The preseason All-ACC Football Team was announced on Wednesday, and zero Syracuse Orange players made the first team. At the time, we were alright with it, figuring that our proximity to the program probably created some bias for a few players.
Well, after the podcast last night, it ends up we have every right to be angry about one legitimate snub on the All-ACC team: redshirt sophomore punter Sterling Hofrichter.
Hofrichter finished just two votes shy of the first-team, right behind NC State’s A.J. Cole III. And it ends up that the gap between them was likely the result of some distinct local media bias down in Charlotte.
For one, look at the vote breakdown:
A.J. Cole III, NC State 33; Sterling Hofrichter, Syracuse 31; Tommy Sheldon, North Carolina 25; Mason King, Louisville 22; Dom Maggio, Wake Forest 18; Ryan Winslow, Pitt 16; Logan Tyler, Florida State 13; Austin Parker, Duke 9.
That’s a lot of North Carolina representation, no?
But more than that, just a simple comparison of the 2016 numbers put up by Cole and Hofrichter, respectively, shows that one has a more impressive resume than the other.
A.J. Cole III
- Punts: 51
- Average: 41.3
- Net average: 35.28 (team)
- Long: 72
- Touchbacks: 5
- Fair catches: 20
- Inside 20-yard line: 16
Sterling Hofrichter
- Punts: 77
- Average: 42.71
- Net average: 38.76 (team)
- Long: 65
- Touchbacks: 3
- Fair catches: 21
- Inside 20-yard line: 24
There’s only one category where Cole has an advantage above, and it’s the one that matters the least (longest punt).
Look, we get it that the conference might be tired of our excellent punters already after Riley Dixon terrorized the league for a few years. But in just his second year, Hof’s already the real deal. No, we’re not organizing a Heisman campaign for him just yet, but the writing is already on the wall. Sterling Hofrichter will be next on the list as world’s greatest punter/human behind predecessors like Dixon and Rob Long.
For right now, however, he is the ACC’s top punter. And it’s not just our bias talking. The numbers prove it.
Now if only the biased (is this where we insert the word “failing?”) North Carolina media would just give him the recognition he rightfully deserves...