Penn State punter Blake Gillikin has been named a 2019 semifinalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy presented by the National Football Foundation to the nation’s top football scholar-athlete.
The NFF will announce 12-14 finalists on Oct. 30
Gillikin would mark Penn State’s second winner in recent years following John Urschel taking home the honor in 2013. The Nittany Lion punter is currently among those on the Ray Guy Award Watch List, giving annually to the best punter in the nation.
Just three games into the season Gillikin has been fairly inactive, just 13 punts so far this season is nearly dead-last in the nation, the senior is averaging just over 41-yards a kick with a handful of short yardage punts.
In all likelihood the senior kicker will have far more work to do in the coming weeks as Penn State enters a challenging Big Ten schedule. The good news for the Nittany Lions, some of Gillikin’s best performances have come in their biggest moments.
But of course the best punter is the one you don’t have to use.
