Semaj Morgan reflects on Rose Bowl muffed punt, lessons he’s learned

Semaj Morgan had a forgettable play in the Rose Bowl when he botched a punt return and gave the ball to Alabama.

But Morgan explained on Saturday at the media day for the national championship how he’s learned from the mistake, and how he can apply it on Monday against Washington. After all, it was just the second punt return of his career.

“There are some things, like mechanics I haven’t picked up well yet,” he said on the Big Ten Network. “Really, I’ve been catching punts off of pure athleticism. So I’ve just got to get a few more mechanics down pat, so I won’t ever have that problem again. What we’ve been doing, we’ve just been catching more balls, you know? That’s the only way you can get better at something is keep doing it. That’s what Coach Harbaugh said, ‘The only way to get better at football is to play football.'”

Morgan also referred to the basics of catching a punt return, and praised his position coaches for helping.

Semaj Morgan’s muffed punt in the Rose Bowl Game was just the second punt return of his young career.

The freshman shares what he’s learned from it, and how he’s worked on perfecting the craft.@Semajjmf12 x @UMichFootball pic.twitter.com/sYA2eejRFk

— Big Ten Football (@B1Gfootball) January 7, 2024

Keith Farner

Keith Farner has written about college football for newspapers and web sites since 2005.