College football’s top kicking award, the Palm Beach County Sports Commission Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award presented by the Orange Bowl, recognizes three of the top kickers each week from FBS division teams as the “Stars of the Week.”
Connor Hawkins has only started seven games in his collegiate career, but he already has two game-winning field goals, the latest a 53 yarder to lift Baylor to a 35-34 victory over Kansas State. It’s a much longer kick than his 27-yard field goal to beat SMU in overtime earlier this season. In fact, the freshman from Liberty Hill, Texas is now tied for the longest field goal by a Baylor player in McLane Stadium history. He also opened the Bears’ scoring with a 30-yard field goal and added three PATs.
It’s back-to-back “Star of the Week” honors for David Olano, who went 5-for-5 on field goals in Illinois’ 43-27 win over Purdue. With makes from 45, 42, 40, 35 and 34 yards out, the junior from Naperville, Illinois tied the program record and became the first Illini kicker with five field goals in a game since 1990. The three makes from 40+ yards doubled his season total, moving him into a tie for the third-most kicks from 40-or-longer in FBS so far this year. He also went 4-for-4 on PATs, putting together the season’s highest kick-scoring game so far with 19 points.
Tate Sandell knocked through three field goals in the first half of Oklahoma’s 44-0 shutout of Kent State. While the game may have looked easy, the field goals were anything but, coming from 55, 49 and 39 yards out. The 55-yarder is the seventh longest in Oklahoma history and ties for the fourth longest by a Sooner kicker at home. The junior from Port Neches, Texas is now one of 14 kickers in FBS with multiple makes from long distance this season, having connected from 52 earlier in the year.
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.
For more information on the Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award and to see the “Stars of the Week” throughout the season, please go to www.lougrozaaward.com. For even more updates on the best kicking performances throughout the season, follow the Lou Groza Award on X (formerly Twitter), Facebook, and Instagram at @LouGrozaAward.
National College Football Awards Association
The Lou Groza Award is a member of the National College Football Awards Association (NCFAA), which encompasses college football’s most prestigious awards. The NCFAA’s 25 awards have honored more than 950 recipients since 1935. Visit NCFAA.org for more information.
About the Palm Beach County Sports Commission
The Palm Beach County Sports Commission is a private, not-for-profit organization contracted by Palm Beach County to promote and market the County as a sports and sports tourism destination. The Commission brings sporting events and activities to the County, enhances economic impact, stimulates bed tax revenues (primarily in the off-season), and maximizes utilization of County facilities. The Commission offers a full range of event service support, corporate partnerships, sponsorships, and a local membership program that supports its goals. Local, regional, national, and international marketing efforts are ongoing by the Commission with sports organizations and event owners. The Commission also produces sports-related programs for the residents of Palm Beach County including the annual Lou Groza Award program, the Palm Beach County Sports Hall of Fame, and the Kids Fitness Festival of the Palm Beaches. For more information on the Palm Beach County Sports Commission, go to www.palmbeachsports.com.
