Boston College Athletics
Howell Sets High Bar for Eagles Special Teams
September 02, 2015 | Football
CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. - For two seasons, Alex Howell watched as Nate Freese rewrote the Boston College record books.
Serving as both the Eagles' placekicker and punter during his junior and senior years (2012-13), Freese was known for his pinpoint accuracy and booming leg. The Strongsville, Ohio, native connected on 18-of-20 field goals in in 2012 and 20-of-20 in 2013--ranking sixth and first , respectively, in the nation in terms of accuracy--while finishing his career as the school's record holder for field goals (68) and points (324).
Although Freese is certainly a tough act to follow, he couldn't have been a better teacher to learn from.
"[Freese] taught me, that you have to be humble," said Howell, entering his senior season as the Eagles' punter, kickoff specialist and likely field goal kicker. "He taught me that you have to be the best at whatever it is you're doing and have attention to detail. It comes down to inches and you have to be able to repeat those things over and over."
In his first season as the team's punter in 2014, Howell capitalized.
The Florence, S.C. native punted 65 times for a total of 2,764 yards, recording 21 punts inside the 20, 16 fair catches, 15 punts of 50 yards or more and four touchbacks. Furthermore, his 42.5 yards per punt ranked sixth in the ACC.
Howell was named to All-New England Team for his performance.
"The transition [to being starter] was tough at first, but I really like it," Howell admitted. "Most people don't want to be in the limelight, but I love it. I've been training for three years for this."
While Howell has excelled in the punting game, maybe even moreso than his predecessor, he's still working on his field goal kicking.
Out of his 11 attempts last season--all outside of 30 yards--Howell only connected on five. That's a number he knows he needs to improve upon.
"I've been working hard on my consistency this offseason," said Howell. "Nobody cares if you can kick a 50-yard field goal if you can't hit a 30-yarder. The main thing is being consistent."
As Boston College looks to continue its bowl game streak this season, the team will need its kicking game to be one of its strengths.
Aside from Howell, the Eagles will look for either sophomore Mike Knoll or freshman Colton Lichtenberg to assert themselves in the field goal kicking game. It's a task that won't be easy, as the two have only four career attempts among them.
That's where the experience of Howell comes into play.
"We all have a good relationship," Howell said about him and the other kickers. "It's kind of like a big brother aspect. It's a little responsibility on me to kind of teach them what I've learned over the years."
But inexperience or not, Howell is setting the bar high in 2015.
"I want our team to have the highest net punt average in the nation," he said. "I want us to make every field and have the best kickoff team. It's a lot to ask for, but I think you have to strive high."
