Offense allows punter Jake Harry extra time off

Teammates joke that punter Jake Harry is the most tired player after each game.

By Lenny Goldman

Published Oct. 9, 2008

Each day at practice junior Jake Harry punts the ball about 55 times. He watches film daily and goes through a specific routine during every game on Saturdays. Yet last week against Nebraska he didn't get called onto the field once and has punted only two times in the past three games.

"He's got a sweet deal," junior linebacker Sean Weatherspoon said. "Just riding and eating and sleeping in nice hotels. Watching college football on Saturdays and watching it from the sidelines. It's great."

Weatherspoon and several other Tigers chuckled as soon as Harry's name was even mentioned Monday at media day.

"Everybody jokes around," Harry said. "I even joke around. After the game I was joking around saying, 'Man I'm probably one of the most tired guys on the field.' When there's humor involved you know you're doing something right."

The Tigers' first-string offense is yet to go three-and-out so far this season and has only had five drives resulting in a punt when senior quarterback Chase Daniel is in.

"I get to be part of what I think is the best offense in the entire nation," Harry said. "There's no better feeling than winning."

The San Diego native walked onto Oregon State's football team and was red-shirted as a freshman. After watching the Beavers bring in a punter on scholarship the next year, Harry decided to transfer to Palomar Junior College, where he averaged 38.9 yards per punt.

Harry caught the attention of MU scouts at a combine in San Antonio and after making one visit to Missouri he knew it was where he belonged.

"This was the first and only trip that I ever took," Harry said. "I had several other offers, but I felt that when I came out here this was where my home was at, this was where I needed to be."

But the odd role he plays as a punter on a team that rarely needs to punt is something he never envisioned.

"Did I ever think our offense would be this good?" Harry said. "I really didn't. But I couldn't be happier. This is incredible. You don't really think you're going to be part of something like this until you're part of it."

Even as the schedule gets tougher with exclusively Big 12 play ahead of them, the Tigers don't plan to need Harry's help any more than they have so far.

"We want to move the chains and get a touchdown every time we're out there," junior tailback Derrick Washington said. "We have a great third down convergence, and that's what we've been doing. If we keep that up, we're not going to use him a lot."

Still, through work ethic and performance at practice, Harry has proved to his teammates that he's ready when they need him.

"We have a lot of confidence in Jake," Weatherspoon said. "He put one down on the two (yard line) against Buffalo. When we need him, he'll be there to back us up."