Middle Tennessee State University Athletics

Special Teams are the Blue Raiders’ Secret Weapon
11/3/2021 6:00:00 PM | Football
Tight coverage, consistent personnel have powered MT’s special teams to a resurgence after their open week
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — Ralph Mency knew he had a shot from the moment he got the play call. It was an all out rush from the punt return unit, designed to try to get as close to the punter as possible. As one of the rushers in the scheme, his eyes grew wide. Southern Miss had left just a two man shield protecting their punter.
"I saw that the gap was open," Mency said, recalling the play. "I hit the shield, the shield got really flat down the middle, it opened up and I got my hands up and hit the ball."
The punt caromed off of Mency's hand to the Floyd Stadium turf, and was almost immediately scooped up by gunner Tra Fluellen.
"I just want to say thanks to Coach Gilstrap for putting me in a great situation," Fluellen said. "The whole thing was to do my job to the best of my ability. I knew (the block) was coming. Ralph blitzed straight through that gap."
Mency knew Fluellen would be there, seeing him fly by as he pushed the shield back with his force on the rush.
"I started celebrating right when I got up off the ground," Mency said.
The punt block was MT's second of the season, and fourth blocked kick overall, tied for second most blocked kicks in the nation, by a special teams unit that has gelled into a weapon for Coach Rick Stockstill heading into the final stretch of C-USA play. Saturday marked the second game of the season the Blue Raiders scored in all facets of the game: offense, defense and special teams.
But beyond punt blocks, or punt returns for touchdowns like Jaylin Lane's against Monmouth, the special teams coverage on kickoffs and punts has steadily improved as the season has gone on after some early blips against talented returners.
Take the Golden Eagles, who started drives following Middle Tennessee punts or kickoffs with an average field position between their own 23 and 24 yard line, starting five of those nine drives either on or inside of their own twenty, and never starting a drive in Middle Tennessee territory following a kick.
"We gave up a couple returns there at Virginia Tech, that guy is a really good player, the guy at Liberty was a really good player," Stockstill said of the team's early season struggles in kick coverage. "So it's a combination of who you faced and us not doing exactly what we needed to do. Whether it's the kick placement, whether it's getting out of a coverage lane, not doing your responsibility. (The players) have gotten better, we've kicked better, we've covered better."
Middle Tennessee usually spends the last major chunk of its practice exclusively on special teams. Kickoff coverage might end practice one day, punt coverage might end practice the next. And always, always, ending with field goal drills.
The hours over spring camp, summer workouts, and fall practice have added up. And it's clear the hard work has paid off, in large part because the units are settled on who their guys are, and what role they play in how they attack either covering or returning a kick.
"We've kind of settled in on who the guys are now, as opposed to earlier in the year," Stockstill said. "I'm proud of what we're doing. Our players are understanding their responsibility better. It's just a combination of everything right now."
Kyle Ulbrich is one of the biggest benefactors of the tight kick coverage on the special teams unit. The redshirt junior punter has had 18 of his punts downed inside the 20 this year, and is ranked in the top 30 for punt yardage across all of the FBS.
"It gives us some relaxation," Ulbrich said of the confidence he has as a punter in his special teams unit. "You don't have to worry about hitting 5.0 hangs and punting it up there and hoping the guys make a tackle. You know they're going to do it."
As the games get tighter down the stretch in conference play, winning the field position battle, while not flashy, is a key component to winning games. And while Ulbrich certainly appreciates only having to hold for placekicker Zeke Rankin when the offense is humming (the punter only punted five times over the Blue Raiders' last two games), he knows he can continue to make the special teams units an even more lethal weapon in the weeks ahead.
"I'd definitely say my consistency and getting the ball up there more," Ulbrich said of what he wants to improve on to close out the year. "I'd say the biggest thing I need to work on is just allowing my guys a little bit more time, putting the ball in the air a little bit longer so we can keep that net (yardage) higher."
"I saw that the gap was open," Mency said, recalling the play. "I hit the shield, the shield got really flat down the middle, it opened up and I got my hands up and hit the ball."
The punt caromed off of Mency's hand to the Floyd Stadium turf, and was almost immediately scooped up by gunner Tra Fluellen.
"I just want to say thanks to Coach Gilstrap for putting me in a great situation," Fluellen said. "The whole thing was to do my job to the best of my ability. I knew (the block) was coming. Ralph blitzed straight through that gap."
Mency knew Fluellen would be there, seeing him fly by as he pushed the shield back with his force on the rush.
"I started celebrating right when I got up off the ground," Mency said.
The FOURTH blocked kick of the season for your #BlueRaiders results in a TD! 😎@Mency_Ralph20 | @tra_fluellen pic.twitter.com/AHLcYHshxR
— Middle Tennessee FB (@MT_FB) October 30, 2021
The punt block was MT's second of the season, and fourth blocked kick overall, tied for second most blocked kicks in the nation, by a special teams unit that has gelled into a weapon for Coach Rick Stockstill heading into the final stretch of C-USA play. Saturday marked the second game of the season the Blue Raiders scored in all facets of the game: offense, defense and special teams.
But beyond punt blocks, or punt returns for touchdowns like Jaylin Lane's against Monmouth, the special teams coverage on kickoffs and punts has steadily improved as the season has gone on after some early blips against talented returners.
Take the Golden Eagles, who started drives following Middle Tennessee punts or kickoffs with an average field position between their own 23 and 24 yard line, starting five of those nine drives either on or inside of their own twenty, and never starting a drive in Middle Tennessee territory following a kick.
"We gave up a couple returns there at Virginia Tech, that guy is a really good player, the guy at Liberty was a really good player," Stockstill said of the team's early season struggles in kick coverage. "So it's a combination of who you faced and us not doing exactly what we needed to do. Whether it's the kick placement, whether it's getting out of a coverage lane, not doing your responsibility. (The players) have gotten better, we've kicked better, we've covered better."
Middle Tennessee usually spends the last major chunk of its practice exclusively on special teams. Kickoff coverage might end practice one day, punt coverage might end practice the next. And always, always, ending with field goal drills.
The hours over spring camp, summer workouts, and fall practice have added up. And it's clear the hard work has paid off, in large part because the units are settled on who their guys are, and what role they play in how they attack either covering or returning a kick.
"We've kind of settled in on who the guys are now, as opposed to earlier in the year," Stockstill said. "I'm proud of what we're doing. Our players are understanding their responsibility better. It's just a combination of everything right now."
Kyle Ulbrich is one of the biggest benefactors of the tight kick coverage on the special teams unit. The redshirt junior punter has had 18 of his punts downed inside the 20 this year, and is ranked in the top 30 for punt yardage across all of the FBS.
"It gives us some relaxation," Ulbrich said of the confidence he has as a punter in his special teams unit. "You don't have to worry about hitting 5.0 hangs and punting it up there and hoping the guys make a tackle. You know they're going to do it."
As the games get tighter down the stretch in conference play, winning the field position battle, while not flashy, is a key component to winning games. And while Ulbrich certainly appreciates only having to hold for placekicker Zeke Rankin when the offense is humming (the punter only punted five times over the Blue Raiders' last two games), he knows he can continue to make the special teams units an even more lethal weapon in the weeks ahead.
"I'd definitely say my consistency and getting the ball up there more," Ulbrich said of what he wants to improve on to close out the year. "I'd say the biggest thing I need to work on is just allowing my guys a little bit more time, putting the ball in the air a little bit longer so we can keep that net (yardage) higher."
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