Kansei Matsuzawa of Hawaiʻi Achieves Consensus All-American Status
WACO, Texas — Kansei Matsuzawa, the placekicker for the University of Hawaiʻi, has etched his name in program history by becoming the first UH player to earn consensus All-American honors, after earning first-team recognition from the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA).
The Tokyo native was named to the first team across the initial three All-American selections that form the NCAA’s consensus list — the AFCA, Walter Camp Foundation, and Associated Press. The remaining two All-America squads, The Sporting News and the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA), will reveal their picks in the near future.
Matsuzawa’s achievement places him alongside UH legend Jason Elam as the only Rainbow Warrior to receive AFCA All-America first-team honors. Earlier this season, the so‑called “Tokyo Toe” surpassed Elam’s school record for consecutive field goals and finished the regular season with a 25-for-26 mark on field goal attempts.
In addition, Matsuzawa became only the second Rainbow Warrior to be named to the AP All-America first team, and last week he earned first-team All-America honors from Walter Camp Football Foundation.
A few weeks prior, UH head coach Timmy Chang was recognized by the AFCA as Region 5 Coach of the Year, marking a first for a Hawaiʻi coach.
To date, Matsuzawa has secured first-team All-American honors from four organizations — AFCA, Associated Press, CBS Sports, and Walter Camp — with several other outlets listing him on the second team.
All-America Teams
- AFCA — First Team
- Associated Press — First Team
- CBS Sports — First Team
- Walter Camp — First Team
Second Team selections
- The Athletic
- Sports Illustrated
- Sports Info Solutions
- USA Today
- On3
HawaiiFB
Players Mentioned
- Matsuzawa
- Timmy Chang
- Jason Elam
