UNC Pembroke didn’t punt a lot this season, especially late the year when the offense caught fire was putting up video game numbers.
But when the Braves did have to send the ball back to the opposing team, it found a reliable punter in Seth Bowen. The redshirt sophomore from Cary (Athens Drive HS) is our D2 Stat Champion for yards-per-punt this season.
Bowen kicked 29 times for 1,242 yards, an average of 42.8 yards per kick. He put seven punts inside the 20 and boomed five kicks 50 yards or more, including a season-high 63-yarder.
Our D2 schools had four punters with an average of 41 yards or better in 2024. Winston-Salem State’s Devin Versteegen finished as the Stat Champion runner-up, averaging 41.9 yards on 46 punts. Lenoir-Rhyne’s Stewart Simmons (41.1) and Barton’s Andrew Bontekoe (41.0) weren’t far behind.
Bontekoe, a freshman from Charlotte (Ardrey Kell HS), had the longest punt during the D2 season, booming a 77-yarder in week four at Emory & Henry. That ties the longest in the state for all divisions with Charlotte’s Michael O’Shaughnessy.
Versteegen, a graduate student from Raleigh (Rolesville HS) who transferred to WSSU from Shaw, boomed a 72-yarder in week nine against Johnson C. Smith. He had the only two D2 games of season averaging punts of 50 or more yards – 58.0 ypp against Virginia Union in week six and 50.2 in the Johnson C. Smith game, which kept the Rams in contention till the end.
Bowen averaged 49.8 yards per punt in week five at Glenville State. Johnson C. Smith’s Jacob Meneses averaged 49.6 in a week six win over Virginia State. Elizabeth City State’s Darius Satterfield punted the most among D2 players (57 times) and had the most true punting yards (2,201 yards).
2024 D2 Stat Champions | Punting
Yards Per Punt | Season Leaders
- 42.8 – Seth Bowen (UNC Pembroke): 10 games, 29 punts, 1,242 yards
- 41.9 – Devin Versteengen (Winston-Salem State): 10 games, 46 punts, 1,929 yards
- 41.1 – Stewart Simmons (Lenoir-Rhyne): 13 games, 51 punts, 2.097 yards
- 41.0 – Andrew Bontekoe (Barton): 11 games, 48 punts, 1,967 yards
- 39.7 – Christian Teeter (Wingate): 11 games, 44 punts, 1,747 yards
- 39.1 – Jacob Meneses (Johnson C. Smith): 10 games, 46 punts, 1,797 yards
- 38.6 – Darius Satterfield (Elizabeth City State): 10 games, 57 punts, 2,201 yards
- 38.0 – Hunter Bridges (Mars Hill): 9 games, 47 punts, 1,787 yards
- 36.6 – Nathan Roubik (Livingstone): 10 games, 46 punts, 1,684 yards
- 35.8 – Diego Coca-Hernandez (Shaw): 10 games, 41 punts, 1,468 yards
- 35.6 – Kylan Odean (Catawba): 11 games, 36 punts, 1,281 yards
- 35.5 – Matthew Conord (Chowan): 10 games, 49 punts, 1,739 yards
- 34.1 – Josiah Boyd (Fayetteville State): 9 games, 49 punts, 1,671 yards
Longest Punt | Single-Game Leaders (60+ Yards)
- 77 – Andrew Bontekoe (Barton): Week 4 at Emory & Henry
- 72 – Devin Versteegen (Winston-Salem State): Week 9 vs. Johnson C. Smith
- 69 – Darius Satterfield (Elizabeth City State): Week 2 vs. Chowan
- 67 – Hunter Bridges (Mars Hill): Week 9 at UVA Wise
- 64 – Jacob Meneses (Johnson C. Smith): Week 6 vs. Virginia State
- 63 – Seth Bowen (UNC Pembroke): Week 2 at Fayetteville State
- 62– Andrew Bontekoe (Barton): Week 6 at Carson-Newman
- 62 – Seth Bowen (UNC Pembroke): Week 5 at Glenville State
- 61 – Devin Versteegen (Winston-Salem State): Week 5 vs Bowie State
- 61 – Darius Satterfield (Elizabeth City State): Week 10 vs. Bowie State
Punting Average | Single-Game Leaders (50+ Yards)
- 58.0 – Devin Versteegen (Winston-Salem State): 1 punt, 58 yards, long punt of 58 yards, Week 6 at Virginia State
- 50.2 – Devin Versteegen (Winston-Salem State): 10 punts, 502 yards, long punt of 72 yards, Week 9 vs. Johnson C. Smith
- 49.8 – Seth Bowen (UNC Pembroke): 5 punts, 249 yards, long punt of 62 yards, Week 5 at Glenville State
- 49.6 – Jacob Meneses (Johnson C. Smith): 5 punts, 248 yards, long punt of 64 yards, Week 6 vs. Virginia State
More Stat Champions | Punters
- FCS Stat Champions: Elon’s Jeff Yurk Leads State, Nation In Punting
FBS Stat Champions: Coming Soon - D3 Stat Champions: Coming Soon
