2024 Spotlight: Top Punt Returners

Chris Norcross

June 3, 2022 @ 12:09 PM

While kickoff returns and punt returns are similar in nature when fielding the ball, the game of football has not changed all too much within the punt game. While punters seem to be getting better and better, punt returners seem to have a harder time of being able to make as good of returns as they would like to due to the efficient level of production on the other side of the ball. This, paired with the fact that punt returning is a difficult task, is a large reason why it is very exciting to see players who excel in the punt return game. Below, we listed some of the more talented punt returners out of the 2024 class who are worth keeping up with. Brandon Crutchfield- Heritage Likely, Crutchfield’s ability to move fluidly as a DB has certainly translated to his punt return game. This can be seen in his total amount of punt return yards last season, which was 133. This came on 7 return attempts, in only 7 games. Impressively, his longest return was of 35 yards, further helping his average amount of yards per return to be around 19 yards. Mario Revels- Mount Airy Mario Revels has not only impressed many Mount Airy fans with his punt return skills, but he has proven to be one of the better punt returners in the entire state. Last season, Revels not only totaled around 124 yards by the end of the season, but he achieved a season high of 31 return yards on his longest return. This explosive ability will likely continue for Revels next season, and we look forward to seeing how much he grows and develops. JoJo Ikeme- AC Reynolds Out of the 9 games that Ikeme played last season, he managed to touch the ball 11 times on punt returns, having his fair share of success in doing so. So much so, that he had around 142 return yards by the end of the season, with an average of around 12-13 yards a return. Next season, especially due to the fact that he proved to be explosive in this manner, look for his team to try to get the ball in his hands in even more ways than they already have. Isaiah Johnson- Stuart Cramer Unlike most 2024 prospects, Johnson managed to not only cut his teeth through punt returns, but he had plenty of success in doing so as well. Last season, he totaled around 11 yards a return, and did so in about 9 different punt returns. In addition to this, his total number of return yards by the end of the year was around 100, with his longest return being that of 25 yards. Look for him to continue to improve in this area as he develops as a player.