Our countdown to kickoff is down to just 38 days and today’s feature is focused on rising sophomore kicker Wesley Wells.
Last season, the emergency of Wesley Wells was really out of nowhere. After the Jackets first three weeks of the season with questionable special teams especially st the kicking position, Wells became the Jackets starter heading into their game against Bowling Green last season.
Wells last season from the time he became he the starter to the end of the season was nothing short of money and quickly became one of the ACC’s best kickers.
The true freshman and Georgia native was able to step up to the proverbial plate and make any kick the Jackets asked him to make. By the end of the season, Wells made all 48 kicks he attempted last season whether they were field goals (nine for nine) or extraneous points ( 39 for 39). Overall, Wells season last year was a tremendous start to his career and one that he can build on and should give the Jackets coaching staff plenty of confidence heading into this season.
Wells showed he can make a variety of kicks in different leverage and pressure situations. His clutch performance against Virginia was a tremendous example, making four against the Cavaliers including a 45+ yard field goal to send the game to overtime.
Now, the one question that does enter 2019 with Wells is if he can be a consistent kicker from long range as he has been short range. He’s showed the power to make long kicks but asking him to do more than a handful of times a season could be asking a lot from Wells in 2019.
Overall, Wells will be the Jackets 2019 starting kicker and if the offense struggles to find the back of the end zone, he’ll be relied upon heavily to make big kicks consistently for the Jackets.
Wells and the Jackets will kickoff their 2019 season on August 29th against the Clemson Tigers in the place they like to call Death Valley.