Kroeger Named to Ray Guy Award Watch List

University of South Carolina sophomore Kai Kroeger has been named to the preseason watch list for the 2021 Ray Guy Award, which honors the nation’s top collegiate punter, the Augusta Sports Council announced today.

The 51 candidates on the list incorporate a broad spectrum of Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) punters. The 2021 watch list was compiled based on the 2021 Ray Guy Award Semifinalist List, the top ten NCAA Punters from 2020, the 2020 All-Conference teams, the 2020 All-American Teams, the 2021 pre-season All-Conference Teams and punters on the 2020 watch list.

The number of eligible candidates for this season will grow when the award opens nominations on July 29. The complete list of candidates will be released on November 2. In mid-November, the Ray Guy Award committee will meet to select the ten semifinalists, who will be announced on November 10. A national body of Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) sports information directors, media representatives and previous Ray Guy Award winners will then vote for the top three finalists to be announced on November 23. After the finalists are named, the voting body will cast ballots again to select the nation’s top punter. The winner will be announced live during The Home Depot College Football Awards airing on ESPN on Thursday, December 9, 2021.

About the Ray Guy Award
The Augusta Sports Council created the Ray Guy Award in 2000 to honor Thomson, Georgia native and College and Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee, Ray Guy. Among the statistics used to identify the winner is net punting average, number of times punt is downed or kicked out of bounds inside the opponents 20-yard line, total yardage punted, average returned yardage and percentage of punts not returned with particular emphasis placed on net punting average. The winner must display team leadership, self-discipline and have a positive impact on the team’s success.
 
Kai Kroeger
P  |  6-4  |  195  |  SO  |  1L
Lake Forest, Ill.
(Lake Forest)
 
* 2020 SEC Coaches’ All-Freshman Team
*2020-21 SEC First-Year Academic Honor Roll
 
Second-year punter who was named to the SEC Coaches’ All-Freshman team in 2020… became the first scholarship punter for the program since Joseph Charlton committed as part of the 2015 class… very coachable… improving his accuracy and hang time… good athlete who is also a very good holder.
 
2020 (Freshman)
True freshman who enrolled in August and won the starting punting duties during fall camp… also served as the holder on placements… named to the SEC Coaches’ All-Freshman team after averaging 43.3-yards per punt… boomed 39 punts for 1,690 yards with a long of 53… totaled seven punts of 50-plus yards and placed eight inside the 20 with just two touchbacks… ranked eighth in the SEC in punting average… got off to a slow start, with his first 10 punts over two games averaging just 37.8 yards… averaged 45.2 yards the rest of the season…   averaged a single-game best 48.5 yards on two punts in the rain at Vanderbilt… boomed five punts for 242 yards (48.4 avg.) including a season-best 53-yarder, with three balls spotted inside the 20 in the win over Auburn, earning him SEC Special Teams Player of the Week honors… averaged 44.5 yards on two punts against Texas A&M, then averaged 44.7 yards on a season-high seven punts against Missouri… averaged 46.0 yards on four punts, including a 52-yarder, against Georgia… completed his lone pass of the season, a 22-yarder to Dakeron Joyner on a fake punt for a first down at Kentucky… named to the SEC First-Year Academic Honor Roll.