This is the eighth and last in a series of articles previewing the 2019 Missouri S&T football season.  The daily stories have featured one position, or a set of positions, daily since July 22. 

ROLLA, Mo. – For the second straight season, much of the key personnel that will make up the Missouri S&T's special teams unit is intact and should give the Miners one of the better units in the Great Lakes Valley Conference in 2019.

S&T returns two all-conference performers in placekicker Ben Styron (Harrisonville, MO/Harrisonville) and punter Jonathan Banowetz (O'Fallon, MO/Fort Zumwalt North), as well as kickoff man Zach Glaess (Queen Creek, AZ/Queen Creek) and long snapper Bo Blomenkamp (Columbia, MO/Rock Bridge).

"It is great to have all of our specialists back this year," said S&T head coach Todd Drury. "Special teams is a crucial part of the game and having guys handling the ball that you can count on gives us a lot of confidence."

Styron broke the S&T school records last season for points scored by a placekicker with 89 and field goals made with 14, while also connecting on 47-of-50 extra point attempts.  He has already broken the program record for career field goals with 39 and points by a kicker with 244 entering the 2019 campaign.

"Ben has been extremely solid in his career," Drury said. "You can see that in his preparation and mental toughness; his consistency on game day is no surprise."

Banowetz averaged 39 yards per punt last season and had 13 of his 50 kicks downed inside the opponents' 20-yard line, while also forcing 19 fair catches during the season.

The one area where some new faces will be seen on special teams will be in the return game, as the Miners lost two of the GLVC's top returners in Braxton Graham (Seneca, MO/Seneca) – the conference's punt return leader in 2018 -- and Roderick Chapman (Los Angeles, CA/Jefferson) to graduation.   Josh Brown (Gainesville, FL/North Marion HS), who averaged 27.3 yards per kickoff return a year ago, will be among the leading candidates to fill those spots along with Aundray Henley (Miami, FL/Flanagan).