Alex Mastromanno

Alex Mastromanno
Florida State Seminoles – No. 29
PositionPunter
ClassSenior
Personal information
Height6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight241 lb (109 kg)
Career history
CollegeFlorida State (2020–present)
High schoolBrighton Grammar School
(Melbourne, Australia)
Career highlights and awards

Alex Mastromanno is an Australian American football punter for the Florida State Seminoles.

Early life

Mastromanno is from Melbourne, Australia.[1] He grew up playing Australian rules football, which he started at age three or four.[2] He also competed in tennis and track and field growing up.[3] He played for Old Brighton Grammarians Football Club in the Victorian Amateur Football Association (VAFA) and was a nominee for the league's rising star award in 2017.[4] He also played for the Collingwood reserve side in the Victorian Football League (VFL).[5]

Mastromanno later became interested in American football and joined Nathan Chapman's ProKick Australia academy.[6] Recruited to play college football in the U.S. as a punter, he was ranked a two-star prospect by 247Sports and committed to the Florida State Seminoles (FSU) in December 2019.[7]

College career

Mastromanno served as Florida State's main punter as a freshman in 2020, recording an average of 43.5 yards per punt which ranked seventh in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) and 33rd nationally.[8] He remained the starter in 2021, playing in 12 games and being chosen fourth-team All-ACC and FSU's special teams MVP after averaging 42.7 yards per punt with 18 punts inside the 20 and a long of 65 yards.[9] In 2022, he punted 34 times with an average of 41.8 yards per punt, having a long of 53 and five punts of over 50 yards.[6]

In 2023, Mastromanno averaged 45.5 yards per punt, placing second in the ACC and 15th nationally.[10] He was named second-team All-ACC, second-team All-American and a finalist for the Ray Guy Award for best punter nationally, being FSU's first-ever finalist for the award.[3][10] He returned for a final season in 2024 and broke the ACC record and ranked first nationally with an average of 49.3 yards per punt, being named first-team All-ACC and a finalist for the Ray Guy Award.[11] He was also named a first-team All-American.[12]

References

  1. ^ Lewis, Dustin (August 14, 2024). "Florida State Punter Alex Mastromanno Named First-Team Preseason All-American". Sports Illustrated.
  2. ^ Murschel, Matt (October 13, 2022). "Australian punters dominate landscape among Florida schools, and it's by design". Orlando Sentinel.
  3. ^ a b "Alex Mastromanno". Florida State Seminoles.
  4. ^ Armstrong, Nick (May 10, 2017). "VAFA Rising Star Nominee: Alex Mastromanno". Victorian Amateur Football Association.
  5. ^ "The Mastro joins host of VAFA players at Collingwood VFL". Victorian Amateur Football Association. March 2, 2017.
  6. ^ a b Kassim, Ehsan (October 4, 2023). "From Australia to Tallahassee, FSU punter Alex Mastromanno is making a difference". Tallahassee Democrat.
  7. ^ "Alex Mastromanno". 247Sports.
  8. ^ Fernandez, Andre C. (June 27, 2021). "Florida State football most important player countdown: No. 36". Tallahassee Democrat.
  9. ^ Lewis, Dustin (July 27, 2022). "Alex Mastromanno Included On Ray Guy Award Watch List". Sports Illustrated.
  10. ^ a b "FSU's punter Alex Mastromanno makes Walter Camp Foundation's first-team preseason All-American". Tallahassee Democrat. July 1, 2024.
  11. ^ Holland Jr., Peter (December 3, 2024). "FSU football on All-ACC team: Specialists Alex Mastromanno, Ryan Fitzgerald earn honors". Tallahassee Democrat.
  12. ^ Crosby, Jack (December 11, 2024). "2024 CBS Sports All-America team: Big Ten edges SEC in selections, Travis Hunter picks up three honors". CBS.