MANHATTAN, Kan. – Kansas State senior Simon McClannan is one of 10 punters nationally to be named a semifinalist for the Ray Guy Award – presented annually to the nation’s top collegiate punter – the August Sports Council announced Friday.
McClannan is the third Wildcat ever to be named a semifinalist for the award, joining Ty Zentner (2022) and Tim Reyer (2007).
Of the 10 semifinalists for the award in 2026, McClannan is one of an unprecedented five from the Big 12 as he is joined on the list by Cincinnati’s Max Fletcher, Texas Tech’s Will Karoll, BYU’s Fuller Shurtz and Baylor’s Palmer Williams. The other five semifinalists are Oregon’s Bailey Ettridge, Wake Forest’s Ethan Hyams, Army’s James Wagenseller, Texas A&M’s Tyler White and Nebraska’s Archie Wilson.
Three finalists will be selected by a national voting body of FBS sports information directors, media representatives and former Ray Guy Award winners. Voting for the finalists will open on Saturday, and the finalists will be announced on Tuesday, November 24. After the finalists are selected, the voting body will cast ballots again to select the nation’s top punter and winner of the Ray Guy Award. The winner will be announced live on ESPN during The Home Depot College Football Awards on December 11.
Entering play this weekend, McClannan ranks fourth nationally and first in the Big 12 with a 48.5-yard average this season, a mark that is currently first in school history. He leads the Big 12 with 17 punts of 50 or more yards, while he is second in the league with 17 punts landing inside the opponent’s 20-yard line. Additionally, 14 of his 34 punts have been fair caught and only two have resulted in touchbacks.
A native of Omaha, Nebraska, McClannan set a new carer high with a 53.7-yard average over four punts at Colorado, a mark that ranked third in school history. Of his six punts in Boulder, five traveled at least 50 yards to rank as the most in the Big 12 in a single game this season. The performance at CU topped his previous career high of a 53.3-yard average earlier this season against Tulane. Following both games, McClannan was named to the Ray Guy Award “Ray’s 8” List as one of the top eight punters of the week.
In addition to his high single-season average, McClannan also ranks second in school history and 16th nationally among active punters with a 43.9-yard average over his 129 career punts.