers 2017

Woods played linebacker for the Hawkeyes and spent seven seasons in the NFL playing LB and thriving as a special teamer. Linebackers are a part of this. You'll probably see junior Jack Hockaday and sophomores Amani Jones and Kristian Welch. You'll see a wave of redshirt freshmen LBs with Nick Niemann and Barrington Wade coming on line this year.

Woods isn't stopping there.

'There are other guys, too,' he said. 'There are safeties, some receivers, a couple of tight ends, the fullbacks will help, certainly.'

That's how special teams drills are plugged into Iowa's practices. You don't take a knee, you go out and drill.

'Everyone is out there, everyone is at practice, let's see what you can do,' Woods said. 'You can teach those skills. There are some things in natural athleticism that are there, but you can develop skills and knowledge. Most of these kids don't necessarily know anything about it, so every day we work on trying to develop that.'

Nothing sets that tone more clearly than Jewell not only keeping his hand up for special teams duty, but also competing with the Barrington Wades and Shaun Beyers of the Iowa football world for a spot on kick coverage.

'They're probably better than me in some scenarios,' Jewell said, sizing up the competition. 'That's kind of terrible. I wish I was better than them. That's something I need to work on.'

THE DEPTH CHART

K

— 1a. Miguel Recinos, jr., 6-1, 192; 1b. Keith Duncan, so., 5-11, 173; 3. Caleb Shudak, #fr., 5-8, 175

P

— 1a. Colten Rastetter, so., 6-2, 210; 1b. Ryan Gersonde, fr., 6-4, 185

LS

— 1. Tyler Kluver, sr., 6-0, 220; Austin Spiewak, #fr., 6-2, 230; Jackson Subbert, so., 6-3, 237; Marshall Coluzzi, fr., 6-0, 220

KR

— Akrum Wadley, sr., 5-11, 195; Devonte Young, so., 6-0, 200; Matt VandeBerg, sr., 6-1, 195

PR

— Manny Rugamba, so., 6-0, 185

NEXT MEN IN

For some of the specialist positions, you're not going to find a lot of valuable information here or, really, anywhere. Not until Sept. 2. That's when the curtain goes up on everything Iowa football.

There have been no public punts. Right now, let's plug in Colten Rastetter as punter and see if true freshman Ryan Gersonde

can score the knockout in competition.

There has been a smattering of returns, all from one of those Jugs Machine ball flingers. During the open scrimmage on Aug. 12, RB Akrum Wadley, WR Devonte Young, cornerback Manny Rugamba, RB Toren Young, RB James Butler and wide receiver Ihmir Smith-Marsette

got a look at kick return.

If Woods' new title as special teams coordinator and the hiring of Kevin Spencer doesn't tell you how seriously Kirk Ferentz is taking special teams, then the fact that Wadley is being considered for kick returns should do it.

Kickers Miguel Recinos and Keith Duncan went head-to-head on Aug. 12. It was just one practice of the 29 leading up to the opener, but Recinos looked fantastic, nailing 9 of 9 kicks including a 51-yarder. Duncan struggled late and hit 5 of 9. That was one look in a month of practices. Kirk Ferentz

said this week that a decision on kicker is coming early next week.

Does this Iowa team have any four-year starters? Last season, this was an easy answer. It was cornerback Desmond King. This year? Long snapper Tyler Kluver

will be a four-year starter.

'The one position that's pretty solidified is long snapper, with Tyler,' Woods said. 'He's done it and has been fairly ... not fairly, he's been consistent.'

ETC.

— Will Iowa do a long and short field goal kicker like it tried late last season?

The standard in 2016 was Duncan took care of everything inside of 25 yards (43-yard FG) and Recinos got the call 25 and beyond.

Woods said whatever works.

'Whichever guy ends up winning the job will be the guy we feel most comfortable with and may very well be game-by-game and situation-by-situation,' Woods said. 'The goal is to score points and whichever one is going to score points is going to kick.'

That sounds like a maybe on the platoon kicking. Mainly, Woods' comment on situation. Still, if Recinos has been Aug. 12 good all camp, this is an easy choice.

'Keith and I relish the idea of competition against each other,' Recinos said. 'We have a lot of respect for each other. I think we push each other a lot and that helps us get better. The idea is for the whole unit to get better.'

— If you haven't figured it out by now, Woods doesn't make promises for his players. And that leads us to punter.

Who knows what's going on there. Yes, incoming freshman Ryan Gersonde is one of two specialists on scholarship (Kluver is the other). Iowa knew if it wanted Gersonde, it would have to scholarship him. Wisconsin also looked at the Milwaukee, Wis., native as a walk-on.

The scholarship won't dictate who gets the job, Woods said.

'Best guy is going to punt,' Woods said. 'Maybe one, maybe two, can't tell yet. The competition still is open at punter, kicker and kickoff (which is likely headed Recinos' way).'

— We all can agree that Duncan knows a thing or two about 'clutchness.' He booted the 33-yard field goal that beat Michigan last year at Kinnick Stadium. The game was on ABC and by the time Duncan lined up for the field goal late in the fourth quarter, 10 million people tuned in.

Duncan broke down how 'clutchness' is developed through drills.

'We did a lot of two-minute drills,' Duncan said. 'C.J. (Beathard) would come down and they'd call it fourth down at the 37. They'd call out a kicker to go kick. We had to put it through or we would lose, that kind of situation. Obviously, that'll get you going a little bit. It gets your heart pumping and simulates a situation in Kinnick. That's what they (coaches) did.'

And it worked for Duncan and for all of the Hawkeye fans who ran out onto the Kinnick field post-Michigan.

l Comments: (319) 398-8256; marc.morehouse@thegazette.com