AUGUSTA, Georgia – A pair of Conference USA standout punters have been selected to the 2023 Ray Guy Award Preseason Watch List, which is presented annually to the nation’s best punter in the FBS. FIU redshirt junior Daton Montiel and UTEP junior Joshua Sloan both represent CUSA on the watch list, the Augusta Sports Council announced Wednesday.
Montiel finished the 2022 season for the Panthers with a punting average of 42.1 yards per attempt on 69 punts, with a season-long of 64 yards, 17 were placed inside the 20-yardline and just three went for touchbacks. 37 of his punts (53.6%) were fair caught, and 13 went for 50 yards or more in his 12 appearances. The Pompano Beach, Florida, native was an All-Conference honorable mention selection by the league’s head coaches last season and is on the 2023 CUSA Preseason Watch List.
Sloan appeared in all 12 games for the Miners in 2022, posting the 19th-best average per punt in the country at 44.4 on 45 attempts. The Melbourne, Australia, native had a season-long punt of 64 yards, placed 15 inside the 20-yardline, had 11 of 50 or more yards and saw 16 of his attempts fair caught, while four went for touchbacks. Sloan was an All-Conference honorable mention selection by the league’s head coaches last year and is on this season’s CUSA Preseason Watch List.
The 50 candidates on the list incorporate a broad spectrum of Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) punters. The 2023 watch list was compiled based on the 2022 Ray Guy Award Semifinalist List, the top ten NCAA Punters from 2022, the 2022 All-Conference teams, the 2022 All-American Teams, the 2023 pre-season All-Conference Teams and eligible punters on the 2022 watchlist.
The number of eligible candidates for this season will grow when the award opens nominations on August 3. The complete list of candidates will be released on November 6th. In mid-November, the Ray Guy Award committee will meet to select the ten semifinalists, who will be announced on November 10th. A national body of Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) sports information directors, media representatives and previous Ray Guy Award winners will then vote for the top three finalists to be announced on November 22nd. After the finalists are named, the voting body will cast ballots again to select the nation’s top punter. The winner will be announced live during The Home Depot College Football Awards airing on ESPN in December 2023.
ABOUT THE RAY GUY AWARD
The Augusta Sports Council created the Ray Guy Award in 2000 to honor Thomson, Georgia native and College and Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee, Ray Guy. Among the statistics used to identify the winner is net punting average, number of times punt is downed or kicked out of bounds inside the opponents 20-yard line, total yardage punted, average returned yardage and percentage of punts not returned with particular emphasis placed on net punting average. The winner must display team leadership, self-discipline and have a positive impact on the team's success.
ABOUT THE AUGUSTA SPORTS COUNCIL
The Augusta Sports Council (ASC) enriches the quality of life and economic well-being for the Augusta metropolitan area by supporting and attracting sporting activities. To learn more, visit www.augustasportscouncil.org.