TERRILL SAVES LONGEST PLUNTS FOR FINAL YEAR

Justin Terrill has waited four years to punt the football like he is right now. The Southeast Missouri State University senior is hoping his hot streak lasts throughout the season.

Terrill is in his fourth year as the Indians' regular punter. His previous best performance came last season as a junior, when he averaged 37.4 yards per punt.

But through three games this season, Terrill has been on a definite roll. He's leading all Ohio Valley Conference punters, averaging 44.3 yards on 22 attempts, which also happens to rank him seventh nationally in NCAA Division I-AA.

"I'm real satisfied with the way it's going and I'm hoping it's going to keep getting even better," said the good-natured Terrill following a practice earlier this week. "Coach (John) Mumford and I have been waiting for this season the last three years. I've put a lot of dedication into it and it's finally coming around."

Said Mumford, Southeast's head coach who also works with the Indians' special teams, "Justin is really punting the ball well. He's worked hard to get better and it's really paying off for him. He's been very consistent so far."

A Florida native, Terrill averaged 36.2 yards per punt as a freshman, 37.0 as a sophomore and 37.4 as a junior. Not terrible, but also certainly not what Terrill had in mind.

"I've been real disappointed with the last three years," he said. "But being a senior, I finally realized that my college career is coming to an end. I stood on the field during our first scrimmage and realized I only had seven more home games. I realized I had to make the most out of them."

According to Terrill, the difference in his punting this year is part mental and part physical.

"I think I'm focused a lot more. I've taken it a lot more seriously," he said. "I dedicated most of my summer to getting better. I worked out every day and kicked every other day. I really got after it."

Terrill, a 6-foot-2, 185-pounder, said gradually losing some weight and getting stronger has helped him out

"I've lost about 20 pounds from my freshmen year," he said. "I feel a lot quicker. My leg speed is a lot quicker, which is a big key to punting."

That Terrill even wound up at Southeast was pretty much a fluke, according to him.

"Coach (Mike) McCarty, who used to be an assistant here, just happened to be in the Tampa area recruiting and my head coach asked if he was interested," he said. "I'd never heard of SEMO before that. I'd never heard of Cape before that.

"But it worked out well. My junior year in high school I had some things going, then I broke my ankle the third game of my senior year and the offers pretty much stopped. So I'm glad things worked out like they did."

Terrill, a Southeast Scholar Athlete with a 3.1 grade-point average in health management, spends his offseason working as a student-trainer with various Southeast athletic teams. He'd some day like to work as a college trainer.

In the meantime, Terrill's sights are focused on team and individual success. The Indians are just 1-2 so far, but the punter still has high hopes for the season.

"It seems like we're one or two mental plays away from being an explosive team," he said. "But the morale is extremely high and I think we're close to being a real good team."

So far, Terrill has been a real good punter. If he continues at this pace, he will break the school record for season average (43.2, set by Mike Wood in 1975) and also lead the OVC.

But Terrill has even loftier plans.

"It's a goal of mine to be the best in the nation," he said.

Getting the hang

Year Yards

Freshman 36.2

Sophomore 37.0

Junior 37.4

Senior 44.3