Ohio State isn’t making a change at punter, but Ryan Day knows the Buckeyes’ punting can be better.
Joe McGuire has had his share of struggles in his second season as Ohio State’s punter, particularly last weekend against Illinois, when he averaged just 37.75 yards per punt. McGuire’s first three punts all traveled shorter than 40 yards, while his last and longest punt of the day – a 41-yard boot into the end zone – was actually supposed to be kicked shorter to pin the Illini deep rather than giving them a touchback.
For the season as a whole, McGuire has averaged 40.9 yards per punt, which would be the lowest average for Ohio State’s starting punter since 2009.
Despite that, Day has no plans to switch punters. While Nick McLarty is on scholarship and had a 45-yard boot on his lone punt this season against Grambling State, he believes McGuire remains the Buckeyes’ top punter. But he acknowledged that the Buckeyes should be better than they’ve been in that area.
“We haven't punted a whole bunch. The sample size is probably a mixed bag right now. We need to continually look at it and evaluate it and make sure we're doing what's best. But Joey will be our punter right now,” Day said. “We work at it a lot. It will be the first thing we do on Tuesday (in practice). I think we have the right guys in the game – we always take a look at that – in terms of protection and guys covering. I think it's been solid, but I know we can do better."
