Arizona’s special teams room looks a lot different heading into 2026, and that’s probably a good thing for Brent Brennan’s group.
Training camp opens Aug. 5, with Arizona trying to build on last year’s 9-4 finish. The Wildcats will do it with a roster that blends established returners and a fresh batch of newcomers, and special teams is one of the areas where the turnover has been especially noticeable. The season opener is Sept. 5 at Casino Del Sol Stadium against NAU.
Arizona is carrying six players in the special teams room, with Rodney Gallagher projected as the punt and kick returner, Michael Salgado-Medina at kicker, Drew Nicolson at long snapper and Carter Schwartz at punter.
The biggest question revolves around Salgado-Medina. He’s the lone holdover in a group that was reshaped for spring ball, and his path last season was uneven.
He went 16 of 31 on field goals, connecting on some long kicks and a few game winners while also missing too many shorter ones. Even with the inconsistency, the coaching staff stuck with him, and Brennan kept publicly backing the kicker, saying he would work through it.
Schwartz enters as the punter after transferring from Louisville, where he averaged more than 40 yards per attempt over two seasons. He’ll compete with Australian freshman Ridley for the job. The punter battle could spill into the holding duties as well, since both Schwartz and Ridley may handle holds on field goals and extra points.
Nicolson, who has previously played at Arkansas State and Akron, is set to take over the long-snapping work.
In the return game, Gallagher already handled a few punts and could be asked to do much more this fall. Running back Quincy Carter is another name in the mix, and Arizona plans to give plenty of skill players a chance in camp to prove they can contribute on punts and kickoffs.
Craig Naivar, Arizona’s veteran special teams coach, has built a long résumé with stops at Kentucky, SMU, Texas, USC and several mid-majors. His first year with the Wildcats had its ups and downs, but with the specialists he wanted now in place at the key spots, this unit should be much less of a liability than it was at times in 2025.
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