MANHATTAN, Kan. – After a stellar 51.0-yard average on four attempts last week against UCF, Kansas State sophomore punter Simon McClannan has been named to the Ray’s 8 list as one of the best eight punters of the week, the Ray Guy Award announced Monday.
McClannan is now in the running for being named the Ray Guy Punter of the Week, which will be announced on Tuesday.
A native of Omaha, Nebraska, McClannan saw three of his four punts travel at least 45 yards against the Knights, including a career-long punt of 65 yards. It was the longest punt by a Wildcat since Jack Blumer hit a 69-yarder against UCF in 2023. Additionally, each of his four punts ended inside UCF’s 20-yard line.
McClannan’s effort against UCF came on the heels of a game in which he averaged 50.8 yards on five punts at Arizona. He is one of four punters in the nation with an average of at least 50.0 yards (minimum 4 attempts) in multiple games this season, while he is the first K-State punter in the Big 12 era to average at least 50.0 yards on at least four punts in consecutive games.
McClannan ranks third in the Big 12 with a 45.1-yard average on 19 punts, which includes seven that have traveled at least 50 yards to tie for second in the Big 12. Last year, McClannan only had six punts of 50 or more yards over 13 games. He holds a 45.05-yard average this season, which would rank second in school history if he had six more punts to reach the minimum. His 43.12-yard career average would rank fourth in program history if he had nine more attempts to reach the minimum.