STARKVILLE — Logan Cooke was supposed to redshirt as a freshman last season.
The Mississippi State punter didn’t play in the first four games, but regular punter and kicker Devon Bell injured his groin before the Texas A&M game Oct. 3. The injury happened in warmups, so Bell approached Cooke and told him he might have to play. MSU coach Dan Mullen finally decided to go with Cooke over Bell.
The decision didn’t leave Cooke much time to think, but he re-focused and wound up punting four times for 181 yards and a season-best 45.2 yards per punt, including a 51-yarder. He also averaged a season-best 63.6 yards per kickoff with three touchbacks. The performance helped set the tone for a solid first season.
This season, Cooke has been a bright spot on special teams. The 6-foot-5, 216-pounder from Columbia Academy has punted 26 times and is averaging 41.8 yards per kick, which is eighth in the Southeastern Conference. Cooke will showcase his kicking skills at 8 p.m. Thursday (ESPN) when No. 24 MSU (6-2, 2-2 SEC) takes on Missouri (4-4, 1-4) in Columbia, Missouri.
Cooke is happy he had a chance to contribute last season, even if he only punted 10 times.
“(It was good) just being out there on the field and getting some of those nerves out of your system,” Cooke said. “This year you get to come in and focus on what you need to focus on.”
In addition to being the punter at Columbia Academy, Cooke also played wide receiver and defensive back. The All-State selection was named the third-best punter in the country by Chris Sailer in 2013. ESPN.com had him as the 13-best kicker in the country that year.
Cooke’s primary duty as a freshman was kickoffs. He kicked off 54 times for 3,334 yards for an average of 61.7 yards. He had 15 touchbacks. His punting average was 41.4 yards. He put two inside the 20.
Last season, Bell and Cooke punted and were used on kickoffs. This season, Mullen has seen Cooke become more comfortable.
“He’s a much more veteran player right now and has a lot of different game experiences,” Mullen said.
This season, Cooke primarily has been used as a punter. His longest punt went for 65 yards. He is averaging 41.8 yards per punt. He also has handled four of the team’s 53 kickoffs, and had an average of 49.2.
Cooke said the experience he gained last season gave him the confidence to attack Cooke spring drills with a new attitude.
“You didn’t have to focus on as much of the mental aspect as far as I’ve got to play this year and I need to get ready,” Cooke said. “I was mainly focusing on fundamentals and things I knew I was going to have to face during the season.”
Cooke said the success he has had through eight games motivates him to get better. He said his focus has been pooch punts, which he says could be better.
“Some pooches to the 10, the 12, in my mind, I want them down to the 5 or 3,” Cooke said. “It’s just small things like that that could be better.
“I’ve been working on that a lot and just keeping a good, smooth, fluid swing on the punts.”
Cooke wasn’t on the initial watch list for the Ray Guy Award, which is given to the nation’s top collegiate punter, but he was added to the list last week. While he doesn’t mind the attention, that isn’t why Cooke plays football. He said he wants to do whatever the team needs the rest of the season.
“A bunch of guys’ averages are high and people are like, ‘Why isn’t your so high?’ But it’s whatever the team needs,” Cooke said. “We’ve hit a lot of pooches. When you have a powerful offense, you don’t punt as much from the 20 or 30 as much as you do from the middle of the field.”
Follow Dispatch sports writer Ben Wait on Twitter @bcwait
Ben Wait reports on Mississippi State University sports for The Dispatch.
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