Tory Taylor assumed his rightful place atop college football’s punting mecca.
On Friday night, Taylor capture the Ray Guy Award and became the first Hawkeye to win the award given annually to the nation’s top punter. Taylor won the award over fellow finalists Matthew Hayball of Vanderbilt and Alex Mastromanno of Florida State.
Twice a semifinalist before (2020, 2021), the Melbourne, Australia, native secured the top prize at long last. Taylor was also recently named the Eddleman-Fields Big Ten Punter of the Year for a second time.
For a third consecutive season, Taylor set the Iowa Hawkeyes‘ single-season punting yardage record. Taylor leads the NCAA with 86 punts for 4,119 yards. His 47.9 yards per punt average leads the Big Ten and ranks third nationally.
In 2023, 36 of Taylor’s punts have traversed 50 or more yards and six went for 60 or more yards. Thirty of Taylor’s punts have been downed inside opponents’ 20-yard line, 11 inside the 10-yard line and six inside the 5-yard line. Opponents average just 8.8 yards per punt return.
𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐍𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧'𝐬 𝐓𝐨𝐩 𝐏𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫 🏆
Tory Taylor has won the @RayGuyAward!#Hawkeyes pic.twitter.com/uqFlKlpiN3
— Hawkeye Football (@HawkeyeFootball) December 9, 2023
Taylor broke Iowa’s career punting record during the Hawkeyes’ Week 12 win over Illinois. In Taylor’s career, he has punted 288 times for a total of 13,297 yards. His career average of 46.2 yards per punt is set to break former Hawkeye Jason Baker’s career mark at season’s end.
Iowa’s Ryan Donahue was also a semifinalist for the Ray Guy Award in 2009 and a finalist in 2010.
Hawkeye fans will get one final look at Taylor in the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl versus Tennessee at noon CT on Jan. 1, 2024 and will be televised on ABC. He has a chance to make more history versus the Vols, too.
Sitting with 4,119 punting yards on the season, Taylor is one punt away from breaking college football’s all-time single-season punting yardage mark. Michigan State‘s Johnny Pingel punted 99 times for 4,138 yards all the way back in 1938.
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