4/4/2021 football Edit

Whitehead looks to punt his way into NFL

Paul Gable • TheHoosier

Staff Writer

Don't miss out on any of our exclusive football, basketball and recruiting coverage. Get a 60-Day FREE trial to TheHoosier.com with promo code IU60

Prior to arriving in Bloomington as a graduate assistant, Indiana University punter Haydon Whitehead had never played American football.

The Australian native was fortunate enough to have Indiana head coach Tom Allen take a chance on him and helped the Hoosiers in the special teams department during his season and now looks to punt his way onto an NFL roster with a strong outing Friday at Indiana's Pro Day.

"Coach Allen was huge in my career. He brought me in and took a chance on me. From the very start, he was the catalyst in that and believed in me and that LEO culture comes from believing in yourself and believing in each other. He has created a special culture here," Whitehead said in a taped interview this week.

During his career, Whitehead, who graduated with a SPEA management degree in Dec. 2019, and is working on his MPA in public affairs from the School of Public and Environmental Affairs, helped change the culture and bring about victories for the Hoosiers.

"Coming in in 2017, we spoke with Coach Allen about the culture he wanted to create and I think in my four years here, I am proud of helping him create that culture. In 2019, we went 8-4 and went to a bowl game, and in 2020 we only lost one game and went to a bowl game again. Coming to IU really helped me as a person in terms of my work ethic, discipline, being able to meet deadlines -- everything once college and football is over will help me go into the workforce and be successful. That is something I am grateful not only to IU but the football program as well. Having a degree from Indiana University opens a lot of doors," Whitehead said.

Whitehead closed out his career ranking third in program history with a 41.4 yard average on 226 punts and recorded 27 punts of 50 yards and pinned 83 punts inside the 20-yard line. Whitehead was a Ray Guy Award semifinalist and earned Third Team All-Big Ten honors by Phil Steele and Honorable Mention All-Big Ten honors by the coaches and media.

Since the end of his career, Whitehead has been training in Florida with the hopes of getting ready for his upcoming pro day.

"At Pro Day, I am looking forward to showing my consistency to scouts. I think my leg strength and timing on the ball is something I have had an advantage on over other people. I have been working really hard on directional kicking. I am hoping scouts can see my consistency and place a ball where they want it," Whitehead said.