By BJ Bennett
SouthernPigskin.com

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Texas A&M’s Braden Mann enters the professional ranks, at the very least, as one of college football’s best ever at his position.

Arguably the top punter on the board for the NFL Draft, Texas A&M’s Braden Mann has quite a list of accomplishments following him to the next level, a resume which features the Ray Guy Award, unanimous All-American honors, back-to-back first-team All-SEC recognition and a number of individual marks. Through all of the history, with Mann, success which includes finishing fourth nationally with a 47.1 yard average in 2019, stands a distinction worth even more widespread appreciation; his junior season was arguably the greatest, by a college punter, ever.

Relative to the mean, Mann’s efforts two years ago were 50 kicks for the ages. He set a new standard. Literally and figuratively, Mann flipped the field. He, furthermore, rewrote the record books; call it Mann-handling the media guide. Remarkably, he set an NCAA measure with 50.98 yards per try. For point of reference, the second-highest margin the last decade stands at 48.3 and no other regular punter this millennium has maintained a 49.1-yard average throughout the entire season. He set another national record with 14 punts of at least 60 yards to boot.

What upcoming number one overall draft pick Joe Burrow did for passing proficiency, Mann did for punting production a full year prior.

Mann, notably, was at his best on the big stage. In a showdown with then-defending national champion Alabama, Mann established yet another NCAA mark with a remarkable single-game punting average of 60.8 yards per try, kicking five times for a total of 304 yards. Two weeks later, for good measure, against nationally-ranked Kentucky, Mann punted five times for 298 yards, an average of 59.6 yards per attempt. He, in four games against ranked foes in 2018, averaged 57.15 yards per try.

After the completion of his heralded college career, Mann has continued to impress in the pre-draft process. He punted four times in the Senior Bowl game, averaging 49 yards per try with a long of 59 yards, also downing two kicks inside the 20-yard line. Mann did many of the athletic events at the NFL Combine, running a 4.83-second forty yard dash, recording a 31-inch vertical, a 111-inch broad jump, a 7.03-second three-cone drill and a 4.13-second 20-yard shuttle.

The profile, for Mann, is a prolific one.

Looking ahead, the natural projection is that of Mann having a long, successful career in the NFL. He broke a number of records previously held by former Texas A&M great Shane Lechler, a 5th-round pick in the 2000 NFL Draft. Lechler played 18 professional seasons, was a seven-time Pro Bowler, six-time first-team All-Pro, four-time NFL punting yards leader and was named the league’s 2000s All-Deacade team and the NFL’s 100th Anniversary All-Time Team. Lechler, a legend, holds the current career pro record with 47.6 yards per punt.

Lechler, among other marks, finished his college career at Texas A&M with an NCAA-record 44.7 yards per punt. For point of reference, Mann averaged 48.9 yards per punt with the Aggies, college football’s new standard. Though he obviously has a long way to go at the next level to ever begin to be compared to Lechler, one of the position’s true historical greats, Mann has set quite the standard already.

Mann is poised to be one of the first specialists taken in the 2020 NFL Draft — and for good reason. Though punters only get a handful of opportunities to perform each game, and their involvement, following a failed offensive drive, isn’t always a welcomed sight, Mann is a difference-maker. His leg strength can completely change the circumstances of a game in terms of field position, his hang time limits the likelihood of a return and his accuracy can prove especially key in certain situational settings.

Simply put, Mann is an impact player.

Remember Mann ahead of the draft. He enters the professional ranks, at the very least, one of college football’s best ever at his position. Mann, ready for the next level, has been on a different level for years.