KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Tennessee punter Joe Doyle was named to the USA Today Sports’ Freshman All-America football team on Wednesday, making the 25-man list of college football’s brightest up-and-coming stars.
The list features freshmen standouts such as Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence, Purdue wide receiver Rondale Moore and Alabama defensive back Patrick Surtain II. Doyle was one of four players chosen from the Southeastern Conference, joining Alabama wide receiver Jaylen Waddle, Georgia offensive lineman Isaiah Wilson and the aforementioned Surtain. The complete list of USA Today Freshman All-Americans can be found HERE.
Tennessee has had a player earn Freshman All-America honors in five of the past six years. In that span, Vols that have been named freshman All-Americans include Marquez North and Cameron Sutton (2013), Derek Barnett, Evan Berry and Jashon Robertson (2014), Chance Hall (2015) and Trey Smith (2017). With Doyle’s selection, UT has had a player garner USA Today Freshman All-America accolades in back-to-back seasons after Smith did so last year.
Doyle, a redshirt freshman, led the SEC in total punting yards with 2,673 and tied for second in the conference with 23 punts inside the 20, a figure that was also tied for second nationally among freshman. Despite punting a league-leading 65 times, Doyle allowed just eight returns for a total 15 yards, the fewest by any full-time punter in the SEC.
The Knoxville native boomed 12 punts of 50 yards or longer as well, with a long of 71 yards in Tennessee’s game at Georgia on Sept. 29. His 41.1-yard average ranked second among all Power 5 freshmen punters and earned him a spot on the Final Candidate List for the 2018 Ray Guy Award.
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