Pressley Harvin III made history as the first Black man to win the Ray Guy Award for the best punter in the NCAA.
Now, he looks to make more history after being a seventh round draft pick by the Steelers. There haven't been many Black punters in NFL history, and hasn't been one to play in a game since Marquette King in 2018.
"It's been a lot of hard work to get to that point," Harvin said when asked about winning the Ray Guy Award. "High school was definitely a grind and then being able to go to Georgia Tech let me get to know the punters and add to the legacy of punters there."
The history of Black NFL punters stretches back to the Vikings' Greg Coleman, the first, who played from 1977-1988. Since then only a few like King and Reggie Roby have made it to the NFL. Despite King averaging 46.7 yards per punt, the fourth-highest career average in NFL history, he has remained a free agent the past two seasons.
"There's not many of us," Harvin continued. "You can really count on a hand of about all of us. It's just a tight-knit group. Being the first one to win the Ray Guy, I feel like I'm a trailblazer. I want to be able to pave the way for guys who come after me and make that route easier."
Harvin could be a trailblazer to inspire future Black punters to make the NFL, especially if he makes a difference for a storied franchise like the Steelers and keeps pace with his production. In 2020 he averaged 48 yards per punt, a number that if maintained in the NFL would be the best average in the league's history.
Trailblazing in Black history in the NFL is nothing new to the Steelers. They hired the first Black assistant coach in Lowell Perry, became the first team to name a Black starting quarterback in Joe Gilliam, had the first Black contributor enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Bill Nunn for his scouting to bring players of Historically Black Colleges and Universities to the NFL.
The Steelers also gave Tony Dungy his first coaching job before he went to become the first Black head coach to win a Super Bowl, and then employed the second Black head coach to win a Super Bowl in Mike Tomlin a year later. There's also the Rooney Rule, named after former owner Dan Rooney, that forced NFL teams to interview Black candidates for head coaching vacancies in an effort to provide more opportunity in the league.
If Harvin could inspire more Black punters to make the NFL, he would be another Steeler making Black history in the league.
