Tag: Cristiano Palazzo

Cristiano Palazzo expected to handle Colorado’s kickoff duties moving forward

Jace Feely’s injury leaves Colorado with another uncertainty on special teams

The Colorado Buffaloes have gotten mixed news on the injury front over the past few days. Running back Dallan Hayden and nose guard Chidozie Nwankwo are set to return on Saturday against the UCF Knights, but CU is dealing with a season-ending injury at another position.

On Sunday, kickoff specialist Jace Feely announced via X that he suffered a complete tear to his ACL during Colorado’s Week 4 win over Baylor, meaning he’ll miss the rest of the season.

Head coach Deion Sanders was asked about what Feely’s absence means on Tuesday, and Coach Prime named local standout and former Oregon Ducks kicker Cristiano Palazzo as the leading candidate to handle kickoff duties:

“He (Palazzo) did a phenomenal job coming in (against Baylor),” Coach Prime said. “We have several kickers that can can do it. These guys compete on a daily basis, even (Alejandro) Mata can can kick the ball off. We have several kickers that can do a valiant job. The problem is we want the ball in the end zone. Jimmy (Horn) does not get to return the ball when we’re on a kickoff return and we want that same sentiment. We don’t want them to be able to return anything. If not, we just got to bloop kick it and hope they fair catch.”

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Previewing Colorado football’s special teams

Getting strong field position is a must this season and the Buffs’ special teams units can produce

Colorado has built a history of having strong special teams play. The legs of the Buffs’ kickers and punters have sent footballs flying into orbit on a regular basis.

This year seems to be no different as the Buffaloes have highly-touted players in the placekicking and punting rooms. Colorado also returns its top three leaders in special teams point totals from a year ago, along with a host of young players who will be looking to make their mark. Additionally, both the punt and kick return positions also seem to be set going into the season.

Let’s look at how we believe it will all play out.

The right legs of Cole Becker and Ashton Logan should impress in 2022

Kicking is looking like a strength for the CU Buffs in 2022

Kicking at altitude is a definite draw for the nation’s top legs to play for the Buffs. Mason Crosby, Mark Mariscal, John Torp and Mitch Berger (to name a few) all enjoyed success as either placekickers or punters in Boulder.

In 2021, we witnessed the beginning of what could be another strong career for a Buffs’ kicker. After missing his first three field goal attempts of the season, true freshman Cole Becker nailed 14 of his final 17, including a game-winner against Oregon State. He was also a perfect 25-for-25 on extra points.

The now incoming sophomore told Buffzone’s Brian Howell that he’s more comfortable entering year two:

“Having the experiences last year and hitting long ones, short ones; makes, misses, I know all the things that will happen now, so I feel like I’m better prepared for it.”

On the punting side, losing All-Pac-12 honorable mention Josh Watts does hurt, but freshman Ashton Logan’s upside could be even higher. Logan, a class of 2021 recruit who grayshirted last season, was ranked as the No. 14 punter in his class per 247Sports.

The Buffs also have a pair of walk-ons — Noah Hubbard and Trent Carrizosa — backing up Logan. Oregon transfer PK Cristiano Palazzo is another walk-on who provides some depth.

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