Plackemeier Named Ray Guy Award Finalists
11/22/2005 12:00:00 AM | Football
Nov. 22, 2005
Augusta, Ga. -- Wake Forest senior punter Ryan Plackemeier was selected as one of three finalists for the Ray Guy Award, the Greater Augusta Sports Council announced on Tuesday. Plackemeier is joined by John Torp of Colorado and Danny Baugher of Arizona.
Plackemeier leads the nation in both net punting and average per punt. He punted 67 times this season with an average of 47.2 yards per punt. Plackemeier also dropped 20 punts inside the 20 yardline and nearly half of more than half of his punts were not been returned. Wake Forest's cover team was been instrumental in helping Plackemeier lead the nation in net punting. Deacon opponents averaged just 9.0 yards per punt return.
A native of Bonsall, Calif., Plackemeier arguably has the strongest leg in the country with 13 punts of at least 60 yards this season. Three of those went at least 70 yards, including an 82-yard blast against NC State on October 22. That punt was the fourth-longest punt in ACC history. His punts of 71, 74 and 82 yards are the three longest punts in the ACC this season.
Among those with 200 career attempts, Plackemeier is the NCAA's all-time leading punter with a career average of 45.26 yards per punt. He is a two-time first team All-ACC selection.
Plackemeier shattered his own Wake Forest single season record for average yards per punt, originally set in 2003 when he averaged 45.6 yards per punt. He eclipsed that mark by nearly a yard and a half in 2005.
The Ray Guy Award is presented annually to the nation's best collegiate punter as determined by a national selection committee made up of sportswriters, college football coaches, sports information directors, former punters and members designated by the Greater Augusta Sports Council.
Among the statistics used to identify the Ray Guy Award winner are total yardage punted, number of times a punt is downed or kicked out of bounds inside the opponents 20-yard line, net average, average returned yardage and percentage of punts not returned. It is also of importance for the award winner to display team leadership, self-discipline and to have a positive impact on the team's success.
The Ray Guy Award national voting body will vote for the top three finalists who will be announced at the end of November. On December 8, 2005, the top three finalists will be in Orlando, Fla., for the Home Depot College Football Awards Show. The winner will be announced live on ESPN.
Plackemeier's Career Punting Statistics
G-GS No Yds Avg Lg In20 50+ 60+ 70+ 80+2002 10-8 32 1,383 43.2 62 2 10 1 0 02003 12-12 57 2,600 45.6 67 11 20 3 0 02004 11-11 64 2,809 43.9 69 17 17 4 0 02005 11-11 67 3,165 47.2 82 20 21 13 3 1 44-42 220 9,957 45.3 82 50 68 21 3 12005 Ray Guy Award Finalists
Danny Baugher Arizona Senior
Ryan Plackemeier Wake Forest Senior
John Torp Colorado Senior