Blitz Points: All Defense, No Offense Among College Football Top Performers Week 12

Nov 15, 2014; Stanford, CA, USA; Utah Utes wide receiver Kenneth Scott (2) celebrates after catching the winning touchdown pass during overtime against the Stanford Cardinal at Stanford Stadium. Utah won 20-17 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Bob Stanton-USA TODAY Sports

Tom Hackett, Punter, Utah Utes (Defeated Stanford Cardinal 20-17 in Overtime)

9 Punts for 402 Yards, 6 Punts inside the 20 

For the first time all year, we have a punter on the list. We’ve had kickers but not punters up to this point. But we could not ignore what Tom Hackett did in a defensive struggle against Stanford.

The junior punter averaged 44.7 yards per punt, had 6 inside the 20, and nailed a 54-yard punt at one point. Hackett was sensational, reversing field all game in this epic dogfight. Stanford actually out-gained Utah 294 to 247 this game, which is usually a winning formula for the Cardinal and David Shaw.

When you add in the fact that the Cardinal only had one turnover, not multiple turnovers, it should have been enough to win even with Utah not committing any turnovers. But the reason the Cardinal were never able to score after the first quarter was a result of the incredible play by Hackett.

Hackett managed to pin Stanford deep the rest of the game and win the field position battle for Utah, which is what got the Utes into overtime. Sure, the team took care of the rest at that point, but there is no way they get there without Hackett.

So this time, the punter is the player of the game and awarded Blitz Points from us.