AUGUSTA, Ga. -- The Augusta Sports Council officially recognized The Citadel graduate
James Platte as the organizations's 2025 winner of the annual FCS Punter of the Year on Tuesday evening as part of a banquet celebrating both the FCS Punter of the Year and Ray Guy Award honorees. The ceremony took place at the First Baptist of Augusta in Augusta, Ga., and served as just the seventh distinction for the national accolade.
The candidates were evaluated by the FCS Punter of the Year Award committee on their overall statistics and contribution to the team. Emphasis is placed on net punting average, percentage of punts inside the 20-yard line and percentage of punts not returned. The winner must display team leadership, self-discipline and have a positive impact of the team's success.
"I'm truly honored to receive the award," Platte said. "I'm grateful to my coaches for their guidance, my teammates for their constant support, and my family for always believing in me. This recognition means a lot, but it also motivates me to keep working harder, improving, and representing my team with pride. Thank you to the Augusta Sports Council for this incredible honor."
Platte, a product of Aiken, S.C., served as the anchor for the highly-effective Bulldogs special teams unit across the full 12-game season, averaging a program-second best 46.5 yards per kick -- fell short of his own record from last year -- behind 48 attempts for a total 2,232 yards. The grad student notably launched 20 kicks over 50 yards -- including a new career-long 72-yarder against Valdosta State -- while pinning opposing teams inside their own 20-yard line on 16 occasions, finishing with the sixth-best punt average mark within the FCS while leading The Citadel to a national No. 2 net punting rate of 42.53 yards per kick.
On a special note, Platte officially locked down the new career mark for punt average in school history, concluding his collegiate stint with the Bulldogs at 44.0 yards per kick.
-- #HonorDutyRespect --
