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| Scott Sypniewski |
Height: 6'1"
Weight: 226 lbs.
High school: Ottawa (IL) Marquette
Position: Long snapper
Class: Redshirt freshman
Jersey number: #43
Last year: I ranked Sypniewski #94 and said he would redshirt. He redshirted.
Sypniewski was offered a scholarship out of high school for his long snapping prowess. That's rare for long snappers, and unheard of (as far as I know) for Michigan in the modern era of the 85-scholarship limit. Last year the Wolverines could afford to redshirt him since they had the near-flawless Jareth Glanda to snap on both the field goal/extra point team and the punt unit. Now Glanda has graduated, and Sypniewski is the only long snapper on the roster. That means there's a premium on keeping him healthy and getting him prepared for high-pressure situations. The coaches will probably be adding some walk-ons this fall, at least one or two of whom will be able to long snap. We always see a game or two each season come down to the difference between a made field goal and a missed one, and bad punt snaps can be disastrous. Let's hope that Sypniewski proves he was worth giving a scholarship.
Prediction: Starting long snapper
Any concern with the weight? Glanda was 256. I know the LS doesn't really have to block much on a FG try or a punt since most block attempts come from the edge, but 226 still leaves me wondering.
ReplyDeleteHe should be OK. Defenses can't jack the snapper anymore on FG's and they don't do any blocking in modern punt coverage - they usually take off right away. Hoke will try to get his weight up some but it should not be a huge deal. I have a friend from HS who snapped in the NFL for 10 years at around 240 lbs.
DeleteI always wonder how these kids get recruited let alone ranked by recruiting sites like ESPN. Are there scouts pouring through endless hours of HS snap footage somewhere? Is there a kicker camp out there where punters boom 70 yarders, kickers nail 50 yarders and snappers put footballs through a softball-sized window?
ReplyDeleteIf memory serves, Sypniewski's highlights were from some long snapper clinic. So there is apparently such a thing. Probably not many of those, but at least one.
DeleteScholarships for long snappers are no longer rare. It's because they have specialized camps now and they have a chance to get evaluated that had been lacking.
DeleteLet hope this works out better than wasting a scholarship on the FB then using him to exclusively block.
ReplyDeleteI'm starting to question Hoke and his decision making... of course if he wins 10+ games and beats Sparty and Ohio I will forgive all.
We wouldn't need him if we'd just stop punting and kicking. Go for it! Go for 2!
ReplyDelete...I think I just freed up up 3 or 4 scholarships.
Remember how well that worked out in RR's last year?
DeleteThere are, indeed, kicking, punting, and snapping camps, and players come out of local and national camps being ranked and rated. Virtually all scholarship P,K, and LS get offers from these camps and rankings, not from high school performance or film. They even have them now for college players. Both Scott and Will Hagerup competed this last weekend at the national collegiate Kohl's camp, held in Wisconsin. There were well overe 100 specialists there.
ReplyDelete