Football
After being named the Pioneer Football League Special Teams Player of the Year on Monday and representing the Beacons on the All-PFL First Team on Tuesday, Valparaiso University football redshirt senior punter Sam Johnson (Birmingham, Ala. / Oak Mountain [Jackson State / Alabama]) continued a productive week as he was named a semifinalist for the 2024 FCS Punter of the Year Award, as announced by Augustana Sports Council on Wednesday.
Johnson continued a recent trend of successful Valpo punters, as Evan Matthes was tabbed a semifinalist for this award last season and Ben Niesner earned the same recognition in Spring 2021.
The candidates were evaluated by the FCS Punter of the Year Award committee on their overall statistics and contributions to the team. Particular emphasis was placed on net punting average, number of times a punt was downed or kicked out-of-bounds inside the opponents’ 20-yard line, total yardage punted, average return 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.
A national voting body of FCS sports information directors, conference representatives and sports writers will choose the winner from the 10 semifinalists. The winner will be announced on Monday, Dec. 16.
Johnson finished with a season punting average of 47.13, shattering the previous program and PFL record of 43.68 that had stood for 14 years since it was established by Greg Wood in 2010. Johnson had 24 punts of 50 yards or more and pinned the opposition inside the 20 on 19 occasions. He ranked third nationally in FCS in punting average and second among those with at least 50 attempts. Elon’s Jeff Yurk averaged 47.9 yards per punt on 60 attempts, while The Citadel’s James Platte averaged 47.3 yards per punt on 44 attempts. Johnson was named the PFL Special Teams Player of the Week four times this year – Sept. 15, Oct. 20, Oct. 27 and Nov. 24.
2024 FCS Punter of the Year Award Semifinalists
Aaron Trusler, Richmond
Albert Jang, Penn
Ben D’Aquila, Northern Arizona
Brendan Hall, Montana State
Brendon Kilpatrick, Youngstown State
John McConnell, Mercer
Nick Bigelow, Gardner-Webb
Oscar Doyle, Weber State
Sam Johnson, Valpo
Thomas O’Hara, Murray State
