University of North Carolina Athletics
Barth Named to Lou Groza Award Preseason Watch List
August 28, 2007 | Football
Aug. 28, 2007
WEST PALM BEACH, FL - University of North Carolina place-kicker Connor Barth has been named to the preseason watch list for the 2007 Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award. A senior from Wilmington, N.C., Barth was the only kicker in the country with a 1.000 field goal percentage in the NCAA rankings. He made all 10 attempts in 2006 and has a current streak of 11 in a row.
The Watch List is comprised of the top 30 preliminary candidates for the 16th Annual Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award, presented by the FedEx Orange Bowl. The top three finalists will be honored during the Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award Banquet on Tuesday, December 4, 2007. The award will be presented Thursday, December 6, 2007 during the ESPN Home Depot College Football Award Show broadcast live from Orlando, Fla.
5 former winners or nominees, Mason Crosby, Martin Gramatica, Sebastian Janikowski, Nate Kaeding and Mike Nugent became successful NFL kickers.
Kickers on the Lou Groza Award Watch List were chosen based on statistics from the 2006 season and 2007 preseason expectations. However, all Division I-A kickers are eligible for consideration for the award.
A panel of over 300 experts vote on the award, including Division I-A head coaches, sports writers and sportscasters, conference representatives, professional kickers and all previous Groza Award finalists.
The 20 semi-finalists for the Lou Groza Award are announced on Tuesday, November 6, 2007 followed by the naming of the three finalists two weeks later on Tuesday, November 20, 2007.
The award, is named for National Football League (NFL) 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, Groza ushered in the notion that there should be a place on an NFL roster for a kicker.
The Lou Groza Award is presented by the FedEx Orange Bowl and is also sponsored by The Breakers, Continental Airlines, Discretion Entertainment LLC, Enterprise rent-a-car, ESPN Radio 760, ESPN Regional Television, Florida Coca-Cola Bottling, Hartless Foundation, JBS Destination Solutions, Palm Beach Kennel Club, The Palm Beach Post, Parallax Productions, Romano Law Group, Rooney's Public House, World Class Transportation Inc.
For more information regarding the Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award, please go to www.lougrozaaward.com or contact Dusty Ann Williams, Event Manager at the Palm Beach County Sports Institute at (561) 233-3122.
1 Sergio Aguayo UNLV Senior 2 Connor Barth North Carolina Senior 3 Ben Bell Houston Junior 4 Arthur Carmody Louisville Senior 5 Gary Cismesia Florida State Senior 6 Treavor Cook Miami (Ohio) 7 Brandon Coutu Georgia Senior 8 Drew Edmiston UL Lafayette Junior 9 Garrett Hartley Oklahoma Senior 10 Jeremy Ito Rutgers Senior 11 Dan Kelly Hawaii Junior 12 Conor Lee Pittsburgh Junior 13 Taylor Mehlhaff Wisconsin Senior 14 Chris Nendick Northern Illinois Senior 15 Matt Reagan Memphis Sophomore 16 Jason Reda Illinois Senior 17 Jason Ricks Oklahoma State Junior 18 Louie Sakoda Utah Junior 19 Tom Schneider California Senior 20 Alexis Serna Oregon State Senior 21 Patrick Shadle Syracuse Junior 22 Jared Strubeck San Jose State Junior 23 Ryan Succop South Carolina Junior 24 Sam Swank Wake Forest Junior 25 Brett Swenson Michigan State Sophomore 26 Jarod Tracy Tulsa Junior 27 Alex Trlica Texas Tech Senior 28 Cole Wilson UL Monroe Senior 29 Jeff Wolfert Missouri Junior
