A lot has changed in the nearly six months since Durant Brooks had one career dream come true -- at Disney World of all places.

"It's been waiting awhile," Brooks said of the Ray Guy Award he won on Dec. 6 but will finally be feted for tonight at the Augusta Marriott Hotel & Suites. "I wish it could have been earlier. It feels like so long ago that I got this award."

So much has changed that Brooks wasn't sure he could even make it back to his home state until Monday. He's a former Georgia Tech punter now. He was drafted in the sixth round by the Washington Redskins -- the only collegiate punter selected. He's a Virginia resident, having already gone through rookie minicamp and currently attending organized workouts at Redskins Park in Ashburn, Va. He's got a job to win and a seven-figure contract to earn.

So much has happened since his name was pulled from the envelope at the collegiate football awards ceremony at Walt Disney World Resort that it's easy to lose perspective on the impact of that night. But receiving that honor with Ray Guy's name attached to it is integral to everything that's happened since.

"It has to be," Brooks said of the positive influence it has on his rÃsumÃ. "It's not just some political award. They look at stats. Going into (the draft) with that is better. They can always say, 'He's the Ray Guy winner.' It doesn't hurt. It does put a little tag on you. You kind of have to step up to the challenge and be prepared to handle it."

Since the first Ray Guy Award was presented by the Greater Augusta Sports Council in 2000, the selection committee has become more discerning at designating NFL-caliber punting stock from the collegiate crop. Two-time winner Daniel Sepulveda (2004 and '06) made the Pittsburgh Steelers' roster after being drafted in the fourth round last year. Ryan Plackemeier, the 2005 winner, was drafted in the seventh round by the Seattle Seahawks and signed a four-year contract. B.J. Sander (2003) and Travis Dorsch (2001) couldn't quite find traction in the NFL after being seventh- and fourth-round picks, respectively.

Brooks has a strong chance to become a special teams fixture in Washington for a franchise that hadn't drafted a punter since Texas-El Paso's Ed Bunn in 1993 (the third-rounder didn't make the roster). Special teams coach Danny Smith, who formerly worked at Georgia Tech, was so keen on Brooks that he enthusiastically lobbied the front office to use one of the team's 10 picks on him.

"He was the only punter that Danny wanted to take," Vinny Cerrato, the executive vice president of football operations, said after the draft. "It's the first time he ever said that, so we put some stock into that."

Brooks wanted to be a Redskin just as badly after meeting Smith. Omens started piling up suggesting he might get his wish. He played golf with friends the day before he was drafted, and they found a ball with a Redskins logo in the rough. That same week, his mother's twin sister randomly bought a beer mug with a Redskins logo on it as well.

"That was where he really, really wanted to go," said LuAnne Brooks, his mother who still lives in Warrenton. "I didn't tell anybody, because I didn't want to jinx it."

Brooks was obviously thrilled with the outcome.

"I was hoping for anybody," he said. "But it was awesome when they did finally call and seeing my name on TV that I was going to Washington. I was just so relieved and so happy."

Brooks -- whose relationship with Guy spurred his interest in punting -- will have to compete for a job for the first time in his career. Third-year incumbent Derrick Frost was signed to a veteran minimum free-agent contract in the off-season.

"It was a little awkward at first, coming in and it was only me and him at meetings together and spending free time together," Brooks said of Frost. "He's been in the league four or five years, and he understands. Once I get on the field, I don't think about that. It's a job and may the best man win. I am competing, and I've got to knock him off."

Brooks is taking nothing for granted in his quest to impress first-year head coach Jim Zorn.

"Coach said it's just going to come down to numbers -- who has the better numbers through training camp and preseason," Brooks said.

The numbers -- not to mention draft sentiment -- should favor Brooks. He averaged a net 40.6 yards per punt as a senior at Georgia Tech, while Frost posted a less-than-stellar net average of 36.4 yards with the Redskins in 2007.

The competitive pressure isn't likely to impede Brooks. His first game at Georgia Tech was against Notre Dame on national television, and he excelled. Then, he performed consistently his entire senior season with his stated goal of winning the Ray Guy Award that had barely eluded him the year before.

Tonight, Brooks can enjoy his accomplishment of being the first Georgia-grown Ray Guy winner reared in the same Thomson punting cradle that produced Guy and longtime NFL punter Chris Mohr. Then it will be back to work with a little inspiration from Guy and fresh motherly advice.

"Just do your best; that's all you can do," LuAnne Brooks told him before he left for Washington. "Pretend like you're getting ready to play Notre Dame your first game on prime-time game of the week. You'll be fine."