Courtesy of Clemson University Athletics
WEST PALM BEACH, FL – With all three of last year’s finalists graduating, it’s a wide-open field on the thirty-player Watch List for the 2025 Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award, as announced by the Palm Beach County Sports Commission.
Just over half the members of the Watch List have been previously named semifinalists for the award, with only two earning the honor multiple times: Iowa senior Drew Stevens in 2022 and 2023, and Michigan senior Dominic Zvada in 2022 and 2024.
Among the players on the Watch List are all 11 returning FBS kickers who made more than 20 field goals last season: USC sophomore Caden Chittenden (26), Miami (OH) senior Dom Dzioban (26), Missouri sophomore Blake Craig (24), BYU senior Will Ferrin (24), SMU senior Collin Rogers (24), LSU senior Damian Ramos (23), UAB junior Jonah Delange (21), Iowa State sophomore Kyle Konrardy (21), Arkansas State junior Clune Van Andel (21), Georgia junior Peyton Woodring (21), and Zvada (21).
In terms of accuracy, all 4 returning FBS kickers who attempted at least 15 field goals and made them at a 90% rate or better are on the Watch List: Zvada (95.5%), Ole Miss junior Lucas Carneiro (94.7%), Kansas senior Laith Marjan (94.1%), and Woodring (91.3%). They’re also joined by Oklahoma State senior Gabe Panikowski, who went a perfect 15-for-15 at FCS Idaho State last year.
Accuracy from distance matters as well. In addition to Rogers, whose 15 field goals from at least 40 yards out came just one shy of the FBS record last year, the Watch List includes the 9 returning kickers with at least 9 field goals from 40+ yards while still connecting at 80% or better overall: Ferrin (10), Zvada (10), Texas A&M graduate Randy Bond (9), Carneiro (9), Arizona State senior Jesus Gomez (9), Oklahoma junior Tate Sandell (9), Stevens (9), Vanderbilt junior Brock Taylor (9), and Woodring (9).
While the Watch List highlights 30 of the best returning kickers in the country, 2024 Lou Groza Award winner Kenneth Almendares was not on last year’s list, proof that the Groza Committee will in fact be watching all FBS kickers throughout the season, as all FBS kickers remain eligible to be selected as semifinalists. The Committee also releases its “Stars of the Week” feature throughout the season on www.lougrozaaward.com.
2025 Lou Groza Award Watch List
Upton Bellenfant, Texas Tech
Mateen Bhaghani, UCLA
Randy Bond, Texas A&M
Lucas Carneiro, Ole Miss
Caden Chittenden, USC
Blake Craig, Missouri
Jonah Delange, UAB
Dom Dzioban, Miami (OH)
Will Ferrin, BYU
Chris Freeman, UConn
Max Gilbert, Tennessee
Jesus Gomez, Arizona State
Nolan Hauser, Clemson
Kyle Konrardy, Iowa State
John Love, Virginia Tech
Dylan Lynch, Fresno State
Laith Marjan, Kansas
Alex McPherson, Auburn
Gabe Panikowski, Oklahoma State
Damian Ramos, LSU
Collin Rogers, SMU
Tate Sandell, Oklahoma
Mason Shipley, Texas
Trey Smack, Florida
Drew Stevens, Iowa
Brock Taylor, Vanderbilt
Nathanial Vakos, Wisconsin
Clune Van Andel, Arkansas State
Peyton Woodring, Georgia
Dominic Zvada, Michigan
Accomplishments are tabulated throughout the season and the Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award will announce its 20 semifinalists on Tuesday, November 18th. From this list, a panel of more than 100 FBS head coaches, SIDs, media members, former Groza finalists, and current NFL kickers selects the top three finalists for the award, announced on Tuesday, November 25th. That same group then selects the national winner, who will be announced on Friday, December 12th during the Home Depot College Football Awards on ESPN.