WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Marshall redshirt sophomore kicker Nick Smith has been named a semifinalist for the Lou Groza College Place-Kicker Award, the Palm Beach County Sports Commission announced Thursday.
The Plain City, Ohio native has connected on 13 of 15 field goals this season and has made all 34 of his extra point attempts. Smith made 12 consecutive field goals this season, the second-longest streak in school history behind Craig Ratanamorn’s 16 straight that spanned the 2008 and 2009 seasons.
Entering Saturday’s 3:30 p.m. ET/2:30 p.m. CT game at Middle Tennessee, Smith also has a streak of 137 successful extra-point attempts.
Semifinalists will be voted on by FBS Head Coaches and SIDs, a panel of kicking experts including all previous Groza finalists, and national and regional football writers to select the three finalists. These finalists will be announced on November 24th and honored at the 24th annual Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Awards Banquet on December 7th in West Palm Beach, Florida. The winner will be announced live on ESPN at the Home Depot College Football Awards Show on Thursday, December 10th.
The award is named in honor of one of the all-time great kickers in football history, Lou Groza. Groza played 21 seasons for the Cleveland Browns setting numerous franchise records, including most games played, most points scored, and an amazing 107 consecutive games in which he scored a point. Groza was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1974.
Since the first Lou Groza Award was handed out in 1992, 20 finalists, including 11 winners, have gone on to appear in the NFL, earning eight trips to the Pro Bowl and taking home five Super Bowls. That list includes current NFL kickers Dan Bailey, Mason Crosby, Kai Forbath, Graham Gano, Dustin Hopkins, Sebastian Janikowski, Mike Nugent, Cairo Santos, Caleb Sturgis, and Blair Walsh.
---HerdZone.com---
The Plain City, Ohio native has connected on 13 of 15 field goals this season and has made all 34 of his extra point attempts. Smith made 12 consecutive field goals this season, the second-longest streak in school history behind Craig Ratanamorn’s 16 straight that spanned the 2008 and 2009 seasons.
Entering Saturday’s 3:30 p.m. ET/2:30 p.m. CT game at Middle Tennessee, Smith also has a streak of 137 successful extra-point attempts.
Semifinalists will be voted on by FBS Head Coaches and SIDs, a panel of kicking experts including all previous Groza finalists, and national and regional football writers to select the three finalists. These finalists will be announced on November 24th and honored at the 24th annual Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Awards Banquet on December 7th in West Palm Beach, Florida. The winner will be announced live on ESPN at the Home Depot College Football Awards Show on Thursday, December 10th.
The award is named in honor of one of the all-time great kickers in football history, Lou Groza. Groza played 21 seasons for the Cleveland Browns setting numerous franchise records, including most games played, most points scored, and an amazing 107 consecutive games in which he scored a point. Groza was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1974.
Since the first Lou Groza Award was handed out in 1992, 20 finalists, including 11 winners, have gone on to appear in the NFL, earning eight trips to the Pro Bowl and taking home five Super Bowls. That list includes current NFL kickers Dan Bailey, Mason Crosby, Kai Forbath, Graham Gano, Dustin Hopkins, Sebastian Janikowski, Mike Nugent, Cairo Santos, Caleb Sturgis, and Blair Walsh.
---HerdZone.com---
