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| John Baxter's punt block drill |
Baxter went to high school in Chicago and then went to college in Iowa (at Loras and then Iowa State), so he grew up in the midwest. He started off coaching at Loras in 1981, and he has bounced around since then, like most coaches do. His stops include Iowa State, Arizona, Maryland, Tulane, USC, and Fresno State. At one point or another, he has coached every position except quarterbacks and offensive line. But where he has really made a name for himself is on special teams.
Some of his accomplishments as a special teams coach:
- Top 15 in blocking kicks since at least 2008
- Nelson Agholor averaged 19.0 yards/punt return with 2 touchdowns in 2013
- Marqise Lee was Second Team All-Pac 12 and averaged 28.5 yards/kickoff return with 1 touchdown in 2012
- Named Special Teams Coordinator of the Year by Football Scoop in 2011
- Robert Woods was First Team All-Pac 10 with 25.6 yards/return and 1 touchdown in 2010
- Fresno State scored 3 punt return touchdowns by 3 different players in 2008
- A.J. Jefferson led the nation with 35.3 yards/return and 2 touchdowns in 2007 at Fresno State
- Clifton Smith set Fresno State's school record with 5 career punt return touchdowns in 2005
- Bernard Berrian returned 3 punts for touchdowns and averaged 11.2 yards/return in his career at Fresno State
Baxter spent from 1994-2009 coaching tight ends or wide receivers in addition to his special teams duties, and he was the associate head coach at USC. At 51 years old, he's been around the block and obviously has some respect in coaching circles. He landed an interview to be Colorado State's head coach after Jim McElwain lit out for Florida (Georgia offensive coordinator Mike Bobo got the CSU job instead).
Michigan averaged 6.3 yards per punt return last season, and that includes Ben Gedeon's 32-yard return of a blocked punt for a touchdown; on actual return attempts, the number was more like 4.3 yards/return. The last time a Michigan punt returner scored a touchdown was Martavious Odoms against Purdue in 2008, Rich Rodriguez's first year. Kickoff returns have been largely unproductive, too, with Michigan failing to score a touchdown since Darryl Stonum in 2009. Since Stonum's return in 2009, Baxter's kickoff return unit scored three times, and he didn't even coach in 2014.
Michigan averaged 6.3 yards per punt return last season, and that includes Ben Gedeon's 32-yard return of a blocked punt for a touchdown; on actual return attempts, the number was more like 4.3 yards/return. The last time a Michigan punt returner scored a touchdown was Martavious Odoms against Purdue in 2008, Rich Rodriguez's first year. Kickoff returns have been largely unproductive, too, with Michigan failing to score a touchdown since Darryl Stonum in 2009. Since Stonum's return in 2009, Baxter's kickoff return unit scored three times, and he didn't even coach in 2014.
The other day I spent a fair amount of time perusing defensive coordinator D.J. Durkin's special teams history (LINK), so he and Baxter should make a good combination. One guy who should be happy about this hire is senior Dennis Norfleet, the incumbent punt/kick returner who has yet to score a touchdown of any kind in his college career. Michigan also really struggled to get the right personnel on the field last season, allowing a Utah punt return for a touchdown with only ten men on the field. A dedicated special teams coordinator might rid the Wolverines of most of those issues.
