Texas Tech special teams coordinator Kenny Perry and head coach Joey McGuire (Photo by Stephen Garcia-Imagn Images)

There wasn’t much to complain about, special teams-wise, against BYU last weekend. Recovering a muffed punt, solid kicks from Jack Burgess, touchbacks almost every kickoff, and a perfect 5-5 on field goals calls for a good day. Special teams coordinator Kenny Perry wants to continue playing aggressively and being dominant on special teams heading into the final home game of the season against UCF.

Despite the Knights being 4-5 on the year, Perry recognizes the challenges they pose, especially in their speed and quickness. They celebrated last week’s victory like any other game, and now it’s time to look forward, say “what’s next,” and handle business.

“Their returners are good…they’ve got athletes all over the field. That’s one thing that they do have, is they have some athletes,” Perry told the media on Tuesday. “They’ve got some guys that can make plays. So if we give them a chance to get loose, they’re gonna get loose, and we’re gonna try to corral them…let’s go 1-0 this week and see what happens next.”

Young guys continuing to make an impact

On the first punt of the game from Burgess, BYU’s Parker Kingston muffed the punt, and redshirt freshman Ashton Hampton recovered it. Perry has continued to be impressed by Hampton’s growth and by how much the younger guys are showing they can be physical.

“He (Hampton) was one of those guys we talked about early. You know, those young guys just keep fighting and keep piling and keep fighting. Kid is tough,” Perry said. “He was one of those guys that was undersized, didn’t know, you know, how to be physical, and now he’s starting to figure it out. And there you go, a play like that happens.”

Tahj Brooks was also in town, and Perry said how much he got to talk to him and said that he made such a significant impact on the younger players on how a running back should be. Even though Cam Dickey and J’Koby Williams have been so dominant, both are only true sophomores. Having role models like Brooks come down and lead by example is important for younger players to continue to develop.

“The thing that Tahj did that was so impressive is, I think I’ve said it last year with the what he showed those young kids what a running back was supposed to be about in college. J’Koby, Cam, and Adam (Hill) just got to see every day of what a pro was like,” Perry said. “Right when he got back here, all eyes lies lit up because, you know, he was our safety blanket for three years. And those guys, really, they benefited from Tahj Brooks being here… he loves Texas Tech, and I know Tech loves him.”

How Perry views this season

It’s obviously been a very successful season for Texas Tech so far, but the job’s not finished yet. What the fans have got to experience and how much they have impacted the success of this team means a lot to Perry and what they are trying to accomplish here.

“This is year 34. It’s been unbelievable. But my thing is, man, Lubbock, Texas and our fans, I don’t know if there’s anywhere better for a group of fans who deserve it. You know, I know we they talked about 2008… they’ve had some years. I’m just telling you, I don’t know of a fan base that’s got more than our fans have in this city of what they what they poured into us,” Perry said. “President Schovanec, Kirby (Hocutt), those guys get drugged through it. We get drugged through it. Our players get drugged through it, and our fans, I mean, they need it. They need this. And that, to me, is what it’s all about. Honestly, it ain’t about me… I think our fan base deserves it more than anything.”

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