2024 Spotlight: Punters Worth Keeping an Eye On
Not only do Punters and Kickers tend to take the majority of the jokes when it comes to the sport of football, but their roles on their teams tend to be a bit overlooked and underappreciated. While they perform under…
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Continue ReadingNot only do Punters and Kickers tend to take the majority of the jokes when it comes to the sport of football, but their roles on their teams tend to be a bit overlooked and underappreciated. While they perform under very unique circumstances, it is also very underrated how well plenty of punters deal with the pressures of playing their positions in the most pressured situations. While it is easy to whiff a kick, it is much harder to punt a ball consistently, and to get a good backspin, and bounce on the ball against opposing offenses. What is even harder is doing so at a younger age. Below, we have taken some time to recognize some of the 2024 players that have managed to do so already, despite their ages. Take a look at some of our favorite 2024 punters, who we feel are worth keeping an eye on.
Elyja Gibbs- Hendersonville
While Gibbs may not have had the largest total of punt yards last season, he did have the highest average per punt within North Carolina’s 2024 class. By the end of the season, he not only totaled around 573 yards through punts, but he averaged about 38 yards a punt, which is a great, consistent number for his age. In addition to this, Gibbs also had a long of 49 yards out of the 11 games that he played in, which further cemented his overall ability to play the position.
Nolan Hauser Nolan Hauser 6'1" | 180 lbs | K Hough | 2024 State NC – Hough
Within his class, Hauser had some of the most punt yardage of anyone in the entire state. He totaled around 1,160 yards of punts by the end of the season, which is largely due to the fact that he played in 15 games. Out of these 15 games, he booted the ball away about 31 times, with his long being 40 yards, and 13 of his balls landing within the 20. This is not only a very consistent season, but it is proof that he has a high ceiling moving forward, especially due to his average of around 37 yards a punt. Look for him to gain the attention of more fans, and colleges in the coming years.
Hunter Kirby- McDowell
Kirby not only stepped in for his team last year as an effective punter, but he made the most of this responsibility, totaling around 730 yards through punts by the end of the season. In addition to this, Kirby also booted the ball a total of 20 times, with 2 of them landing within the 20 yard line. In this 8 game span, not only did he turn heads due to his high level performance as a young player, but he managed to give fans a glimpse of his potential within the next few seasons.
Stone Mcdonald- NRCA
Within a 10 game span, Mcdonald already began to impress fans with his strong leg as a punter. He not only totaled around 471 yards by the end of the season, but he averaged around 36 yards a punt. Impressively enough, this was not the biggest feat of his season, as he proved that despite his age, he still had the leg to compete with older players, which was shown on the 63 yard punt that he had to pin the opposing team deep into their own territory. These positive signs at such a young age point to a very bright future for him in the coming years.
Isiah Lash- South Stokes
Even though Lash’s statistics from last year may not be the most impressive, the fact that he was able to perform well as a skilled player for his team, while also being able to boot the ball up to 63 yards on 1 kick to position his defense well is definitely a great sign for his upside as a player. He not only got one punt within the 20 yard line, but he was also able to have efficiency in each one of his 15 punts last season. With these 15 punts, he managed to total around 36 yards a punt, while also further totaling 543 punt yards by the end of the season.