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Texas Tech football lands nation’s top 2019 punter Austin McNamara

By Matthew Conner

STILLWATER, OK - SEPTEMBER 25: The Texas Tech Red Raiders cheerleaders celebrate after a touchdown against the Oklahoma State Cowboys September 25, 2014 at Boone Pickens Stadium in Stillwater, Oklahoma. The Cowboys defeated the Red Raiders 45-35. (Photo by Brett Deering/Getty Images)
STILLWATER, OK - SEPTEMBER 25: The Texas Tech Red Raiders cheerleaders celebrate after a touchdown against the Oklahoma State Cowboys September 25, 2014 at Boone Pickens Stadium in Stillwater, Oklahoma. The Cowboys defeated the Red Raiders 45-35. (Photo by Brett Deering/Getty Images) /
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Tuesday, the Texas Tech football team picked up a commitment from Austin McNamara, the top punter in the class of 2019.

Austin McNamara, the top 2019 high school punter in the nation has verbally committed to the Texas Tech football program.  The native of Arizona announced his intentions to sign with the Red Raiders via Twitter Tuesday afternoon.

Rated as a 3-star prospect by 247Sports.com, the lanky 6-foot-4 prospect visited Lubbock on the weekend of December 15-16.  He selected the Red Raiders over offers from schools including Missouri, Arizona, Arizona State, Nebraska and Utah State.

Tech is searching for a new punter after 2018 Ray Guy Award semifinalist Dominic Panazzolo exhausted his eligibility.  Now it appears like one of the best punting prospects in the nation is set to take over.

According to AZCentral.com, McNamara averaged over 42 yards per punt this season while having 12 kicks downed inside the 20.  He was named a second-team All-American and won the Luis Zendejas Award given to Arizona’s best kicker.

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In addition to punting, McNamara was also one of the top place-kickers in the nation converting on 12 of 18 attempts.  However, he may not be asked to fulfill those duties for the Red Raiders because Alan Orona, a two-star kicker from La Grange, Texas is also verbally committed to Texas Tech.

In addition to Panazzolo, Tech also graduated Clayton Hatfield who is tied for the school record with 50 career field goals and was named a first-team all-Big 12 selection.  What’s more, Reed Bowman, another punter on the 2018 roster announced this week that he plans to join the Mississippi State program this spring meaning that Texas Tech had no punter on the roster prior to adding McNamara.

Though the addition of a punter is not likely to warrant tons of fanfare, this is a significant victory for new head coach Matt Wells.  The 2017 kicking game disaster, when Hatfield suffered a hip injury that forced him to miss six games and Panazzolo was erratic in his first season as a JUCO transfer, should serve as a reminder to Red Raider fans about how important the kicking game is.

Regardless of who wins the placekicking job, it appears that Tech will be relying on a pair of freshman kickers next year which will make some fans uneasy.  However, McNamara is as highly regarded of a punting prospect as any to commit to the Red Raiders in quite some time and he and Orona could anchor the Red Raider special teams units for the foreseeable future.

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The Red Raiders’ newest punter will sign on National Signing Day which arrives February 6th.  With as many as ten spots still left in the class, this figures to be an active winter for Wells and his staff and Austin McNamara is certain to be just the first of several new names Texas Tech fans will become acquainted with in the upcoming weeks.

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