Lou Hedley’s best contribution to Miami’s 2026 special teams may come without another punt. His continued work with Dylan Joyce can help the current Hurricanes punter turn a powerful leg into a repeatable field-position plan.
Joyce said he has maintained a close relationship with Hedley and leaned on the former Miami punter for help with mechanics and the mental side of the position. He also described the value of focusing on the next snap instead of carrying the previous result. Christy Chirinos of Miami Athletics published his comments after Tuesday’s practice.
The short memory matters because a punter can wait through long stretches before receiving one high-leverage snap. A poor ball near midfield can create a touchback, while a rushed operation near Miami’s goal line can hand an opponent immediate points. Joyce has to reset without becoming careless about the correction.
Hedley understands that pressure. He became a Ray Guy Award finalist at Miami and built his value through more than raw distance. His experience can help Joyce choose when to drive the ball, when to favor hang time and when placement near a boundary is more important than another five yards.
Joyce showed that combination against South Florida last season. He punted three times for 137 yards, averaged 45.7 yards and placed two kicks inside the 20 without a touchback. The performance earned a place in the Ray Guy Award’s weekly Ray’s 8, Nick Ziegler of Canes Warning reported.
The most useful number in that line is not the 51-yard long. It is the absence of a touchback paired with two punts inside the 20. Miami gained real field position because the distance arrived with control. A 55-yard punt that rolls through the end zone can be less useful than a shorter ball that forces an opponent to start near its own 10.
Coverage is part of the equation. Hang time gives Miami’s gunners a chance to arrive under control, close the returner’s first lane and avoid an open-field sprint. Direction can shrink the field. Joyce should be judged with the coverage unit’s result attached, not only by where the ball lands.
Practicing against Toney creates a demanding laboratory. Joyce called the Miami returner shifty and acknowledged how difficult he is to remove from a play. If the punt unit can control Toney’s first move in camp, ordinary returners should feel slower and more predictable in September.
The operation begins before Joyce’s foot reaches the ball. Freshman long snapper Vance Diepenbrock trains with Joyce at Special Teams U, giving them shared language for the snap and approach. A consistent catch location protects the punter’s timing and lets him look downfield instead of rescuing the ball.
A playoff contender will still face possessions that stall. Joyce can make those failures less expensive by forcing a long field, limiting the return and responding calmly after a mistake. Hedley’s lessons do not have to make punting glamorous. They have to make Miami’s next defensive snap easier.
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