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Home > Blogs > RedHawk rumblings | Miami University sports news > Archives > 2010 > September > 01
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Miami coach deals with freshman nerves
Zac Murphy, who has been looking very good as Miami University’s new punter, recently had what you might call a freshman moment or two.
Miami coach Michael Haywood recalled what happened to the former Kings High School kicker, who was redshirted last season.
“The other day we’re out in warm-ups and we have a mock scrimmage, we have pregame music … We’re trying to create the atmosphere of a game-like situation of Florida week, and he drops the first two snaps, and I just start laughing,” Haywood said.
Haywood noted that he has been involved with college football as a coach and player for 23 years. Many of those years were spent with teams Notre Dame, Texas and LSU, so a large, hostile, noisy crowd is old hat to him.
“But you have to go back to when you were a freshman to realize how tight he really was,” the Miami coach said.
“I took him over to the side and I said, ‘Hey Zac, there are only 11 people on the other side of that field,’ ” Haywood said. “Those people in the stands will never matter. I said all they can do is scream and yell. They can’t come down and attack you. All you’ve got to do is worry about your technique and focus on getting the ball off and let’s get down and cover, all right?
“And then he just smiled,” Haywood said, “and he punted about 45 (yards) once and he punted another one 50 yards with five-point (second) hang time. I said alright, now we’re getting back into the rhythm. But sometimes you forget, young people haven’t had this experience before.”
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