Feature on punter Alex Dunnachie's reliable hands

About punter Alex Dunnachie's reliable hands, long-snapper Luke Ingram said that:
"we've never had a problem with him. He catches everything." (HSA)


About how Dunnachie only bobbled one snap in his 81 punts over his UH career, earlier this season at Utah State, Chris Tormey said:
"And that was in the driving rain." (HSA)


About the snap that he dropped at Utah State, Dunnachie said:
"It was purely a lapse in concentration. It's definitely not going to happen again. I was pretty hard on myself after that one. ... I managed to pick up the ball, and I didn't really care where I was going. I saw a pair of legs and kicked around them. I think we managed to squib a 30-yard punt with no return." (HSA)


About how Dunnachie has had only 4 out of 17 punts returned over the past 3 games, for a total of 11 yards, Tormey said:
"The first thing, obviously, is to catch the ball, and he's been very good at that. He's always had leg strength. He's starting to hone his craft. He's more comfortable with his technique." (HSA)


About how he worked on catching the ball since he was 7 years old in Australia, Dunnachie said:
"We would move the (Australia Rules) ball back and forth by kicking it and catching it. I grew up doing this." (HSA)


About being able to snap to a big target like the 6'6" Dunnachie, Ingram said:
"Alex is a big target. That helps out a lot. We're really fortunate to have a punter like that." (HSA)


About how he adopted the practice that Dallas Cowboy (and former UH punter) Mat McBriar used to practice the drop (releasing the ball slightly in front of where it is kicked) by bouncing a football, Dunnachie said:
"It's so vital to get that muscle memory. I can do (the drop) with my eyes closed. I do it watching TV. I do it sitting around the house. I bet I could do it in my sleep. I normally have a football wherever I go. It's all a matter of repetition." (HSA)


About how he's been able to kick the ball towards the sidelines and not outkick the coverage, Dunnachie said:
"The returners are pretty specialized guys. If he's back there, his team trusts him to do something with it, and he generally can. We're going to do our best to move him. Direction is a huge part of it. If we can pin him on the boundary, our coverage is right on top of him, and he'll have nowhere to go." (HSA)


About how Dunnachie has consistently met their goals of 45+ yard punts with a minimum hangtime of 4.5 seconds, even having a 5.2-second punt against BSU, Tormey said:
"He's been playing very well. He's really helped us." (HSA)


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