James Burnip

James Burnip is an Australian professional football punter for the Ottawa Redblacks of the Canadian Football League. He played college football for the Alabama [Crimson Tide football|Alabama Crimson Tide].

Early life

Burnip grew up playing Australian rules football and attended Victoria University. He learned to punt by training with ProKick Australia and initially committed to play for the Ole Miss Rebels. However, Burnip later flipped his commitment to play for the Alabama Crimson Tide.

College career

Burnip made his collegiate debut in the 2021 season opener versus 2021 [Miami Hurricanes football team|Miami]. As a freshman in 2021 he punted 48 times with average of 39.1, where 23 resulted in fair catches and 15 landed inside the 20 yard line. In 2022, Burnip punted 44 times with an average of 42.3 yards per punt, with seven landing inside the 20 and a long of 58 yards. In week 2 of the 2023 season, he was named the Ray Guy Punter of the Week in a matchup versus 2023 [Texas Longhorns football team|Texas]. In the 2024 Rose Bowl, Burnip had seven punts for 352 yards with a 50.3 average and caused two punts to be muffed in a loss to 2023 [Michigan Wolverines football team|Michigan]. In 2023, he punted 59 times with an average of 47.6 yards, earning second-team all-SEC honors.
Burnip accepted an invite to play in the 2025 Senior Bowl.

Professional career

After going undrafted in the 2025 NFL draft, Burnip signed with the New Orleans Saints as an undrafted free agent. Burnip was also subsequently drafted by the Ottawa Redblacks of the Canadian Football League in the 2nd round of the 2025 CFL global draft. He was waived by the Saints on August 25.
On 30 January 2026, it was announced that Burnip had signed with the Ottawa Redblacks.