Kramlich: I guess it’s my turn to start the conversation this week, so I’ll welcome myself back to this discussion space.

I got two games under my belt in week two, and there’s already something that stuck out to me — special teams.

Now, that’s not just because the forgotten third pillar of football helped my beloved New England Patriots get a win Sunday night, but because it helped Lisbon and Oak Hill to victories as well. On Friday night, the Greyhounds stuffed a punt attempt before it even happened and blocked another one, giving them great field position early in a game that was over by halftime. The Raiders received some helpful kickoff and punt returns by Darryn Bailey in their win, and got some help when Old Orchard Beach couldn’t catch a kickoff to start the second half, then compounded that with a block in the back that set the Seagulls up inside their own 5-yard line.

Have you seen any special teams plays that stand out through two weeks yet?

Horton: Special teams have been a mixed bag so far in the games I’ve seen. There was some nice punting in the Lewiston-Oxford Hills game, there there was also too much punting in that game. John Bowen also had a nice punt return for the Vikings.

But on the not-so-special end, I’ve seen a lot of missed extra points. I think there have been eight missed PAT kicks in the three games that I’ve covered.

I’m not surprised that high school teams are sketchy at kicker. It must be a tough position to coach, and I doubt many teams have a legit kicking coach. And probably the best kickers in school are playing soccer in the fall.

So, with all that being said, why not go for two after every touchdown?

Kramlich: As a former kicker, it pains me to see teams going for two, but I do see the reasoning for it. Good kickers don’t grow on trees, and if you don’t have a trustworthy placekicker then no use giving yourself a 50-50 chance at one point if you can give yourself a 50-50 chance for two. Going for two also gives a team more chances to work on short-yardage plays near the goal line.

There are only so many hours of practice in a week, and coaches want to use every second they can perfecting offense and defense. But with some of the negative plays you and I have both seen on special teams so far, you wonder if coaches will take an extra 10-15 minutes to work on shoring those things up.

Do you think any teams will be kicking themselves (pun intended) after this week’s slate of games for not working on special teams a little more?

Horton: Whoa, whoa, whoa. Hold on. We’re talking about kickers. Weren’t you a punter?

Anyway, local teams that might be kicking themselves: Mt. Blue, Edward Little, Oxford Hills, Leavitt, Gray-New Gloucester, Dirigo and Winthrop/Monmouth. Those are the teams that, according to your predictions, are in for fairly close games on Friday or Saturday.

The kicking game is to football coaches as an extra pen is to you and me: it doesn’t mean a ton until you need it. And if you don’t have it when you need it, you get that awful, sinking feeling in your chest. You start to rue your preparation and make promises to any power who will listen that you will do better in the future (maybe you’ll even scout the soccer team). You just scored a TD and are one point away from tying the game, or the game is tied and you are at the 9-yard line — you’re one short kick away from glory. You’re hoping that if you keep scribbling on your notebook that a blue or black streak will magically appear. You send in your kicker.

Kickers have a tough job. I hate when an NFL kicker misses a kick that costs his team the game, and the next day everyone piles on kickers, saying they aren’t real football players. Well, those critics should try kicking one of those balls not only really far, but also really accurate in an incredibly intense situation.

Kramlich: I was both a kicker and a punter, and also an offensive lineman. But enough about me. I am certainly no football coach, so who am I to question how one breaks up practice time? Although I guess that’s our job in this space.

It will be interesting to see this week how much, or if at all, special teams plays into any wins or losses.