FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contacts:
Austin Lee, Marketing, Communications, & Public Relations Manager
(561) 233-3124, alee@palmbeachsports.com
Jared Fleet, Director of Event Operations
(561) 233-3120, jfleet@palmbeachsports.com
Lou Groza National Collegiate Place-Kicker Award Announces Top 20 Semifinalists
West Palm Beach, Fla., Nov. 9, 2023 -- The Palm Beach County Sports Commission has released the 20 semifinalists for the 2023 Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award, presented by the Orange Bowl. These 20 kickers have all excelled throughout the season in earning their places as semifinalists.
Nearly all are new names, as only six have been semifinalists before. The repeat honorees include Stanford senior Joshua Karty, a finalist for the award last season, and Alabama senior Will Reichard, a finalist in 2020 and the only three-time semifinalist among the group, having earned a spot last year as well. They’re joined by two-time semifinalists Miami (FL) junior Andres Borregales (2022), Oklahoma State senior Alex Hale (2020), Hawaii senior Matthew Shipley (2021) and Iowa sophomore Drew Stevens (2022).
Among the names on the list are all six kickers who have made 17 or more field goals while connecting at 80% or better: UNLV senior Jose Pizano (19-for-20), Minnesota senior Dragan Kesich (18-for-21), Miami (OH) junior Graham Nicholson (17-for-17), Borregales (17-for-19), Georgia freshman Peyton Woodring (17-for-20) and Iowa State senior Chase Contreraz (17-for-21). But in terms of overall field goals made, they’re all chasing Hale (20-for-26), the only kicker in FBS to reach 20 field goals through Week 10.
Nicholson’s 17-for-17 performance as of the selection period makes him the most prolific of the nation’s three kickers yet to miss a field goal, ahead of fellow semifinalists Texas State sophomore Mason Shipley (11-for-11) and Auburn freshman Alex McPherson (9-for-9).
Also among the semifinalists are all six kickers with at least seven field goals from 40 yards or further, including Arkansas junior Cam Little (8), whose four kicks from at least 50 yards out are tied for the national lead. Joining him are Contreraz (8), Nicholson (8), Reichard (8), Karty (7), and Fresno State sophomore Dylan Lynch (7).
Semifinalists will be voted on by a panel of more than 100 FBS head coaches, SIDs, media members, former Groza finalists, and current NFL kickers to select the three finalists. These finalists will be announced on November 28th and honored at the 32nd annual Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Awards Banquet on December 4th in Palm Beach County. Tickets for the banquet are on sale now. The same panel then selects the winner, who will be announced live on ESPN during the Home Depot College Football Awards on Friday, December 8th.
The Award is named for National Football League Hall of Fame kicker Lou “The Toe” Groza, who played 21 seasons with the Cleveland Browns. Groza won four NFL championships with Cleveland and was named NFL Player of the Year in 1954. Although an All-Pro offensive lineman as well, Groza ushered in the notion that there should be a place on an NFL roster for a kicker.
Since the first Lou Groza Award was handed out in 1992, 28 finalists, including 16 winners, have gone on to appear in the NFL, earning 13 trips to the Pro Bowl and taking home 7 Super Bowls. That list includes 2023 NFL kickers Randy Bullock, Daniel Carlson Jake Elliott, Ka’imi Fairbairn, Graham Gano, Matt Gay, Dustin Hopkins, Younghoe Koo, Jake Moody, and Cairo Santos.
For media inquiries please contact Austin Lee at (561) 233-3124 or alee@palmbeachsports.com. Additional information can be obtained by contacting Jared Fleet, Director of Event Operations at the Palm Beach County Sports Commission at (561) 233-3120 or jfleet@palmbeachsports.com. For more information regarding the 2023 Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award presented by the Orange Bowl, please visit LouGrozaAward.com, or follow on X, Facebook, and Instagram.
