McNamara accepts invite to Reese’s Senior Bowl
LUBBOCK, Texas – Texas Tech senior punter Austin McNamara has accepted an invitation to take part in the Reese’s Senior Bowl, which is regarded as the preeminent college football all-star game in the country and key first step to the NFL Draft process.
McNamara will be one of a select number of punters invited to Mobile, Alabama, the annual site of the Senior Bowl, where he will participate in several team practices leading into the Feb. 3 game at Hancock Whitney Stadium. The week-long event is regularly attended by hundreds of NFL scouts and executives from all 32 teams.
McNamara is just the second Red Raider punter to participate in the Senior Bowl, joining Maury Buford, who was selected following the 1981 season. Buford was later drafted in the eighth round of the 1982 NFL Draft by the San Diego Charters, embarking on a 10-year professional career with additional stops with the Chicago Bears and New York Giants.
This is the fourth time in the past five seasons where a Red Raider has accepted an invitation to the Senior Bowl as Texas Tech was previously represented by the trio of Jordyn Brooks, Terence Steele and Broderick Washington Jr. in 2019, Jack Anderson in 2020 and both SaRodorick Thompson Jr. and Tyree Wilson a year ago.
McNamara will go down as the best punter in Texas Tech history when he wraps his career with the Red Raiders’ upcoming bowl appearance. McNamara, who was named the Big 12 Special Teams Player of the Year on Wednesday, is one of only two FBS punters this season to rank in the top 10 nationally for punting average, to have his team rank in the top 20 for net punting average and also rank in the top five in Pro Football Focus’ hang time average.
McNamara is averaging 46.5 yards per punt this season, which is, once again, in position to rank among the top-10 marks in program history. McNamara is already the Texas Tech and Big 12 single-season record holder with a 48.2 average from 2021 and has four of the top-eight marks in school history, which doesn’t include his current season average which would rank third all-time among Red Raider punters.
McNamara, a native of Gilbert, Arizona, will look to cement his name as the top punter in conference history as he is on pace to snap the Big 12 career record of 45.88 yards per punt that was set by Oklahoma State’s Quinn Sharp from 2009-12. McNamara, who is averaging 45.94 yards per punt, himself, over the last four-plus seasons, is also on pace to easily shatter the Texas Tech career record of 43.7 yards an attempt that was set by Taylor Symmank following the 2015 campaign.
In addition to being named the league’s top special teams performer, McNamara was also tabbed to the All-Big 12 first team for the third time in his career. He is the only Red Raider during the Big 12 era to be selected to the first team in three different seasons and is also the first Special Teams Player of the Year honoree in program history.
The Reese’s Senior Bowl is set for a 12 p.m. kick Feb. 3 with television coverage provided on NFL Network.
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Release provided by Matt Dowdy Texas Tech Athletics
