Coach Andy LaRussa

[Menzies_Jay]

Special teams has been pretty bad this year. Has UNLV ever had 3 punts blocked in one season before? This team has had 3 punts already blocked.

Punt returning is ranked last in the nation. Kick off return has been bad. Kick off coverage has been ok at best but has given up some big plays along the way.

Pantels has done a good job kicking and punting, but beyond that, special teams overall has struggled.

I'm not calling for LaRussa to be fired, but is there someone else who can handle special teams? I'm not sure he's the right guy.

I haven't given up on Bear or Cotton yet but I do expect Baer's defense to show us significant progress next year.

The offense has been respectable considering all of the injuries and freshmen on the field.

 

[RebelinWA]

Its not my call, I like Pantels for punting and field goals, but I feel like Bornand has much better leg for kick offs. I d rather have Bornand in on kick offs to keep Pantel's leg fresh for everything else. Our returns can be chalked down to injuries, but our coverage is inexcusable.

 

[RebelBuzz]

Huge lowlights for the team this year has been KO return, punt return, KO coverage.

One thing that blows my mind. Our formation on KO return is unlike any I've ever seen. We put 6 guys in a perfectly straight line 15 yards down the field. Granted, I don't always pay attention to other teams (but I have recently) and you NEVER see teams do this. Usually there are 4 guys that are 10-15 yards off the ball, with two more staggered another 5+ yards deeper. No wonder we are never blocking the other team's coverage guys. Having 6 guys try to make blocks from that allignment is ludicrous. It's no wonder no one else aligns that way.

To quote Tobias from Arrested Development: "But maybe it will work for us..."

 

[Rebelious1]

Pantels is slow to punt. Very slow.