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Each year, prior to the start of the college football season, Bruce Feldman of The Athletic releases a list of the top 100 “freak athletes” in the sport.
Feldman highlights the biggest, fastest, and most explosive players around the country. But this year’s list came with a twist.
That twist comes in the form a Penn State punter and kickoff specialist Gabriel Nwosu, who stands at 6-foot-6, 280 pounds and flies in the face of everything you thought you knew about punts and kickers.
6-Foot-6, 280-Pound Gabriel Nwosu Redefines The Way You Think Of Punters
Here’s what Feldman had to say about Nwosu, who checked in at No. 91 on the list.
“There were a few tempting options for the fourth Freak from the Nittany Lions. Tony Rojas, who gained 43 pounds in 19 months is now a 240-pounder who runs a 4.50 40, verticals 34 inches and who clocked a 4.08 pro shuttle time. Elliot Washington is a 205-pound corner who ran a 4.32 40 and squatted a program-DB-record 565 pounds.
“But I’ll go with Nwosu. He is definitely not your average kicker or punter. The sophomore from Maryland is 6-6 and 280 pounds. He benched 365 pounds, squatted 525 and cleaned 330. Even more impressively, he clocked a 4.86 40 at that size, broad-jumped 9-9 and vertical-jumped 31.5-inches. As PSU’s kickoff specialist in 2023, Nwosu finished third in the Big Ten in touchbacks with 50, and was fourth in kickoff average at 63.7 yards.”
Nwosu joined teammates Abdul Carter (12), Zane Durant (18) and Nicholas Singleton (29) on the list. All of whom are expected to be key contributors for a team with playoff aspirations.
Topping the list was South Carolina wide receiver Nyck Harbor, who became the first player in the list’s history to go back-to-back at No. 1.
Harbor is a 6-foot-5, 242-pound wideout who posted times of 10.1 in the 100 and 20.20 in the 200 for the South Carolina track team in the Spring. Despite his size, he was given 99 speed and acceleration in EA Sports College Football 25.
