Kroeger Named Walter Camp Preseason First-Team All-American

University of South Carolina senior punter Kai Kroeger has been named to the 2023 Walter Camp Preseason FBS First-Team All-America team, it was announced today.

Kroeger, a 6-4, 220-pounder from Lake Forest, Ill., turned in arguably the best season by a punter in school history in 2022. He was named a First-Team All-American by ESPN.com and by The Athletic, was a second-team All-American according to Walter Camp and AFCA, and a fourth-team pick by Phil Steele. He was named first-team All-SEC by the Associated Press, the league’s 14 coaches, Phil Steele and USA TODAY. A semifinalist for the Ray Guy Award, Kroeger was listed on “Ray’s 8” six times during the season and was the Ray Guy National Punter of the Week following the Georgia State game. He was named the SEC co-Special Teams Player of the Week following the Vanderbilt game and was the SEC’s Special Teams Player of the Week for his performance at Clemson.

Kroeger averaged 46.1 yards per punt, the best mark in the SEC, fifth in the country and the second-best single-season mark in school history. Eighteen of his 58 punts traveled 50 or more yards, including a season-long 79-yarder, the fourth-longest in FBS during the 2022 season. He was awarded the Jim Carlen Special Teams MVP Award and the Nutrition Award at the team’s awards banquet.

In addition, Kroeger was one of four finalists for the Mortell Award, which recognizes the nation’s top holder. He also completed all four of his pass attempts, two on fake punts and two on fake field goals, for 107 yards and two touchdowns, logging a gaudy passing efficiency rating of 489.7.

Walter Camp is the nation’s oldest college football All-America team. Walter Camp, “The Father of American football,” first selected an All-America team in 1889. Camp – a former Yale University athlete and football coach – is also credited with developing play from scrimmage, set plays, the numerical assessment of goals and tries and the restriction of play to eleven men per side.

The Walter Camp Football Foundation – a New Haven-based all-volunteer group – was founded in 1967 to perpetuate the ideals of Camp and to continue the tradition of selecting annually an All-America team.

The entire 2023 Walter Camp preseason All-America team can be found here.