College football’s top kicking award, the Palm Beach County Sports Commission Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award presented by the Orange Bowl, recognizes top kickers each week from FBS division teams as the “Stars of the Week.”
Indiana senior Charles Campbell launched a 51-yard bomb to give the Hoosiers a 33-30 overtime win over Western Kentucky in Bloomington, Ind. on Saturday. The long-range kick capped his 4-FG day, the second of his career, and was Indiana’s first walk-off field goal since 2016. The Jackson, Tenn. native also connected from 34 and twice from 32 yards out to earn his second Star of the Week selection already this season. He has made 7 of his 8 field goal attempts and is 32 of 39 for his career. Campbell added one PAT for a 13-point game, and he has scored a team leading 27 points for the season.
UCLA junior Nicholas Barr-Mira split the uprights from 24 yards out as time expired to rally the Bruins to a 32-31 victory over South Alabama in Pasadena, Calif. on Saturday. The Palos Verdes, Calif. native also scored from 38 and 28, and made a career-long from 49 yards for the first 4-FG game of his career. The winning kick was just the 11th in UCLA history to come in the last minute or overtime to win a game, and the program’s first since 2017. He made both PATs for a 14-point game which was tied for the best of the week and moved him to 19th on the Bruins’ all-time scoring list.
Virginia kicker Brendan Farrell’s 26-yard field goal as time expired gave the Cavaliers a 16-14 win over in-state rival Old Dominion in Charlottesville, Va. on Saturday afternoon. It was Virginia’s first game-winning kick as time expired in over a decade. The senior from Dunwoody, Ga. also made another 26 yarder and connected from 30 yards out for his first career 3-FG game. He made his only extra point attempt for a 10-point game. He leads all Cavalier players with 17 points after three games.
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.
