CHAPEL HILL – It may seem like a somewhat innocuous part of a game, but punt returns can sometimes break a contest open and often factor in a team’s success.
Think back to how often Ryan Switzer changed the complexion of games with his punt returns. He returned eight for scores in his North Carolina career (2013-16) and had many others that flipped the field and injected serious juice into his teammates.
How about Dazz Newsome’s return for a touchdown at Syracuse two years ago put Carolina in position to win a game it ultimately lost, no fault of Newsome’s.
It was also an element of special teams that Mack Brown said in the offseason was one of several points of emphasis that needed improving. The Tar Heels needed more out of their returns than last season, and it looked in the opener as if that was going to happen.
In UNC’s win over Syracuse, Newsome returned six punts for 93 yards, which his coach noted afterward was a clear improvement from 2019 and possible glimpse of what was coming.
“That was obvious with his punt returns and what he's showing for the future,” Brown said following that contest.
But in the three games since, Newsome has one return for minus-one yard, and that came in the first half at Boston College in week two. It’s not that opponents’ coverage has been so spectacular, it’s that Newsome isn’t returning the ball.
Opponents have punted 23 times this season, with one a quick kick by Virginia Tech, so that’s 22 punt return opportunities. Newsome has been on the field for 21 of them, but he’s either let the ball roll or fair caught the rest. Overall, and this includes a fair catch by Toe Groves versus BC, the Heels have not returned their opponents’ last 11 punts.
Some coaching staffs call for fair catches, or it’s also been termed a “safe catch” by some staffs. Does Newsome ever get the call from the sideline to call for a fair catch?
“They’re never called from the sideline, it’s always Dazz’s decision,” Brown replied Monday, during his weekly press conference. “And we thought there was some room there that we didn’t take advantage of. So, we’re going to look closely at that this week.”
Brown said following the game Saturday night they needed someone to step up and make a play to get them going in the first half at FSU as the Seminoles built a 31-7 lead, so wouldn’t having an electrifying returner like Newsome try to make plays in those situations make some sense?
“You can’t force them to catch it and then they fumble it and blame you, so you’ve got to be really smart with what you’re doing,” Brown responded. “You show them the video, you show him he had more room than he thought he had during the game and you try to get him to be aggressive, because he is a valuable tool.
“And I did think we blocked two or three of those better than they came out, so it’s an area where he can be more aggressive when we’re looking at it.”
Newsome’s numbers last fall: 12 returns for 81 yards. But Brown brought in Jovan Dewitt to change that and other parts of a special teams that was below average last season. Getting Newsome back to where he was as a sophomore was one of the missions.
In 2018, he returned 19 punts for an average of 15.1 yards and score that aforementioned TD in the Carrier Dome. Even a year ago, he had some decent runs, including 15 yards versus South Carolina, 20 against Virginia and a 16-yard return in the bowl game versus Temple.
So, as Carolina addresses some of the things that need tweaking or full-blown fixing, getting Newsome to take off every so often could be something that happens more moving forward.
