Central Michigan's Jake Walrath is one of the best punters available in the 2024 NFL Draft. Walrath averaged an impressive 43.2 yards per punt this season and helped rewrite the record books at both Central Michigan and Tarleton State. When Walrath entered the transfer portal, he received offers from Texas, Arkansas, and others before being wooed by the Chippewas.
Walrath recently spoke exclusively with The Draft Network about balancing punting techniques with mental awareness, why he chose Central Michigan over other offers, the outstanding season he enjoyed in 2023, and more.
JM: You averaged 43.2 yards per punt this past season, which ranked fourth in the MAC. You had 12 punts downed inside the 20. How do you feel you showed growth this season?
Jake Walrath: I was a pro-style punter my entire career. I was a pocket-style punter that was hitting left and right directional punts. This year, we had more open-field punt opportunities, opportunities inside the 20.
I think my quality of ball has consistently improved over the years. I’ve always shown glimpses of hitting the big ball, but it’s about how many times you can do it out of 100.
I had 60 punts in my final season. I averaged a high hang time. In fact, I think I was a spot above Iowa punter Troy Taylor in hang time this year. I was among good company. I had a few punts that hung up there for five seconds and a bunch that hit 4.8 and 4.9.
I’m more of a hangtime punter than anything. I have the ability to flip the field as well. I’ve showcased a ton of year-to-year growth. I have a better understanding of how my swing and how the mechanics work. I’ve worked that into a pro-style system.
JM: How do you look back on the decision to transfer to Central Michigan from Tarleton State? You chose Central Michigan over offers from Texas, Arkansas, and Oregon State, among others. Why?
Jake Walrath: I was an experienced FCS guy coming out of the portal. I have a big frame. I felt like I had great tape as well. For whatever reason, I had a lot of interest from these big schools, but none of them came to the table with a scholarship offer. They wanted me to come in and compete for the job right away.
My mom went to The University of Texas. I grew up watching every UT game. Needless to say, that was such an enticing offer to me. That was before they had offered Ryan Sanborn. Man, I wanted to go to Texas my entire life.
I had my private training coach Mike McCabe (of One On One Kicking) tell me this. He’s trained like 10 punters in the league right now. Don’t chase the jersey. Chase the best opportunity. One thing I noticed two weeks into the portal, Central Michigan was the first one to offer me a scholarship. They wanted me.
I had two Group of Five scholarship offers. The Power Five programs were offering me as a preferred walk-on. Central Michigan has this coach named Keith Murphy. He was at Florida where he coached Evan McPherson and the Townsend brothers, Tommy and Johnny, and Eddy Pineiro.
When I hopped on the phone with coach Murphy, we just clicked. It was natural. He runs a pro-style scheme and he’s an awesome, easy guy to work with. Central Michigan checked every box. He put his money where his mouth was. It felt natural.
Central Michigan was the right place to go. I have a family that lives in Michigan about 40 miles away down in Lansing. It just felt right. I don’t regret it. It was a great experience. I learned so much.
JM: You absolutely made the right decision. When it comes to punting, how do you balance technique with mental awareness?
Jake Walrath: I’m the product of what I’ve done for the past six to eight years. That’s the point I’m at. I’ve been this way since I was 13. Anything I do, I give it 100% effort. When I was 13, I asked my dad to build some field goal posts in the backyard. I would spend hours every day hitting those. I was trying to get every kick right.
One thing about me, the biggest thing you can do is be well prepared. You’re going to have your God-given abilities and talent. The mental makeup has to be present. You need to have good people around you as well.
That’s all very important. Being mentally prepared and physically prepared is at the top of my list when it comes to youth league success. That’s what I hang my hat on, being well-prepared mentally and physically.
JM: We’ve appreciated your time. Why should a team use one of their draft picks on Jake Walrath?
Jake Walrath: You’re going to get a great guy and a great teammate. I’m a hard worker. I’ve been preparing for this my entire life. I’ve dedicated Spring Breaks and every summer to this. This is my craft. I allocate every second I can to getting better. My potential is through the roof.
If you put my film up against any of the top guys in this class, you may be surprised. I think you’ll see that I really belong alongside the top punters in the 2024 NFL Draft.