The University of Akron Athletics
Zach Paul Named to Ray Guy Award Preseason Watch List
July 09 | Football
Follow Akron Football on Twitter and Facebook | Follow Coach Bowden on Twitter
AUGUSTA, Ga. – University of Akron junior punter Zach Paul has been named one of 25 preseason candidates for the 2014 Ray Guy Award, the Augusta Sports Council announced on Wednesday.
The Ray Guy Award honors the nation's top collegiate punter. This is the second-straight season Paul has been named to the watch list, the first as a preseason selection.
Last year, Paul was named Third-Team All-Mid-American Conference after averaging 42.9 yards per punt (65 punts), including 15 punts of 50-plus yards. He finished the season ranked sixth in the MAC and 30th nationally in punting average (42.9 ypp), while helping the Zips finish second in the MAC and 31st nationally in net punting as a team (38.18 ypp).
Paul also earned MAC East Division Special Teams Player of the Week on October 14 after averaging 45.7 yards per punt (nine punts) at Northern Illinois (October 12). He recorded one 60-yard punt, two touchbacks and two punts inside the NIU 20-yard line.
The Augusta Sports Council created the Ray Guy Award in 2000 to honor Thomson, Georgia, native and College Football Hall of Fame inductee, Ray Guy. The Ray Guy Award winner is determined by a national voting body of sports writers, college coaches, sports information directors and past Ray Guy Award winners. Among the statistics used to identify the winner is net punting average, number of times a 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. The winner must display team leadership, self-discipline and have a positive impact on the team's success. Learn more about the Ray Guy Award at www.RayGuyAward.com.
The Ray Guy Award is a member of the National College Football Awards Association (NCFAA), which encompasses the most prestigious awards in college football. The 21 awards boast 678 years of tradition-selection excellence. Visit www.NCFAA.org to learn more about our story.
2014 Ray Guy Award Preseason Watch List
Zach Paul (Jr.), Akron
Sam Irwin-Hill (Sr.), Arkansas
Spencer Roth (Sr.), Baylor
Cole Leininger (Jr.), California
Will Monday (Jr.), Duke
Sean Kelley (Jr.), Florida Atlantic
Garrett Swanson (Jr.), Fresno State
Austin Rehkow (So.), Idaho
Trevor Pardula (Sr.), Kansas
Anthony Melchiori (Jr.), Kent State
Justin Manton (Sr.), LA.-Monroe
Mike Sadler (Sr.), Michigan State
Peter Mortell (Jr.), Minnesota
Thomas Hibbard (Sr.), North Carolina
Wil Baumann (Sr.), North Carolina State
Cameron Johnston (So.), Ohio State
James Farrimond (Jr.), Rice
Riley Dixon (Jr.), Syracuse
Drew Kaser (Jr.), Texas A&M
Hunter Mullins (Sr.), UAB
Tom Hackett (Jr.), Utah
Taylor Hudson (Sr.), Vanderbilt
A.J. Hughes (Jr.), Virginia Tech
Nick O'Toole (Jr.), West Virginia
