Offenses are praised for scoring. Defenses are acknowledged for ending drives. The special teams is credited for pinning the opponent inside the 10-yard line or blamed for a 50-yard return.

During the past three games, in which the Cyclones have gone 3-0 — something they have not done since the 1999–2001 seasons — wins have been aided more so by the special teams than years past.

In this year alone, ISU punter Kirby Van Der Kamp has punted 19 times for a grand total of 796 yards — a plus of more than 100 yards compared to last season’s opening three games.

Within the most recent three games, the opponents have a combined total of 29 punts for 1,107 yards. 

Another startling statistic: Of Van Der Kamp’s 19 punts, none have been returned for positive yardage. 

Two returns were attempted, but the ISU special teams unit held the opponents to zero return yards. Having no return yards puts great pressure on opposing offenses.

When it comes to field position, Van Der Kamp has almost perfected the coffin corner.

Of Van Der Kamp’s 19 punts, he has landed 13 of them inside the 20-yard line. Three of them have been longer than 50-yards, including a 59-yard punt in the second quarter of the Cyclones’ 37-3 win against Western Illinois last Saturday.

And Van Der Kamp is not the only one putting up impressive numbers.

The newest addition to the special teams for the Cyclones this year is place-kicker Edwin Arceo.

Arceo is 3-of-4 for field goals this year, including a career-high 49-yarder in a game against Western Illinois. Opponents are 3-of-3 against Iowa State, but the longest field goal an opponent has made is 26 yards.

In the 2011 season, ISU kickers Grant Mahoney and Zach Guyer were combined 2-of-5 in the first three games. Opponents were 8-of-10, including a 52-yard field goal and two 50-yarders. 

But while scoring points and pinning the opponents is good, returning the ball on special teams is a whole different ball game.

Regarding punt returns, Aaron Horne has dominated the position.

Horn has been the only one to return the four punts Iowa State has received. He has a combined total of 87 yards with an average of 21.8 yards per return.

One area that would help the Cyclones improve more would be penalties.

In the game against Western Illinois, the Cyclones had 35 yards worth of penalties. One penalty was a block-in-the-back, which took away a touchdown off a punt returned by Horne.

It appears the special teams has made a name for itself so far in the 2012 season. Making more and more big plays will help the Cyclones once they progress into conference play.

Field position is key to scoring, and scoring is to winning. If the Cyclones expect to win key conference games and go bowling for their second-straight year, they will need to keep opposing special teams at bay.

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Stephen Koenigsfeld is a sophomore in pre-journalism from Ankeny, Iowa.