San Diego State had the nation’s most outstanding punter two years ago. SDSU has a candidate for the honor again this season.
Senior Jack Browning has been named one of 10 semifinalists for the Ray Guy Award, which annually goes to college football’s best punter.
Three finalists for the award will be announced in two weeks. The winner will be revealed Dec. 8 during ESPN’s college football awards show.
SDSU’s Matt Araiza was the 2021 Ray Guy Award winner.
“It’s a very big shoe to fill, most definitely,” Browning said when he replaced Araiza last season.
Browning, a West Hills High School graduate who was the 2022 Mountain West Special Teams Player of the Year, has acquitted himself well when called on to punt.
This season, Browning has punted 45 times for an average of 45.2 yards a punt. Two of the most important statistical categories for the award are net punt average, where Browning is 12th in FBS with 42.5 yards, and punts inside the 20-yard line, where Browning is tied for 10th with 17 punts inside the 20.
Browning also has 12 punts of more than 50 yards and two of more than 60 yards, including a career-long 66-yarder at Hawaii.
The Ray Guy Award was created in 2000 by the Augusta Sports Council and named for the College and Pro Football Hall of Famer who played collegiately at Southern Mississippi prior to a 14-year NFL career with the Raiders.
Araiza earned the award in 2021 when he set NCAA FBS single-season records for punt average (51.19), 50-yard punts (39), 60-yard punts (18) and 70-yard punts (6). He was the first player in SDSU history to win a major postseason award.
