Central Michigan Chippewas 2018 position group preview: Special Teams
Sophomore running back Jerrod Davis breaks a tackle on Nov. 9 at Kelly/Shorts Stadium.
Central Michigan began fall practice on Aug. 3, meaning the 2018 season is just around the corner. For more position group previews, check Central Michigan Life over the days leading up to kickoff:
Position: Special Teams
Projected starters: Jack Sheldon (senior), Michael Armstrong (senior), Kaden Keon (junior), Luke Idoni (senior), Jamil Sabbagh (junior), Jerrod Davis (junior)
Key backups: Brady Buell (redshirt freshman), Carlton Cleophat (freshman), Brandon Brown (redshirt freshman), Kobe Lewis (freshman), Xavier Crawford (senior)
Breakdown: In his first season with the Central Michigan football team, Tony Coaxum said having a special teams minded head coach like John Bonamego makes everything easier.
“It’s absolutely beautiful,” Coaxum said. “I’ve known him since I was 19 years old when he coached me at (Army) West Point. A lot of the mentality things he’s done he taught me that in college. He’s been a mentor of mine all these years and is always someone I can get information from. He lets me run the deal and I take input from him and run with it.”
Bonamego served as an assistant coach at Army from 1993-98 where he met Coaxum who graduated in 2000 as a Black Knight. Defensive line coach George Ricumstrict also coached Coaxum at West Point.
Coaxum followed in both Bonamego and Ricumstrict’s footsteps by coaching at Army for two seasons before coaching in the NFL ranks with four different teams, including the Denver Broncos in their Super Bowl 50 win in 2016. He is also currently the coach of the conrnerbacks at CMU.
Coaxum said the special teams unit as a whole is doing very well since they were well coached before he arrived in Mount Pleasant.
“There’s not a lot of teaching new things, it’s different terminology and technique,” Coaxum said. “I’ve built off what was already here. My energy and enthusiasm kind of brings everyone together, it wasn’t a difficult transition at all.”
At every special teams position an upperclassmen returns for a starting job this season, according to the depth chart CMU released on Aug. 28.
Sheldon is back as the team’s starting punter for a third season. The Australia native ranked third in the Mid-American Conference last year with a 43.4-yard average on his kicks with 23 of his punts being downed inside the opponents 20-yard line. His longest kick of the season was second in the MAC for 70 yards against Northern Illinois.
For field goals, it’ll be Armstrong getting the call for a second consecutive year. The SMU transfer was 45-of-46 on extra points last season while making 7-of-11 field goal attempts. His longest make was from 39 yards out in week one against Rhode Island.
Armstrong said he is confident in everyone with him on the field goal unit and wants to make strides this season with more consistency.
“I want to myself as an All-MAC player,” Armstrong said. “I want to be perfect inside of 55 yards. If I can be perfect there I know I’m doing things right because once we get the ball inside the 35-yard line, I know it has to be three points.”
Keon is back for another year as the Chippewas kickoff man after he said he lost the battle for the starting field goal kicking spot. He averaged 54.6 yards per kickoff on 67 kickoffs with 20 touchbacks.
For his offseason prepping, Keon said his strategy may be different than other kickers.
“I like to practice without actually kicking because we get lots of reps during the season,” Keon said. “So when we have time off it’s nice to let my body rest a little bit because it uses the same muscle groups over and over again.
“I just try to relax and let my muscle memory take over.”
Idoni will return as the long snapper after starting there for 13 games a season ago.
Davis was a player who made progress as the season went along, propelling him to be the Chippewas kickoff return man. The 5-foot-11, 195-pound running back averaged 26.6 yards per kick return. His highlight moment of the season came against Kent State when he took a kickoff 98 yards to the house. It was the first time anyone scored on a kickoff since 2013 for CMU.
Wide receiver Sabbagh will get the call as the punt returner, but could easily split time with Oregon State transfer Crawford or defensive back Brown. Sabbagh saw action in 10 games last season as a wideout.
Bonamego — who coached special teams in the NFL with New Orleans, Jacksonville, Green Bay, Detroit and Miami — said Coaxum is someone he trusts to have the special teams squads ready.
“That position more than any other is so important to pay attention to detail,” Bonamego said. “You have to bring a certain kind of energy everyday and I think Tony fits that spot very well. It’s really important that you have the right personality with that group and I think this one has responded to his coaching style well.”
