YOU CAN INSTALL the most innovative and complex punt scheme known to man, but if your punter hasn’t mastered the critical fundamentals of punting, then all your hard work and coaching will have gone for naught.
William Lund, assistant football coach at Colby College in Waterville, Maine, says that getting your punter to master the details of punting technique is what brings much-needed consistency to your special teams. The author of this issue’s cover story on the spread punt (see Page 1), outlines technical keys needed for perfect punting every time. To get a great punt off, the punter must:
- Be in a comfortable position with his knees bent.
- Have his arms, from the elbows to the hands, parallel to the ground.
- Have the arms positioned slightly above the knee.
- Keep his palms up, with the thumbs pointed out.
- Hold the ball with two hands, yet lay it on the foot with just one.
- Kick the ball with the hardest part of his foot (top) and strike it so that the foot hits the seam of the ball (the hardest part of the ball).
- Make sure that the ball’s laces are positioned on the top or on either side of the ball while kicking.
- Have his right arm, elbow, shoulder, hip and foot aligned correctly.
- Be sure that his arm rests comfortably against his side while kicking the ball.
- Take a two-step approach when kicking the ball. He must meet the ball while taking a short right step, a normal left step and then punt the ball.
- Be sure that each one of his punts are smooth, consistent and maintain a great rhythm on each punt.
Lund also stresses that you shouldn’t overlook the technique of the long snapper either. He says on each snap, the long snappers must have a wide base, with wide finger placement (to get QB-like rotation) and make an accurate throw that comes from the fingers and hips. He must snap the ball like a QB’s throw.