Goodbye, Blake O’Neill

This headline is a bit over the top, but that’s what the New York Post does sometimes.

Previously: LB Desmond Morgan

HIGH SCHOOL
We weren’t aware of O’Neill as a high schooler, since he attended school in Australia. He was a team captain for his high school Australian Rules football team, and he was a shot putter.

COLLEGE
At Weber State in 2014, he averaged 44.1 yards/punt, which was #6 in the country. He also had a 17-yard run and a 23-yard pass on fake punts. Because of his unique academic situation due to being Australian, he used a grad transfer after one year at WSU to end up at Michigan for the 2015 season. Michigan – under one-year rental John Baxter as special teams coach – converted to a rugby-style punt to suit O’Neill’s talents. He started every game at Michigan, averaging 41.3 yards/punt on 53 attempts.

Hit the jump for the rest of the senior profile on Blake O’Neill.

STATS
53 punts for 2,188 yards (41.3 yards/attempt), 4 touchbacks, 14 fair catches, 23 punts inside the 20-yard line, 9 punts of 50+ yards, long punt of 80 yards

AWARDS
Honorable Mention All-Big Ten (2015)

SUMMARY
O’Neill’s punting average was average (#63 nationally), but where he really helped Michigan was landing punts inside the 20-yard line. He was adept at getting the ball near the goal line and keeping it there, notching just 4 touchbacks in 53 attempts. Some credit for that, of course, goes to the punt coverage unit. For the most part, O’Neill was a very good punter all season long. However…

I WILL REMEMBER HIM FOR…
…his big role in losing the game against Michigan State. With ten seconds remaining and clinging to a 23-21 lead, O’Neill dropped a low snap. Rather than falling on the ball, he picked it up, got hit by defenders, and tried to kick the ball away as he was spinning around. The ball was picked up by Michigan State and returned for a touchdown in perhaps the most heartbreaking ending to a game in Michigan history. No Michigan fan is going to forget that for a long time. I’m not one for emotional overreactions, but I stared at the TV for several minutes, wondering when order would be restored so the game could be finished properly with a simple punt and the clock harmlessly dwindling to zero. (Note: The blame is not entirely on O’Neill’s shoulders, as Michigan failed to adjust its formation to account for the fact that MSU had everyone at the line of scrimmage and didn’t even cover the gunner/receiver to the wide side of the field. Coaching and preparation were also at fault, not to mention the low – albeit catchable – snap by Scott Sypniewski.)

PROJECTION
NFL Draft Scout has O’Neill ranked as the #21 punter in the country, and it’s already difficult to get drafted as a punter. O’Neill helped Michigan with field position as a rugby-style punter, but the NFL is mostly about booming the ball deep in a more traditional style. I do not expect him to get drafted or get much of a chance at the next level. It doesn’t help that he dropped the punt against MSU in one of the more infamous punting gaffes in recent college football history.

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