(Photo by Adrian J. Hernandez / New Day Review)
ORLANDO, Fla. – Typically, when punters take the field on fourth down, fans will look at their phones or, if watching from home, change the channel. However, when it comes to the University of Central Florida’s special teams, fans, coaches and players know any play can be a game-changer.
“There’s more of an importance on special teams, now, in today’s football,” UCF punter Mac Loudermilk said after practice on Oct. 17. “I think people are recognizing just one play on special teams can actually change a game and change the momentum of a game.”
Last week, in a 63-21 win over East Carolina University, the Knights’ special teams had those game-changing moments Loudermilk referenced.
Junior cornerback and starting punt-returner Mike Hughes returned three punts for 118 yards, including one for 66 yards and a touchdown. Hughes had another punt returned for a touchdown, but it was called back because of a penalty.
Special-teams coordinator Jovan Dewitt stresses the importance of punt- and kick-return yardage to his players. After last season, Dewitt and his staff discovered the difference in the offense scoring on a drive and not scoring was four yards in return yardage.
“Every time we talk in a special-teams meeting, we’re talking about finding ways to get that extra four yards to put our offense in a position to be able to score,” Dewitt said after practice on Oct. 17. “When four yards is only the difference, that’s not that much effort.”
Redshirt junior kicker Matthew Wright also had a standout performance against the Pirates. Wright, who was named to the Lou Groza Award watch list in the preseason, did not attempt a field goal but converted all nine of his extra-point attempts.
Loudermilk and his punt-coverage team played well, too, as ECU was only able to return one of UCF’s three punts for -1 yards. Freshman running-back Greg McCrae was the one who made the hit. As for the punter himself, Loudermilk had three punts for an average of 46.3 yards per punt and a long of 51 yards. Loudermilk also downed a punt on the one-yard line early in the third quarter.
From a defensive coordinator’s perspective, an opposing offense starting on the one-yard line most frequently appears to be a good opportunity for a safety. However, for UCF defensive coordinator Erik Chinander, he doesn’t like being overly aggressive. When Chinander was a player at the University of Iowa, his coach, Hayden Fry, imparted some wisdom on how to approach similar goal-line scenarios.
“I think you wanna be aggressive but in something that’s safe,” Chinander said after practice on Oct. 17. “The guy that recruited me, Hayden Fry, long time ago—you know, I used to ask him about down on the one. I said, ‘What should we do, Coach?’ Should we blitz?’ He said, ‘Well, boy, if you blitz, somebody fixing to score. It’s either gonna be us or them.’
“So I think you wanna be a little bit safe, but, also, you gotta get some inside pressure going. So we try to get in a call that gives us at least a safety deep in the middle and gives us a little inside pressure.”
The Knights look to have another game-changing special-teams performance when they face the Navy Midshipmen on Saturday.
For more on the Knights and their special teams, follow Ryan Weiss on Twitter at @NDR_RyanWeiss.
