Hightower, Pinion part of special teams’ strength
Kyle Shanahan and Richard Hightower were walk-on teammates and friends at the University of Texas who were both awarded scholarships before the 2002 season.
In the NFL, they served on the same staffs with Houston (2006-08), Washington (201013) and Cleveland (2014).
In February, however, there was potential for a rift to form in their tight relationship. Shanahan had just been named the 49ers’ head coach and Hightower was one of three who interviewed to be his specialteams coordinator, a title he’d never had.
Shanahan said he was determined to hire the best candidate, regardless of his bond with Hightower. So was it awkward to interview his buddy?
“It would have been extremely awkward for him if he would have done very bad,” Shanahan said. “It would have been tough, but hopefully he would have gotten over it. Fortunately, he did very good, so it wasn’t very awkward.”
Shanahan was impressed by Hightower’s preparedness. And now plenty of observers are impressed with the special teams Hightower is overseeing.
Consider: Punter Bradley Pinion ranks sixth in the NFL in net average (44.3 yards); kicker Robbie Gould has made 11 of 11 field-goal attempts, the 49ers rank second in average puntreturn yards allowed (1.7), and the special teams have converted a successful onside kick and accounted for two of the 49ers’ five takeaways.
Long snapper Kyle Nelson, who has a fumble recovery, said their success is tied to Hightower, a 5-foot-8 core special-teams player at Texas.
“He gets it because he was a player,” Nelson said. “He just connects with us and everyone feeds off his energy.”
Before serving as the Bears’ assistant special-teams coach last year, Hightower had the same role with the 49ers in 2015.
His previous stint in Santa Clara coincided with Pinion’s rookie season. And Pinion might be the team’s most encouraging special-teams story, given his history.
In 2015, the punter had to meet lofty expectations after the 49ers drafted him in the fifth round despite having All-Pro Andy Lee on a roster filled with holes.
The 49ers eventually traded Lee, and Pinion, who was 20 when he was drafted, failed to fill his sizable shoes. He ranked 23rd in the NFL in net average (39.4) as a rookie, was 19th (39.8) last year and was viewed as another vexing draft pick made by former general manager Trent Baalke.
However, Pinion enters Sunday’s game at Indianapolis at a career apex. In last week’s overtime loss at Arizona, he had single-game career-highs in gross average (50.1) and net average (48.4). With the score tied late in the fourth quarter, Pinion boomed a 51-yarder that was fair caught after the 49ers were pinned at their 4-yard line.
Pinion insists the pressure of replacing Lee while becoming just the fourth punter to be selected in the fifth round or earlier since 2010 didn’t affect his performance.
“I never really felt the outside pressure,” Pinion said. “It was more pressure to live up to my own expectations because I know what I’m capable of and I know what I can do. It was one of those situations where I wanted to prove it to myself more than anyone else.”
Nelson confirms Pinion’s perfectionist tendencies: “His miss-hit is a little different than what we think a miss-hit is. He’s harder on himself than anybody else is. We try to not let him get too mad at himself.”
The 49ers aren’t thrilled about starting 0-4, but special teams haven’t been the culprit.
And Shanahan is happy he determined Hightower was the best man for the job.
“It was cool to see how prepared he was for it,” Shanahan said. “He’s been working on it for a long time. He’s always been passionate about special teams. That’s how he earned a scholarship at Texas.
“(He’s) taken that passion to his coaching career and it showed in his interview. And I believe the players play really hard for him.”