Huskies notebook: Pettis downplays his punt return record

Published 11:08 pm Saturday, September 16, 2017

SEATTLE — Dante Pettis may have put himself at the top of the NCAA’s punt-returning list, but he insisted he wasn’t thinking much about it.

Pettis became part of NCAA history when he had his eighth career punt return for a touchdown during the Washington Huskies’ 48-16 victory over the Fresno State Bulldogs on Saturday night at Husky Stadium.

Pettis returned a punt 77 yards for a score midway through the first quarter to etch his place in NCAA history. With eight punt returns for touchdowns Pettis matched Texas Tech’s Wes Welker and Oklahoma’s Antonio Perkins for the all-time lead. It was also the third straight game in which the senior receiver returned a punt for a touchdown, which also tied an NCAA record.

But after the game Pettis played down the significance of matching the NCAA career mark.

“It’s a little crazy,” Pettis said. “I haven’t really thought about it too much yet, I’m trying not to think about it too much. I’m sure it’s something I’ll look back on in 10 years and be like, ‘Man, that’s pretty cool.’ But for right now, it’s definitely exciting, but it’s not wins. Winning is definitely what we like to do.”

Washington coach Chris Petersen was a little more impressed by Pettis, who also added five catches for 92 yards and three touchdowns, as well as a 36-yard completion on a double pass.

“Dante can do it all,” Petersen said. “We might have him start kicking field goals and punting as well. There’s not much he can’t do.

“He’s natural [as a punt returner], he’s a natural catcher,” Petersen added when asked about first making Pettis a punt returner in 2014. “We always try guys out early in the year and punt about four or five balls to certain guys, and you can tell right away if they have a natural feel for catching the ball. That’s probably the most important thing and you kind of go from there. You never know if a guy is going to have that kind of feel, and I think Dante has really gotten better, I really do. I think he has a lot of confidence right now, he has confidence in the guys in front blocking for him, I think Dante’s gotten better as a runner in the open field and breaking tackles. He’s doing a great job.”

Petersen speaks

Petersen was particularly pleased with the way the Huskies played in the first half plus one drive, as Washington opened up a 48-7 lead before pulling its starters.

“The first half was good, very clean,” Petersen said.

Washington finished 3-0 through a non-conference schedule that did not have the highest degree of difficulty. The Huskies face a different test next Saturday when they head to Colorado for their Pac-12 opener.

“A lot of guys played in the three games, which is really good,” Petersen said. “I think we learned some things, I think we made some improvements in some areas. I think our pass protection has gotten a little better, for sure you can see that from our last game to this game. I think we’re getting some guys used to bigger roles than they ever had around here. I think it’s been a pretty productive three games. We know it changes now, it changes dramatically, the level of competition, going into a truly hostile environment where we haven’t been yet this year.”

Joyner returns

Washington cornerback Austin Joyner, a graduate of Marysville Pilchuck High School, made his 2017 debut Saturday. Joyner, a sophomore cornerback, was suspended for the first two games of the season for violating unspecified team rules.

Joyner came back with a aplomb, tying for the team lead in tackles with six, including two for a loss. Joyner was a regular on special teams throughout the game, making a tackle on kickoff coverage and on punt coverage. He then played as the slot corner with Washington’s third-string defense late in the third quarter and though the fourth quarter, making four more stops.

“He plays hard,” Petersen said about Joyner. “It’s good to have him out there. He plays hard on special teams, he goes one speed, one speed always, so it was good to get him out there. It’s different from practice, the games are completely different from practice. We try to simulate them, we try to recreate them in practice, but we all know it’s a little bit different. So it was good to get his feet wet back out there.”