Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 1 game
| Wk | Opp | PUNT | YDS | AVG | LONG | IN20 | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 3 | L 14-21@ Louisiana | 5 | 185 | 37.0 | 52 | 0 |
#41
Oliver Straw
Senior punter for UAB. From Melbourne, VIC — one of 83 Australians punting in FBS this season.
6′2″ · 210 lb · Melbourne, VIC
Transferred West Virginia → UAB for 2026
The numbers
37
yards per punt · 2026 · through week 3
1 game into 2026 so far -- Best game: 5 punts, 37 avg, at Louisiana
Inside the 20 · 0%
0%field median 33%60%
0 of his 5 punts died inside the 20. The field median is about one in three, among 134 FBS punters with 5+ punts this season.
The play that turned itSwung Kansas from 30% to 63% to win.Kansas at West Virginia · 55-42
The story
Senior punter for UAB. From Melbourne, VIC — one of 83 Australians punting in FBS this season.
- Signed as a 3-star recruit to West Virginia in 2022.
Oliver Straw
Handles the punting job without giving the return man a lane. Four head coaches in five seasons, at two different programs. Big 12 Special Teams Player of the Week in 2024 was the second honor of his career.
Low coverage — composed from the verified record.
- positional archetype classification
- head-coach lineage
- recognition record
His career
He was winning awards before he was old enough to be a story.
202211 games
- Signed with West Virginia3-star out of ProKick Australia
Career arc
HS
Recruit
★★★
CFB
College
2 teams
NFL
NFL Draft
—
Coaching lineage · 2022–2026
3 coachesPlayed under 3 different head coaches: Bryant Vincent, Trent Dilfer, and Alex Mortensen. Multi-era developmental context.
Where He Ended Up · Transfer
Transferred to UAB
2025West Virginia
2026UAB
Game log
2026 snapshot
Season context · Team result + system
2022West Virginia5-7HC: Neal Brown · Balanced
2023West Virginia9-4HC: Neal Brown · Run-heavy
2024West Virginia6-7HC: Chad Scott · Run-leaning
2025West Virginia4-8HC: Rich Rodriguez · Run-heavy
2026UAB1-2HC: Alex Mortensen · Run-heavy
How he plays
Play style
Handles the punting job without giving the return man a lane.
CFB Index positional classification
Starter
UAB carries four punters; Straw has taken five of the 8. The No. 1,948 recruit in the country is punting in the American Athletic as a senior.
The battery
UAB’s specialists
- #47Caleb MoserLong snapper · Jr.
- #46Evan BishopLong snapper · Jr.
- #47Noah MedlenLong snapper · Fr.
- #41Oliver StrawPunter · Sr.5 punts · 37 avg
- #20Badger HargettPunter · Jr.3 punts · 48.7 avg · 1 inside the 20
- #30Carson TinsleyPunter · Fr.
- #27Patrick FoleyPunter · Sr.
- #39Jonah DelangeKicker · Sr.7 of 7 on field goals
- #35Owen SimpsonKicker · So.
Where he came from
From Melbourne, VIC — one of 83 Australians punting in FBS this season.
DNA match
Player DNA
Steady
Handles the punting job without giving the return man a lane.
P
His 2025 production profile sits closest to Emile Sebafundi’s 2025 season.
Matches Emile on
Class year
Yards / punt
In-20 rate
Not enough data yet for this comparison.
As a senior, his production profile tracks closest to Dean Janikowski's senior season at Washington State (2024).
Matches Dean on
Class year
Yards / punt
In-20 rate
Differs from Dean on
Weight (lower)
Player DNA
Players who play like Oliver Straw
Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology