SAN DIEGO -- San Diego State football's Matt Araiza (San Diego/Rancho Bernardo HS) has been named to the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) All-America first team, which was announced Wednesday.
Araiza is the first Aztec specialist to make the AFCA All-America team and just the fifth SDSU player overall, joining Henry Williams in 1978 (first team), Marshall Faulk in 1992 (first team) and 1993 (first team), Kyle Turley in 1997 (first team) and Donnel Pumphrey in 2016 (second team).
Araiza has now made each of the five teams that comprise the NCAA's consensus All-America team (Walter Camp, FWAA, AP, Sporting News and AFCA). The NCAA will officially release their consensus All-America team on Thursday, where Araiza will be the second unanimous All-American in program history (Faulk in 1992 and 1993).
Araiza, who last week was named the winner of the Ray Guy Award for the nation's best collegiate punter, has punted 76 times for 3,904 yards, ranking first in FBS history in punt average (51.4 avg.), 60-yard punts (18) and 50-yard punts (39). Out of Araiza's 76 punts, 36 have landed inside the 20-yard line as Araiza has posted a 44.3 net punt average. One of four players in the nation who is handling all three kicking duties (punts, PATs/field goals and kickoffs), Araiza has added 17 field goals, including three 50-plus yarders, and has kicked off 67 times (excluding onside kicks) for a 65.06 average with 56 going for a touchback.
Araiza leads all FBS players in punt average (51.37), total punt yards (3,904) and punt yards per game (300.31), and is tied for first in PAT percentage (100.00), tied for second in punts inside the 20-yard line (36) and total punts (76), third in kickoff average (65.06), tied for fifth in punts per game (5.85), sixth in net punt average (44.28), tied for sixth in field goal attempts (28), eighth in kickoff touchback percentage (83.58), and tied for eighth in kickoff touchbacks (56) and field goal attempts per game (2.08).
Araiza has six punts of at least 70 yards, the most in the country (five are tied for second with two 70-yard punts), including the longest (86 yards), fifth-longest (81, tied), ninth longest (79), 12th longest (77, tied), 17th longest (75, tied) and 28th longest (72, tied).
Araiza has also been named The Action Network's Special Teams Player of the Year, and a first-team All-America selection by Walter Camp, FWAA, AP, Sporting News, AFCA, The Athletic, USA Today, ESPN, CBS Sports, Bleacher Report, The Action Network and Sports Info Solutions (SIS). Araiza has also been selected as the Mountain West Special Teams Player of the Year, a first-team all-league punter and a second-team kicker.
San Diego State (11-2), which has tied a school record with 11 victories this season and was 24th in the final College Football Playoff Rankings, plays No. 24 (AP) UTSA (12-1) in the Tropical Smoothie Cafe Frisco Bowl on Tuesday, Dec. 21 in Frisco, Texas.
SDSU All-Time AFCA All-Americans
1978 - 1st team - Henry Williams, DB
1992 - 1st team - Marshall Faulk, RB
1993 - 1st team - Marshall Faulk, RB
1997 - 1st team - Kyle Turley, OT
2016 - 2nd team - Donnel Pumphrey, RB
2021 - 1st team - Matt Araiza, P
SDSU's All-America Selections (Recognized by the NCAA)
Walter Camp (Dec. 9): P Matt Araiza (1st team), DE Cameron Thomas (2nd team)
FWAA (Dec. 10): P Matt Araiza (1st team), DE Cameron Thomas (2nd team)
Associated Press (Dec. 13): P Matt Araiza (1st team), RG William Dunkle (2nd team), DE Cameron Thomas (2nd team)
The Sporting News (Dec. 14): P Matt Araiza (1st team), DE Cameron Thomas (2nd team)
AFCA (Dec. 15): P Matt Araiza (1st team)
Matt Araiza Named an AFCA First-Team All-American
