Lou Hedley
Louis Hedley is an Australian gridiron football punter who currently plays for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Miami.
| New Orleans Saints | |
|---|---|
| Position: | Punter |
| Personal information | |
| Born: | Mandurah, Australia |
| Height: | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) |
| Weight: | 220 lb (100 kg) |
| Career information | |
| College: | San Francisco CC (2017) Miami (FL) (2019–2022) |
| CFL Draft: | 2023G / Round: 2 / Pick: 13 |
| Undrafted: | 2023 |
| Career history | |
| |
| Roster status: | Active |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| Career NFL statistics as of 2023 | |
| Player stats at NFL.com | |
Early life
Hedley grew up in Mandurah, Australia, and originally played Australian rules football.[1]
College career
Hedley played one season of college football at City College of San Francisco in 2017, where he averaged 38.6 yards per punt.[2]
On February 5, 2019, Hedley officially signed with the Miami Hurricanes.[2][3]
Hedley played four years at Miami. He played in 46 career games, punting 208 times for 9,392 yards and an average of 45.2 yards.[4] In 2019, Hedley punted 64 times for 2,808 and an average of 43.9 yards per punt. He also had the only rush of his career going for 21 yards.[5] During the 2020 season Hedley would punt 49 times, for 2,311 yards, and an average of 47.2 yards per punt.[6] For his performance on the year he was named to the All-Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) second team,[7] and he was named one of the three finalists for the Ray Guy Award.[8] In the 2021 season Hedley would punt 49 times for 2,189 yards, for an average of 44.7 yards per punt. Once again for his efforts he was named second-team All-ACC.[9][10] Hedley would also be named one of the ten semifinalists for the Ray Guy Award.[11] In Hedley's last season in 2022, he punted 46 times for 2,084 yards and an average of 45.3 yards per punt. For his performance he would be named first-team All-ACC for the first time in his career.[12][13] He was named a semifinalist for the Ray Guy Award for the second year in a row.[14] He was also named a semifinalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy.[15]
After the 2022 season, Hedley announced he would forgo his last season of eligibility with Miami to declare for the NFL Draft.[16]
Professional career
After not being selected in the 2023 NFL Draft, Hedley signed with the New Orleans Saints as an undrafted free agent.[17][18] Hedley was also drafted in the second round (13th overall) of the 2023 CFL Global Draft by the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.
References
- "94 Lou Hedley". Miami Hurricanes. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
- Abdeldaim, Alaa. "Miami Hurricanes Sign Coolest-Looking Punter Ever". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
- Young, Ryan. "Miami signs Australian Louis Hedley, potentially the coolest punter ever". Yahoo. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
- "Louis Hedley". Sports Reference. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
- "2019 Miami (FL) Hurricanes Stats". Sports Reference. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
- "2020 Miami (FL) Hurricanes Stats". Sports Reference. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
- "Tigers, Irish Lead All-ACC Football Team". Atlantic Coast Conference. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
- "Hedley One of Three Finalists for Ray Guy". University of Miami Athletics. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
- "2021 Miami (FL) Hurricanes Stats". Sports Reference. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
- "2021 ALL-ACC FOOTBALL TEAM". AccSports.com. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
- Scultz, Nick. "Ray Guy award semifinalists announced". ON3. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
- "2022 Miami (FL) Hurricanes Stats". Sports Reference. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
- "Clemson Leads With 12 Selection to All-ACC Football Teams". Atlantic Coast Conference. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
- "Hedley Tabbed Semifinalist for Ray Guy Award". University of Miami Athletics. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
- "ICYMI: Miami Punter Lou Hedley Named a 2022 William V. Campbell Trophy Semifinalist". BCSNN. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
- Peery, Wade. "Miami punter Lou Hedley forgoes final season of eligibility, enters 2023 NFL Draft". ON3. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
- Kirby, Aaron. "Former WAFL defender Louis Hedley handed NFL lifeline by New Orleans Saints despite going undrafted". The West Australian. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
- Sigler, John. "28-year-old rookie Saints punter Lou Hedley might be the most interesting man in the NFL". USA Today. Retrieved 6 May 2023.