Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/399550
GOLDANDBLACK EXPRESS • VOLUME 25, EXPRESS 8 • 17 BY KYLE CHARTERS KCharters@ GoldandBlack.com A s a player at Ohio State, Marcus Free- man recalls the Buckeyes working on their punt coverage only on Tuesdays and Thursdays during the week. But at Purdue, the same as he did as an assistant under Darrell Hazell at Kent State before, Free- man directs the Boilermaker punt- ing team an extra day, as it goes about an eight-minute session on Wednesdays, as well. And that fo- cus is paying off for the Boilermak- ers this season, as they've given up only 11 return yards total through the first seven games. "I think we've made an empha- sis of it," said Freeman, Purdue's line- backers coach who also directs "Diesel," the Boilermakers' nickname for the punt unit. "Coach Hazell lets us work on it every day and I think you get results on things you emphasize. We've been fortunate to have very good snipers, guys who go down there and cover and they take pride in it. When you have guys who take pride at it and work at it, a lot of times you get good results." And Purdue is. The 11 return yards rank sixth in the country, with foes averaging 1.57 yards on their seven at - tempts. It was even better be- fore Saturday, when Michigan State had a 15-yarder to finally get opponents out of red. The six previous returns had net- ted negative-four, meaning that opponents were better off fair catching, because when they caught the ball and attempted a return, they in- stead lost yardage. Since Hazell arrived at Purdue before last season, he's called the punt "the most important play in football." If executed well, it can change momentum, put an of- fense in bad position or end a game, like Thomas Meadows did with his perfectly placed — and perfectly distanced — 54-yarder late in the fourth quarter of Pur- due's win at Illinois. It can have the opposite effect, too. But for the Boilermakers, the punt has been an overwhelming net positive. And much of that lies in the right leg of Meadows, a junior who had spent the last two seasons as the backup to Cody Webster, a Ray Guy finalist in 2013. Meadows, who was Purdue's kickoff specialist those two years, spent his apprenticeship well, as evidenced by his perfor - Limited Returns Punt coverage unit suffocating opponents F O O T B A L L F E A T U R E : P U N T C O V E R A G E Tom Campbell The accurate punting of Thomas Meadows gives the Boilermaker punt coverage team a head start when trying to limit returns.