Sawvel Seeking Consistency From Kicking, Punting Operation

LARAMIE -- Jay Sawvel said he has three goals this spring.

One is to see proficiency and explosiveness on offense. Another is to build the foundation of what the third year head coach hopes can be the best defensive unit this program has fielded since he arrived on campus back in 2020.

Third on the checklist: Consistency on special teams.

Get our free mobile app

While the initial question revolved around the late struggles of placekicker Erik Sandvik, Sawvel was quick to put the unit's entire operation under the microscope.

"All the statistics go on Erik Sandvik," he said. "A high snap that throws off timing, OK, it goes on Erik Sandvik, but when you break it down and just go, 'Well, OK, our timing was off because of this.' So, there's a whole area there that, I have a hit list on each phase of it."

The same can be said for punting.

Remember the UNLV game?

Kayden McGee and Jayden Bradley took turns blocking Bart Edmiston punts, each gunner returning the other's swat for a touchdown in what would turn out to be a 14-point loss to the visiting Rebels.

Was it the hail-covered field that allowed the jailbreak penetration or simply missed blocking assignments? Maybe both?

Sawvel, who also coaches the kickers, upon further review, said it was really neither at the root of the issue.

"I spend a lot of time working with the punters and the snapper situation and everything that way, and our location (of the snap) and our mechanics have got to be better and cleaner," he said postgame, adding the operation on the second block just before halftime took 2.14 seconds, when it should have been under two seconds total. "That's what cost us on those two."

Long snapper Carson York fielded the majority of the scrutiny from his head coach, but after watching film, he said Edmiston's sense of urgency also wasn't good enough. His personal protectors, mainly defensive tackle Lucas Samsula, also could have pivoted and thrown the incoming rush off its direct route.

York exhausted his eligibility. Samsula hit the open market in the offseason and is now at Utah.

MORE UW FOOTBALL NEWS VIA 7220SPORTS:

* Is There Really an Open QB Competition in Laramie?

* Jack Dunkley is 'Mentally Wired' to do Damage of the Edge

* 5 Things I'll Be Watching During UW Spring Football

* Evan Eller Has Reaper the Benefits of Self-Imposed Redshirt

* The 'Governor' Will Not Be Seeking Re-Election

* Former UW Safety Andrew Wingard Inks 1-Year Deal With Arizona

* UW Athletics, Cowboy Joe Club Launch 'Step Forward' Campaign

* Former Three-Star Lineman Getting Early Jump on Process

* New Wyoming Wideout Eager to Prove Himself at FBS Level

* Former CSU Safety Inks With Border War Rival Wyoming

Edmiston, after a slow start in his first season in Laramie, capped the year as the fourth best punter in the Mountain West, averaging nearly 45 yards per attempt. Twenty-two of his 67 punts landed inside the 20-yard line. The Mississippi product also boomed 26 kicks that traveled at least 50 yards. That was the best mark in the conference.

In a 28-0 blanking of Border War rival Colorado State inside War Memorial Stadium, Edmiston dropped 5-of-6 attempts inside the Rams' 20. He uncorked a 65-yarder, too.

That was the zenith for Edmiston. Sawvel wants to see that type of performance with more regularity.

It's fine-tooth-comb season.

"We had more touchbacks punting the ball than any other team last year," Sawvel said, referring to 11 kicks that landed in the end zone. Only one other FBS program reached double figures in that category. San Diego State finished with 10. "OK, so that's cool, Bart, to have a 55-yard punt from our 45-yard line, but that net of 35 really is not something that we're proud of.'

"So, there's certain areas of the field where it's like, OK, we're going to have to hit a different ball to be successful with this."

Wyoming inked senior long snapper Nathan Curry in the offseason. He spent the previous three seasons at North Alabama. Redshirt freshman Charlie Houston, York's cousin, also remains on the roster.

That will also be an under-the-radar battle to watch this spring.

Sandvik was a perfect 24-of-24 on extra-point attempts during his first season as the Cowboys' starting kicker. The then-sophomore also drilled five of his first six field-goal tries, including 40-yarder in a 31-7 victory over Northern Iowa.

Aside from a wobbly 41-yard boot that barely coasted over the crossbar on a rain-soaked night in Fresno, it was all downhill for the Steamboat Springs native. Sandvik 4-of-5 kicks down the stretch and was woefully short on a both of his attempts over 50 yards in a road setback at San Diego State.

Sandvik, who attempted just two field goals during his high school career before redshirting in Laramie, won the job over Cheyenne's Keelan Anderson last offseason. Sawvel said he was the more consistent of the two inexperienced kickers. In fact, he said Sandvik was getting stretched out to 55-plus yards.

Has Sawvel's faith wavered since?

"I believe in him," he said of Sandvik, "but this is a big spring for him and we've got to evaluate a lot of things to it ... Eric needs to become better in situations. We've got to have more distance on kicks. We've got to be able to count on the 45-yard field goal and those types of things -- and he knows that."

Wyoming will open its spring practice schedule today in Laramie. The fifteen workouts will culminate with the annual spring game April 25. The latter is open to the public and a time will be released at a later date.

(Have you downloaded our free app? You can do that right here. Have you signed up for our daily newsletter? We got you covered right here. Questions, concerns? Shoot us an email at cody@7220sports.com)