Bison 2022 football depth chart preview: Punter

The 2022 North Dakota State football season is quickly approaching and offseason coverage is heating up at the Bison Media Zone.

Over the next three weeks, we will look at each position on the Bison football team and examine the depth chart at those positions, ranging from current players on the team to incoming players that could play.

First up in this series salutes the 4th Down Army, a nickname that was given to NDSU's special teams unit in 2017.

The punter has become one of those players that has turned into a fan favorite for Bison fans. From John Prelvitz to Ben LeCompte to Garret Wegner, it's been a position of strength during NDSU's title runs.

Enter Kaedin Steindorf. The redshirt freshman from Sherwood, Oregon had to replace Wegner last fall.

Steindorf never flinched. It began with the season opening game against Albany, in his collegiate debut he booted five punts, with one going over 50 yards and three landing inside the 20.

He was consistent all season long, which included a season high four punts inside the 20 out of his six kicks against the University of North Dakota.

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Steindorf finished the season with 50 punts, saving his longest for his last punt of the season, a 53 yarder in the FCS Championship Game against Montana State.

Steindorf averaged just over 40 yards per punt, with 19 fair catches and 18 punts inside the 20.

He will return for his sophomore season with a new long snapper, as Mike Florentine left after last season, transferring to Northern Illinois. It's expected that freshman Caleb Bowers will be the long snapper for the 2022 season.

Steindorf also gave one of the highlight plays of the year. During the season finale against South Dakota, he ran for an 18 yard gain to pick up a first down, making a great cut up the field and bringing the crowd to their feet.

DEPTH CHART

Kaedin Steindorf and Will Cardinal

Steindorf is joined on the roster by Will Cardinal, who has been a placekicker for the last couple of seasons. Cardinal kicked three extra points last year, but no punts.

The punter job really is Steindorf's to lose and after a solid 2021 season, expectations are for an even bigger sophomore year.

Our series will continue later this week with a look at kicker.