If only the rest of Auburn’s special teams performed as well as its field goal unit did in 2015, the Tigers would potentially have had something to brag about besides their place-kicker. Behind Lou Groza Award finalist Daniel Carlson, the Tigers were tied for seventh in the FBS with 23 made field goals and tied for 12th with an 85.2 percent success rate.

They rest of the special teams were not as special. Here’s a look at where Auburn finished last season in several key special teams categories:

2015 Stats
FGM-FGA: 23-27
Longest: 56 yards
Punting average: 40.9 (ninth in SEC)
Kickoff return average: 28.0 (second)
Kickoff return TDs: 0 (tied for fifth)
Punt return average: 11.5 (seventh)
Punt return TDs: 0 (tied for ninth)
Kickoff/punt return TDs allowed: 1

It’s up to Scott Fountain, who enters his fourth season as Auburn’s special teams coach, to improve upon the Tigers’ performance, especially in the coverage units. Let’s take a look at what he has to work with as the 2016 season approaches.

The kicker

Not many teams can boast that their kicker was their only all-SEC first-teamer last year, but that’s exactly what Carlson was. Not only did the 6-foot-4, 213-pounder have a terrific sophomore season, he set a couple of school records in the process.

For starters, Carlson made four field goals from beyond 50 yards to break John Riley’s 43-year-old mark at Auburn. On top of that, he made 16 straight field goals to set another AU record, a streak that was snapped during the Tigers’ loss to Alabama.

While Carlson did have a banner year last season, he has admittedly worked on shorter kicks. Of his four misses last season, two of them were inside the 20-to-29-yard range.

“A lot of fundamentals,” Carlson told AL.com. “I missed two short kicks. Muscle memory will clean those up. A lot of it is mental. I need to be focused. I’m just trying to mature in that sense.”

Carlson, who also ranked fifth nationally with a 71.0 touchback percentage on kickoffs in 2015, picked up where he left off last season by making five field goals in the first half of this year’s A-Day spring game. He was successful on kicks from 25, 25, 33, 52 and 55 yards out.

The punter

Starting punter Kevin Phillips has been a revelation since transferring to Auburn from Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College and making the Tigers after walking on.

After winning the starting job over scholarship player and true freshman Ian Shannon last year, Phillips went on to rank seventh in the SEC and tie for 68th in the FBS in yards per punt (40.9) and helped to hold opponents to only seven punt returns – tied for third-fewest in the country.

Auburn has awarded Phillips, who put 17 punts inside the 20 last year, a scholarship for his senior season.

The returners

Individually, Marcus Davis ranked fifth in the SEC and 19th in the FBS with an average of 11.5 yards per punt return last season. In Auburn’s Birmingham Bowl victory over Memphis, Davis had six of his 15 returns on the year, including a 56-yard scamper that nearly ended in a TD before the Tigers scored two plays later.

Auburn’s punt-returning job is Davis’ to lose, but if he falters, three potential candidates could step in. Wideout Ryan Davis, defensive back Stephen Roberts and cornerback Javaris Davis might field punts as well.

Rudy Ford and Kerryon Johnson each averaged more than 27 yards per return last season and should be the top two candidates for kickoffs. Kyle Davis might join the mix. Roc Thomas was expected to be a factor in this group before announcing his decision to transfer to Jacksonville State.

Cover teams

The good news is that Auburn allowed only seven punt returns to lead the SEC and finish tied for third in the FBS last season, according to cfbstats.com. The bad news is that opponents averaged 12.4 yards on those seven returns, a figure that ranked 11th in the conference. A 53-yard punt return by Georgia’s Isaiah McKenzie certainly didn’t help those numbers.

The Tigers also had a weird split on their kickoff return coverage a year ago. They allowed only 18 returns to finish second in the SEC and tie for fourth in the FBS. But Auburn yielded 21.4 yards on those kickoffs, which ranked next-to-last in the league and 66th in the FBS.

Special moments

Auburn had two big special teams plays in 2016, and Phillips was involved in both of them. In the second quarter of the Tigers’ 56-34 win over Idaho in their regular-season finale, Phillips faked a punt and ran down the left sideline for a 24-yard gain.

Even though Gus Malzahn’s play call came against the Vandals – one of the worst teams in the FBS last season – it was still pretty ballsy. Auburn had a fourth down from its own 43.

As if that wasn’t enough, Phillips got to show off his arm in the Birmingham Bowl as well. He connected with Johnson on a 37-yard pass.

Auburn’s 35-21 home victory over San Jose State began with the Tigers’ longest return of the season, a play that warrants honorable mention. Blake Countess took the opening kickoff 61 yards to the Spartans’ 39-yard line.

Auburn’s unit in 2016 should be better if for no other reason than the fact that they are loaded with returning players who have experience and are coming off good seasons. It all starts with Carlson and Phillips, a duo most other teams would love to have.

The Tigers’ coverage teams obviously need to step it up, and hopefully Auburn won’t go another full season without a special teams touchdown. But at the very least, there are pieces in place that should help AU show across-the-board improvement.