Bronx, N.Y. (August 26, 2014) – Opening night is just a few days away so it's time to wrap up the position-by-position breakdown of the 2014 Fordham University football Rams with a look at the special teams.
 
Last year, head coach Joe Moorhead attributed at least three wins to special teams play, the win over Temple (on a last second PAT), the victory over Saint Francis (where a kickoff was returned for a score and there was also a long punt return), and the win over Bucknell (on a blocked field goal on the last play of the game).
 

The good news for Moorhead is that just about the entire special teams unit returns for 2014, led by senior placekicker Michael Marando, a preseason All-American and All-Patriot League pick. Last year, Marando earned First Team All-Patriot League honors after connecting on 19 of his 26 field goal attempts and 63 of his 64 PATs. He set the school record with 63 PATs (former record was 47 by Micah Clukey in 2003) and for points scored by a kicker (120 – former mark was 105 by Patrick Murray in 2012) while his 19 field goals was the second most in a season in school history (Murray holds record with 25 in 2012). Marando led the Patriot League and was 12^th in the NCAA FCS in field goals/game (1.36) and was second in the Patriot League and 18^th in the NCAA FCS in scoring (8.6 points/game). He booted three field goals in three separate games, including a career-long 47-yarder, in the win at Temple.
 
Also back is sophomore punter Joseph Pavlik who was named Second Team All-Patriot League in 2013. He punted 52 times for 2,050 yard as a freshman, an average of 39.4 yards/punt, and had five punts of over 50 yards, with a long of 57. Pavlik ranked fourth in the Patriot League in punting average and placed 24 of his 52 punts inside the opponent's 20.
 
Adding depth to the kicking corps is sophomore Makay Redd, who took over the kickoff chores last year, averaging 54.8 yards/kick on 28 attempts, sending one kick into the end zone for a touchback. He served as the backup placekicker to Marando.
 

Two newcomers also join the kicking unit, Patrick Fordham and Alejandro Cardenas. Fordham, a graduate of St. Francis High School in Mountain View, California, was named 2013 Central Coast Section (CCS) Kicker of the Year and West Catholic Athletic League (WCAL) Most Valuable Kicker, leading the CCS and WCAL in kickoff yards (4448), average yards/kick (64.5) and touchbacks (56). Cardenas, a graduate of La Salle High School in Miami, was a 2013 First Team All-State kicker/punter.
 
No kicker can get off a kick without a long snapper and the Rams lost one of the best when Joe Sullivan graduated last year. The Rams have turned to freshman Robert Carlyle, a graduate of Clarkstown High School South in West Nyack, N.Y., where he served as team's long snapper for three years, to take over the long snapping chores.
 
Special teams is more than just kicking, it's also about returning and the Rams bring back two of the best returners in senior punt returner Brian Wetzel and sophomore kick returner Jorge Solano. Last year, Wetzel was named Second Team All-Patriot League at both wide receiver and punt returner, averaging 12.0 yards/punt return. He brought one back a school-record 84 yards at Saint Francis and another 81 yards for a score at Colgate. Solano returned 43 kickoffs for 909 yards (21.1 yards/return) last fall, setting school records for most returns and return yardage in a season. He returned the opening kickoff 96 yards for a touchdown in the win at Saint Francis.