Special Team Specialists to Keep an Eye On

Pennick measures in at 6'3 195-pounds. He's an excellent punter; however, he doesn't have a lot of opportunities to punt due to Creek's offense. Last season, he had 12 punts, 4 inside the 10-yard line, his longest was 52 yards, and he averages a 4.5 second hangtime. Fluid kicking motion. Pennick uses his very good leg strength to effortlessly launch the ball downfield. Very good leg accuracy as well with his controlled kicks. He can flip the field and will put the opposing offense in a bad situation. He has very good quickness from kick to snap, and does a great job handling pressure. Keep an eye on this punter.     Palermo is a top producer amongst the 2028 class. Measuring in at 5'9 165-pounds, he had 14 kickoffs for 671 yards, 4 TBs, 62/67 on PATs, 3/4 on FGs with 39 yards being his longest. Palermo demonstrates quick steps paired with a fluid kicking motion. Uses his very good leg strength to explode into the ball hurling it downfield. Palermo's kickoffs have good hang time and height on the ball. He does a good job handling pressure, staying calm and making the big kick. Very good leg accuracy. Controls his leg and drives the football through the uprights. His kick power also does a good job with handling the wind. Look for him to continue showing out this off-season!     Juarez is a rising punter amongst the 2029 class. He measures it at 5'9 150-pounds. He had 29 punts for 1101 yards, averaged 38 yards a punt with his longest being 77. He got the ball inside the 8/20 times. He has good quickness from snap to kick. Demonstrates good leg strength and explosion into the ball to flip the field. Good leg accuracy paired with very good leg placement. Does a good job at pinning the opposing offense back and putting his defense in a prime position. Juarez does a good job handling wind and pressure. With an off-season focusing on refinement, he's looking to take his game to the next level.     Kaali is a dual K/P for Columbine. Measures in at 5'11 175-pounds. Last season, he had 42 kickoffs for 2176 yards, 14 touchbacks, 25/29 on PATs, 3/6 on FGs, longest was 44. As a punter he had 6 punts for 215 yards, 3/20 times inside the 20. Kaali has good leg strength. Good height on his kickoffs and punt allowing the gunners to reach the returner. Flips the field and puts his defense in great position to get the ball back. Kaali does a solid job of handling the wind. As a kicker, he demonstrates consistency on his PATs. Juarez already made an impact this past season as a freshman and is looking to continue that momentum into this off-season and beyond.     Thorne is another K/P combination on this list. Last season, he had 22 kickoffs for 1131 yards, 11 touchbacks, 10/12 on PATs, 3/4 on FGs, 35 being his longest. 18 punts for 729 yards, 2/20 getting it inside the 20 with his longest punt being 54 yards. Thorne has smooth mechanics and good quickness to launch the ball downfield. Uses his good leg strength to maintain a solid hang time. Very good leg accuracy. Thorne demonstrates great leg control and placement. Stays cool under pressure to make the big kicks. I'm intrigued to see how he continues his development this off-season.