2026 ST Preview

[catdaddyp]

Kicker:

M. Schramm had a solid first season with the Zips, splitting time with former kicker O. Wiley. Schramm went 16-of-17 on extra points and 12-of-13 on field goals, with his only miss coming from beyond 40 yards. Based on last season’s production, he should enter 2026 as the clear favorite to handle field goal and extra point duties.

 

J. Westrich has been added for what I assume is primarily kickoff duties, as that was his main responsibility at the Division II level last season. While he possesses a strong leg, he went 0-for-5 on field goal attempts, which suggests his path to playing time is likely through kickoffs rather than challenging Schramm as the primary placekicker.

 

 

Punter:

J. Castle had his best season to date averaging nearly 43 yards per punt. He also split some snaps with former punter B. Johnson.

 

I believe A. Satire is being brought in primarily as a punter to compete with Castle. He did not play as a freshman at West Virginia this past season.

 

 

Long Snapper:

F. Miner was the backup at long snapper in 2025 and will compete with portal addition S. Dean for the starting role this coming season.

 

 

Returner:

B. Hills is set to reprise his role as the main kickoff returner. His competition will likely come from S. Patrick, T. Thomas, and JUCO addition G. Hilburn. On punt return, it’ll likely be the same competition of players as kickoff return, except Patrick should be the lead man.

 

 

Looking forward:

I believe most specialists are non-scholarship players for Akron, with the exception of whoever earns the starting jobs. So typically only three scholarships are allocated to special teams. With that in mind, I wouldn’t be surprised if one more kicker is brought in before fall camp.

 

 

Returning:

P - Castle (Sr.)

LS - Miner (R. Sr.)

K - Schramm (R. So.)

 

New:

LS - Dean (Jr.) = DII

K - Westrich (R. So.) = DII

P - Stire (R. Fr.) = West Virginia 

 

Out:

LS - Dennis (Gr.)

P - Johnson (Gr.)

K - Samaha = Eastern Michigan 

K - Wiley = Portal

 

[MangoZip]

@catdaddyp thanks for all the position reviews.
What players (all positions), if any, do you feel have potential to receive any All MAC recognition this year? 

[catdaddyp]

7 hours ago, MangoZip said:

@catdaddyp thanks for all the position reviews.
What players (all positions), if any, do you feel have potential to receive any All MAC recognition this year? 

Thanks, happy to do it.

 

I think the offense could be really good this year. If Poffenbarger plays as well as I think he can, he’ll be a candidate. I’d be surprised if Mason and Williams weren’t selected at WR. There’s a chance both Patrick and Gant will be worthy, but neither make it if snaps are split fairly evenly. In that situation they wouldn’t have the same amount of opportunities as some of the other backs in the conference. Lyons and Jones are probably the best candidates along the OL.

 

I think the collective parts of the defense will make it solid, but I’m not sure if we’ll have that many standouts this year. I like Hull at DT, but for some reason even when we’ve had strong DT play in the past, our players have been passed over. Then at DB, White at CB and David at safety could be candidates it if they can stay healthy.

 

[MangoZip]

Thanks, what about TE and specialists? 

[catdaddyp]

22 hours ago, MangoZip said:

Thanks, what about TE and specialists? 

I think Cravaack has the potential to make it. He’s another player I’m not sure we’ll be able to keep if he takes the next step in his development.

 

Hopefully our specialists will have a great year, but we’ve had a lot of inconsistency there.