Like its foot counterpart the Groza Award, the Ray Guy Award has a decidedly familiar feel to its preseason watch list.
Among the 28 players that make up this year’s list for the punting award, named in honor of the former Southern Miss great who was the first punter ever elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, are two finalists for last year’s award -- San Jose State’s Michael Carrizosa and Colorado State’s Hayden Hunt. The winner of the 2015 Ray Guy Award was Tom Hackett of Utah.
All 10 FBS conferences and one independent (BYU) are represented, led by the SEC’s five. The Mountain West is next with four, followed by the AAC, Big 12 and Conference USA with three apiece.
The vast majority of the watch listers are juniors or seniors, with the lone exceptions being a pair of sophomores -- Oklahoma’s Austin Seibert and Kansas State’s Nick Walsh.Our 2016 Pre-Season Watch List is here! Congratulations to this year’s athletes! pic.twitter.com/XDGULK8tZP
— Ray Guy Award (@RayGuyAward) July 7, 2016