Special teams units sure to be challenged by Terrapins
November 02, 2015 | Football, Andy Baggot
Badgers’ excellent coverage units face one of nation’s best returners in Maryland’s William Likely
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BY ANDY BAGGOT
UWBadgers.com Insider
MADISON, Wis. -- One of the most improved areas of the Wisconsin football team this season has been its special teams, especially in the areas of kick coverage.
The Badgers rank second in the Big Ten Conference and sixth nationally in limiting opponents to 16.0 yards per kickoff. That average was 19.0 yards last season.
Moreover, the average starting field position for their opponents is the 22.9-yard line through nine games, the third-best showing among Football Bowl Subdivision teams behind Boston College (22.3) and Ohio State (22.7). Â
Meanwhile, Wisconsin is allowing 5.3 yards per punt return with three games left in the regular season. That average was 8.1 in 2014.
Those trends figure to be strongly tested Saturday when the Badgers (7-2 overall, 4-1 in the Big Ten) make their first-ever trip to play at Maryland (2-6, 0-4).
"We're going to be challenged in a big way," Wisconsin coach Paul Chryst said Monday during his weekly press conference.
The Terrapins lead the Big Ten and rank fourth nationally in punt return average at 19.1 per attempt. They also stand third in the league and 15th in the nation in kickoff returns at 25.1 yards per try.
At the heart of those two threats is junior cornerback William Likely, a first-team All-Big Ten pick last season whose instincts and speed have resulted in him returning punts, kickoffs and interceptions for touchdowns in his career.
He led the Big Ten and was fourth in the country averaging 31.0 yards per kickoff return last season. That included a 100-yard return for a touchdown vs. Stanford in the Foster Farms Bowl.
Likely, listed at 5-foot-7 and 175 pounds, also set a Big Ten single-game record with 233 yards in punt returns vs. Richmond earlier this season and has returned two punts for TDs.
Chryst said managing the threat Likely presents involves a three-pronged plan of ball placement on kickoffs and punts, downfield leverage and finishing tackles.
It helps to have senior punter Drew Meyer in his current state of excellence. Last week, Rutgers' average starting field position after a Meyer punt was its own 12.6 yard line. A week earlier, Illinois averaged a starting field position of its own 11.4 yard line in the second half.
Wisconsin hasn't allowed a kickoff return for TD since 2011 (Duane Bennett, Minnesota) or a punt return for a score since 2012 (Corey Brown, Ohio State).
In addition to the threat of a big play, Chryst is mindful of the field position battle that dictates the course of a game.
"To date the biggest challenge we've had," he said of Likely and the Terrapins.
