Every year, there are a few college football players that I seek out their highlights. They are usually from smaller schools or teams out West that I don’t usually catch on television. This year’s number one guy I hunt for is San Diego State punter/kicker Matt Araiza.
Yes, I look forward to watching punting highlights every week. If you’ve seen just one highlight from Araiza, you would understand why. I’m not alone in this as he trends often on Twitter due to his unbelievable punts. He has two 80+ yard punts on his résumé this season.
Matt Araiza is a redshirt junior and takes care of punting, kicking, and kick-off duties. His placekicking skills aren’t great, but that doesn’t mean a team couldn’t refine his accuracy once drafted. It’s his punting ability that has put him on the map.
Before I explain how powerful of a punter Araiza is, you need to watch a couple highlights first.
Pretty crazy, right?
Not only does Araiza boom these punts and kick-offs, he is often the guy who tackles the returner. He checks a lot of boxes when it comes to an elite special teams player.
Araiza could be eligible for this year’s NFL Draft if he leaves school early, which is pretty nuts for a punter, but his hype is at an all-time high. He could choose to stay in school and work on his placekicking and finessing punts inside the 20-yard-line. Those are the two weaknesses on his scouting report. I think his ability to flip the field trumps those issues because I wouldn’t use Araiza as the placekicker.
The only punter to go in the first round was punting great Ray Guy in 1973. It’s hard to sell your fanbase on taking a special teams player with a coveted first-round pick. The Bucs selected Florida State kicker Roberto Aguayo in the second round in 2016…and that pick was panned and a disaster. He struggled and was waived after one season. Aguayo didn’t have the crazy highlight reel to sell your fans on the pick. All an NFL team needs to do is tweet out the video I posted above.
I don’t think Araiza will be a first-round pick, but I could see him going early on the second day. An NFL team would have a noticeable advantage at that position over their opponent nearly every week. That’s what wins games and I think Araiza could play a big role in his future NFL team’s success.
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About the Author…
Bobby Roberts (otherwise known as Sweetbob) is the creator of ‘America’s White Boy’ and contributor at Project Shanks. His writing has been featured on ESPN’s ‘SportsNation’, Sports Illustrated’s Hot Clicks, Guyspeed, and various other sites. You can follow him on Twitter at @Sweetbob.