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Heading into the 2013 college football season, WalterFootball.com will debut our projections for the nation’s leaders during the fall. The All-American teams always have some surprises, and this coming fall’s stars could be the headline players next April for the 2014 NFL Draft.
First-Team Kicker: Chris Bowell, Rice
Boswell was one of the top kickers in the nation last year. He connected on 23-of-29 field goals (79 percent). It was improved accuracy over his first two seasons. Boswell showed off the strength of his leg by leading the nation with six field goals from over 50 yards with only two misses from beyond 50 yards. He also was called on to do some punting and averaged 41 yards per punt.
Boswell has made 51-of-67 (76 percent) field goals in his career. He connected on 17 of his 21 field goal attempts in 2011. The misses were from 60, 54, 45 and 38 yards. The sophomore had two field goals over 50 yards, including a career long of 54 yards.
The top two kickers from last year who could beat Bowell out for First-Team Honors, Florida’s Caleb Sturgis and Florida State’s Dustin Hopkins, have moved on to the next level. If Bowell stays as consistent with his 2012 performance, he should be the First-Team selection at kicker.
Kicker Honorable Mentions: Tulane kicker Cairo Santos, Clemson kicker Chandler Catanzaro, Arkansas kicker Zach Hocker, Baylor kicker Aaron Jones, Alabama kicker Cade Foster, Northwestern kicker Jeff Budzien and Syracuse kicker Ross Krautman.
First-Team Punter: Cody Webster, Purdue
Webster averaged 43 yards per punt last year and was one of the nation’s leaders in attempts with 70 punts. Webster punted a lot in 2011 as Purdue did not feature a high-scoring offense. On 45 punts, the sophomore averaged 42.9 yards. He downed 11 inside the 20 with 13 punts over 50 yards.
Webster averaged 43.3 yards on 47 punts in 2010. The freshman had 17 punts over 50 yards with 12 inside the 20.
Like the kicker situation, the top punters in college football from the 2012 season left for the NFL. Thus, there is a wide open field for First-Team honors. Webster has a strong leg and once again should get plenty of opportunity as Purdue is firmly in rebuilding mode.
Punter Honorable Mentions: Florida punter Kyle Christy, Miami punter Pat O’Donnell, Iowa State punter Kirby Van Der Kamp, Michigan punter Will Hagerup, Memphis punter Tom Hornsey and Bowling Green punter Brian Schmiedebusch.
2013 Preseason All-American Projections:
QB | RB | WR | TE | OT | G | C | DE | DT | OLB | ILB | CB | S | P/K | All-Purpose
Rimington Award | Mackey Award | Thorpe Award | Lombardi Award | Butkus Award | Lott Award | Outland Trophy | Biletnikoff Award | Doak Walker Award | Hendricks Award | O'Brien Award | Groza Award | Guy Award | Bednarik Award | Camp Award | Maxwell Award | Nagurski Award | Rodgers Award | Hornung Award | Heisman Trophy | College Bowl Game Projections
QB | RB | WR | TE | OT | G | C | DE | DT | OLB | ILB | CB | S | P/K | All-Purpose
Rimington Award | Mackey Award | Thorpe Award | Lombardi Award | Butkus Award | Lott Award | Outland Trophy | Biletnikoff Award | Doak Walker Award | Hendricks Award | O'Brien Award | Groza Award | Guy Award | Bednarik Award | Camp Award | Maxwell Award | Nagurski Award | Rodgers Award | Hornung Award | Heisman Trophy | College Bowl Game Projections
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