Rams' Hayden Hunt still proving he's one of nation's best

FORT COLLINS – We interrupt the quarterback controversy at Colorado State to bring you deserved coverage of one of the most valuable players for the Rams in 2016.

All-American punter Hayden Hunt was named the Ray Guy Punter of the Week for his jaw-dropping performance against UTSA. Yes, I referred to a punter’s performance as jaw-dropping.

Hunt had seven punts, averaging 46.7 yards per punt. He had two that went 50 yards, including a long of 59. Maybe most importantly, though, five were downed inside the 20-yard line and two were downed inside the 10.

Regarding the recognition, Hunt said: “It means a lot in the way of I really appreciate it and I’m really grateful for what happened. It’s another great platform for CSU, but when it comes down to it, I’m glad we got the win. I really appreciate the individual accolades, but they don’t get you wins.”

It’s easy to consider the best punters as having a big leg and that’s it but especially when it comes to pinning a ball down toward an opponent’s goal line, Hunt explains the process almost like a science.

“It’s a lot harder, a lot like golf,” he said. “I feel the wind, look at the distance and try to gauge what percent in my mind I don’t want to go above. You can control how far you hit it and how high you hit it. It comes down to great gunners and coverage. There’s hard work on my side but there’s a lot of hard work on (special teams) coach Jamie Bryant and the coverage units.”

So when the CSU defense did their best impression of the 2015 Denver Broncos defense in the second half against the Roadrunners, Hunt’s work did not go unnoticed.

“I got a lot of love from Kevin Davis and the like,” said Hunt, also mentioning that safety Jake Schlager approached him as well. “When the offense isn’t firing on all cylinders and the defense has to pick up the game, it helps when they have 80 or 90 yards to work with.”

Those nationally might water down Hunt’s career accomplishments because he has the advantage of punting at altitude. Hunt notes that kicking away from altitude is actually a little easier.

Said Hunt: “You have all the wind that comes down from the Rockies, so you have to line drive it to cut through the wind more. When we go to the west coast to play other Mountain West teams, there’s less wind so I can drop it a bit higher and hit them even higher. The altitude would be great if there wasn’t wind but it’s so windy up here, it’s a totally different game.”

While the quarterback play for the Rams continues to be frustrating, it may not necessarily be a bad thing for a handful of possessions to end in a punt.