Beaufort's Clark wins SAC Special Teams Player of the Week for Newberry

Newberry College senior punter Kyle Clark, a Beaufort High graduate, has been named the AstroTurf South Atlantic Conference Special Teams Player of the Week, as announced by the league office Monday.

Clark was spectacular in the Wolves' 38-31 conference-opening win over Tusculum, averaging 45.6 yards per punt on nine punts. He had two punts of longer 60 yards in the game with a 66-yarder and a 64-yarder.

While his average was impressive, his ability to pin the Pioneers deep in their own territory was remarkable, as he had four punts downed inside the opponent's 5-yard line.

His 52-yarder with 36 seconds remaining in the first half pinned Tusculum at its own 1-yard line, where the Pioneers went three-and-out and shanked a rushed punt out of the endzone. Newberry scored from 24 yards out on its next play to tie the game at halftime.

Clark's 32-yard punt that rolled dead at the Tusculum 2-yard line with 13 seconds remaining in the game virtually eliminated any chance of a Tusculum comeback.

The preseason All-American ranks second in the SAC and sixth in Division II with a 44.1 season average, and his career average of 40.3 yards per punt ranks him sixth among active Division II players.

This story was originally published September 28, 2015 at 8:10 PM with the headline "Beaufort's Clark wins SAC Special Teams Player of the Week for Newberry."