App State-Georgia preview, part 5

WEEK ONE GAME NOTES: APPALACHIAN STATE

BOONE, N.C. - Appalachian State opens the 2017 football season Saturday night with an ESPN game at No. 15 Georgia, the preseason favorite to win the SEC's East Division.

Coached by Scott Satterfield, the Mountaineers are moving forward from a 10-3 season that included earning a share of the Sun Belt Conference title and beating Toledo in the Camellia Bowl. The Bulldogs closed an 8-5 debut under coach Kirby Smart with a victory against TCU in the Liberty Bowl.

In the fifth installment of a five-part series, here's a look at special teams for both the Mountaineers and Bulldogs:

PART ONE: App State's passing offense vs. Georgia's pass defense

PART TWO: App State's pass defense vs. Georgia's passing offense

PART THREE: App State's rush defense vs. Georgia's rushing offense

PART FOUR: App State's rushing offense vs. Georgia's rush defense

A freshman kicker made his App State debut in an SEC stadium last year.

Saturday, a freshman punter will do the same.

Following the loss of 2016 senior Bentlee Critcher, who punted, kicked off and held on point-producing kicks, the Mountaineers will have redshirt freshman Rylee Critcher (Bentlee's brother) or true freshman Xavier Subotsch punting at Georgia.

"We've been charting every punt — hang time, distance, the time until it gets off the foot," App State coach Scott Satterfield said. "At the end of camp, whoever is the most consistent guy will be the one trotting out against Georgia."
 
A former Australian rules football player from Melbourne, Subotsch signed with App State in late March after training with Prokick Australia, which has produced the Ray Guy Award winner in each of the last four seasons. Critcher is also App State's primary holder.
 
The Mountaineers bring back long snapper Elias McMurry and kicker Michael Rubino, who debuted as a redshirt freshman at Tennessee last year and made 11 of his final 13 field goals in 2016. That included the tiebreaking kick late in the Camellia Bowl victory.

Georgia will have a new punter in Cameron Nizialek, an Ivy League graduate transfer from Columbia, and sophomore walk-on Rodrigo Blankenship has won the preseason kicking competition against Wofford graduate transfer Davin Martin. Blankenship made 14 of his 18 field goals last season.

In the return game, the Bulldogs must replace Isaiah McKenzie, who had an 82-yard punt return for a touchdown against Louisiana last season, and top kick returner Reggie Davis.

For App State, true freshman Thomas Hennigan is listed atop the depth chart at punt returner following the departure of Jaquil Capel, who had a 45-yard return in the fourth quarter of last year's overtime loss at Tennessee. As a true freshman, Darrynton Evans scored on a 94-yard kickoff return in the Camellia Bowl, and senior Ike Lewis could contribute in both areas.