STILLWATER, Okla. - Oklahoma State freshman punter Quinn Sharp is one of 42 punters nationally recognized as candidates for the Ray Guy Award, it was announced today. The Ray Guy Award is presented to the nation's top punter, with former Cowboy Matt Fodge earning the award last year.
Sharp has been a standout for OSU this year. He has punted 30 times for 45.3 yards per punt. His per-punt average leads the Big 12 and ranks seventh nationally. The Mansfield, Texas native is one of the primary reasons that OSU ranks 15th nationally in net punting. He has had 12 of his punts downed inside the 20 with only two touchbacks. Of his 30 punts, 11 have been of 50 yards or more to lead the Big 12, including a pair of 61-yard blasts against Georgia and Rice, respectively.
Sharp has also been a force in kickoffs, as 24 of his 49 kicks have resulted in touchbacks. To put that figure into perspective, OSU had only 13 touchbacks all of last year without Sharp in the lineup.
The Ray Guy Award list will be narrowed to 10 semifinalists on Nov. 13. Following that announcement, a national body of Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) sports information directors, coaches, media representatives, and previous Ray Guy Award winners will vote for the top three finalists, and ultimately the winner.
The winner will be announced live during the Home Depot ESPNU College Football Awards Show airing on ESPN December 10.
2009 Ray Guy Award Candidates
Delbert Alvarado, South Florida
Bryan Anger, California
Ben Armer, Western Michigan
Jeremy Boone, Penn State
Brent Bowden, VA Tech
Mike Brandtner, Iowa State
Drew Butler, Georgia
Peter Caldwell, Utah State
Desi Cullen, Connecticut
David Defatta, Middle Tennessee
Kyle Delahooke, Navy
Matt DiLallo, Colorado
Matt Dodge, East Carolina
Ryan Donahue, Iowa
Clinton Durst, Auburn
Derek Epperson, Baylor
P.J. Fitzgerald, Alabama
Reid Forrest, Washington State
Will Goggans, Troy
Mickey Groody, Florida Atlantic
Trevor Hankins, Arizona State
Jake Harry, Missouri
Johnny Hekker, Oregon State
Alex Henery, Nebraska
Chas Henry, Florida
Kevin Jones, Duke
Scott Kozlowski, West Virginia
Spencer Lanning, South Carolina
Jeff Locke, UCLA
Rob Long, Syracuse
Kyle Martens, Rice
Zoltan Mesko, Michigan
Brad Nortman, Wisconsin
Matt Reagan, Memphis
Alonso Rojas, Kansas
Quinn Sharp, Oklahoma State
Brian Stahovich, San Diego State
Michael Such, Tulsa
Chris Summers, Purdue
Matt Szymanski, SMU
Ross Thevenot, Tulane
Kyle Watson, UNLV
