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Some might call it a sophomore slump, though his numbers were actually better than most at his position. But for one reason or another, Alabama punter JK Scott went from practically a shoo-in to earn first-team All-America honors to perhaps not even the top punter in his own conference.
It’s not as though Scott has been bad — He’s had a few subpar games, but finished the regular season with 51 punts for an average of 43.4 yards. It’s simply that he was so amazing as a freshman that on a team loaded with former four and five-star recruits, the punter was one of the most valuable players.
Scott booted the ball 55 times in 2014, averaging 48 yards per punt. He had 23 kicks go for more than 50 yards with a long of 73. But his leg strength was only part of what made Scott the nation’s best punter.
Scott helped the Crimson Tide dominate field position, which provided a huge boost to an offense breaking in a new quarterback and a new system installed by first-year offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin.
Twenty-three of his punts settled inside the 20-yard line with just five touchbacks and not a single punt blocked. This season has been less successful for Scott on that front. While he’s still had 13 punts of more than 50 yards, he’s also placed just 13 inside the 20-yard line with eight touchbacks and one blocked.
Perhaps it’s not a coincidence that Alabama rose into College Football Playoff position while looking like one of the more dominant teams in the nation around the same time Scott began playing more like last year’s version of himself.
Starting with the Arkansas game on Oct. 10, Scott has had 10 punts of 50 or more yards and six downed inside the 20.
Last season he had the best game of his career in the College Football Playoff against Ohio State, punting seven times for an average of 55 yards with five of them inside the 20-yard line. If Scott can continue to trend upward and prove himself in huge games it could bode well for the Tide as it prepares for what could be the biggest games of all.
Shane Mettlen is a contributing writer for Saturday Down South. He covers Texas A&M, Missouri and Alabama.
