Austin Parker

Position:
Punter
Height:
6-1
Weight:
180
Class:
Freshman
Hometown:
Mount Pleasant, N.C.
High School:
Mount Pleasant

Career: In 44 career games, all starts, punted 232 times for 9,911 yards (42.72) with 70 boots downed inside the opponent 20-yard line against 23 touchbacks ... totaled 84 points on 17-of-21 (.810) field goals and 33-of-35 (.943) PATs ... handled placekicking duties during the 2017 season before focusing solely on punting chores the remainder of his career ... rushed five times for 33 yards (6.60) and threw two incomplete passes ... owned two career tackles ... played 354 career snaps ... finished ranked second in punting average (10th in the ACC), third in punting yards, fourth in total punts and 12th in field goals made on Duke’s career charts.

2019: Started all 12 games ... punted 66 times for 3,018 yards (45.73) ... had 24 kicks downed inside the opponent 20-yard line against six touchbacks ... long punt of 72 yards came against Syracuse, which matched the 10th-longest boot in Duke history ... recorded another 70+ yard punt in Duke’s season-finale win versus Miami … finished with 26 punts of 50+ yards this season for the third-highest total in the ACC … had one punt blocked against Georgia Tech … made one tackle on the year against Virginia Tech … finished fourth in the ACC and 13th in the country with a 45.70 punting average ... punted a season-high nine times against No. 15 Notre Dame, where he dropped three balls inside the Fighting Irish’s 20 yard line and induced four fair catches ... top game for average yards per boot came versus Georgia Tech with four kicks for a 50.25 average, seventh highest single-game mark in Blue Devil history ... season punting average placed him second on the Duke single-season charts and seventh in ACC lore … punting yardage mark ranked fifth on the school’s single-season list, while season punt total matched the 12th highest single-season total in program history … rushed three times on the year for 45 yards with his season-long 28-yard scamper coming against Virginia Tech … on the field for 72 snaps … played in the Hula Bowl … awarded the team’s Bill Keziah Award … named an honorable mention All-ACC team selection.

2018: Started all 13 games ... punted 67 times for 2,772 yards (41.37) ... had 23 kicks downed inside the opponent 20 yard line against just four touchbacks ... long punt of 57 yards came at Georgia Tech ... had one punt blocked versus Baylor ... recorded one tackle versus Virginia Tech ... ranked eighth in the ACC in punting average ... turned in best performance of the year at Miami in helping Duke win for the first time in Miami since 1976 ... punted eight times in a driving rainstorm, dropped six balls inside the Hurricanes’ 20 yard line and induced five fair catches ... top game for average yards per boot came at Georgia Tech with three blasts for a 50.00 average, tied for the seventh highest single-game mark in Blue Devil history ... had season highs of 10 punts and 437 yards at Clemson ... campaign punt total matched the 10th highest single-season total in program history while punting yardage mark ranked 12th on the school’s single-season chart ... on the field for 68 snaps.

2017: Handled the punting and placement kicking duties for the entire 12-game regular season ... dismissed from the program and suspended from the institution for violation of university academic policy on December 8, 2017, and did not play in the Quick Lane Bowl versus Northern Illinois ... totaled 84 points on 17-of-21 (.810) field goals and 33-of-35 (.943) PATs ... reached double figures in the scoring column four times against N.C. Central (10), Northwestern (11), Baylor (10) and Georgia Tech (12) ... had a season-high seven PATs against N.C. Central to match the third-highest single-game total in school history ... booted a season-high three field goals in the win over Georgia Tech ... punted 61 times for 2,656 yards (42.05) with 10 kicks downed inside the opponent 20 yard line against nine touchbacks ... had a long punt of 59 yards against Virginia ... top performance came against Florida State with five punts for a 46.20 average including four boots downed inside the Seminole 20 yard line ... logged season highs for both punts (10) and punting yards (433) at Virginia ... in the ACC, ranked third in field goals made per game (1.42), fourth in field goal percentage, seventh in kick scoring (7.0), 10th in overall scoring, 10th in PAT percentage, 10th in punting average and 18th in total points responsible ... nationally, ranked 26th in field goals made per game, 32nd in field goal percentage and 54th in punting average ... on the school’s single-season charts, yearly totals ranked tied for fifth for field goals made, seventh for field goal percentage, tied for eighth for total points, tied for eighth for field goals attempted, 14th for punting average and 15th for punting yardage ... on the field for 127 snaps.

2016: Handled the punting chores during the first seven games before suffering season-ending injury at Louisville ... underwent surgery on October 16 to stabilize a fractured right clavicle ... punted 38 times for 1,556 yards (40.95) ... had 13 kicks downed inside the opponent 20 yard line against just two touchbacks ... long punt of 68 yards came against Army West Point ... had one punt blocked versus Army West Point ... rushed twice for minus-12 yards and threw one incomplete pass ... top game came at Louisville with three boots for a 51.30 average ... had a season-high nine punts in the win over Army West Point ... logged a season-high 368 punting yards at Northwestern ... punting average ranked third on Duke’s single-season chart for rookies ... on the field for 87 snaps.

2015: Did not see game action.

PRIOR TO DUKE: Four-year letterman at Mount Pleasant High School under coach Michael Johns ... rated as the No. 8 punter in the country by 247Sports.com ... a 2014 MaxPreps.com All-America honoree ... as a senior, helped the Tigers to a 12-3 overall record and the Rocky River Conference title along with a trip to the state semifinals ... named the Rocky River Conference Special Teams Player of the Year following final campaign ... as a QB, completed 63-of-134 passes for 1,148 yards and nine TDs ... converted six-of-11 field goals, with a long of 47 yards, and added 53 PATs ... had 24 punts for a 43.92 yards average ... during junior season, punted 49 times for a 44.69 yards per boot average ... also lettered in basketball.

PERSONAL: Born January 27, 1997 ... graduated from Duke in May, 2019, with a degree in psychology ... currently pursuing a master’s in management studies ... son of Stephanie and Daren Parker ... mother lettered four years in volleyball (1986-87-88-89) at the University of South Carolina and graduated as the program’s all-time leader in total blocks ... father lettered four years (1987-89-90-91) as a punter at South Carolina, set the school single-season record for punting average (44.29 in 1989) and played one season (1992) for the NFL’s Denver Broncos, appearing in three games and recording 12 punts for 491 yards (40.92) with a long boot of 61 yards and one kick downed inside the opponent 20 yard line against one touchback.