TEMPE - Sun Devil Football student-athlete Zane Gonzalez has been named to the 2016 Lou Groza Collegiate Placekicker Award Watch List for the third-straight year, the Palm Beach County Sports Commission announced Thursday.
The Groza Award is given annual the country's most outstanding kicker and includes Gonzalez on the preseason watch list for the third consecutive season with him being a semifinalist in two of the past three years.
Gonzalez enters 2016 as the FBS active leader in scoring at 9.9 points per game as well as in field goals per game at 1.87. With 73 career field goals, he needs just 16 to break the FBS record for career field goals held by Florida State's Dustin Hopkins (88) and just nine to break Luis Zendejas' school record of 81.
The Deer Park, Texas native will also threaten FBS records for total points by any player (currently at 386 with the overall record of 500 held by Wisconsin's Montee Ball from 2009-12), total points by a kicker (overall record of 466 held by Hopkins from 2009-12) and career points per game for a kicker (currently at 9.9 with the record of 9.6 being held by Houston's Roman Anderson from 1988-91).
Gonzalez has kicked 20 or more field goals in each season at ASU, matching Zendejas as the only other player to do so in multiple seasons. He also set the Sun Devil record with 165 career extra points, surpassing Jesse Ainsworth's record of 160 and knocking home 91 in a row entering the year.
His 130 points last season – 26 field goals and 52 extra points -- ranked 12th in the country in total scoring, while also placing him second all-time in points by kicking in a season at ASU behind his own record of 138 set in 2013. He now owns the top three spots in ASU history among all kickers for single season points.
Gonzalez's 26 field goals in 2015 where the second-most nationally and also second all-time at ASU behind Zendejas' school record of 28. He missed just one kick in his final five games of the season, finishing the year 14-of-15 on field goals and 21-of-21 on extra points in that span. He matched the Pac-12 record with his six-field goal effort against Cal in the final regular season game of the year and kicked multiple field goals in eight different games on the season.
His 48 total field goals in the past two seasons tied him for first in the country along with Florida State's Robert Aguayo, who was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers with the 59th pick in the 2016 NFL Draft.
A kickoff specialist, a total of 79 of Gonzalez's 88 kickoffs last season went into the end zone and 66 were touchbacks (75.0 percent), the highest touchback percentage in the country and notable as just 27 of 83 opponent kicks were touched back (32.5 percent).
His 64.56 yards per kickoff were .35 yards behind national leader Ka'imi Fairbairn of UCLA (64.55 yards per kick) while the 18 returns allowed were the fourth-lowest total nationally and the lowest among all 67 teams with 71 or more kickoffs.
Thomas Weber in 2007 is the only Sun Devil to win the Groza Award.
About the Groza Award
Accomplishments are tabulated throughout the season and the Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award will announce its 20 semifinalists on Thursday, November 3rd. 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 by Tuesday, November 22nd. That same group then selects the national winner, who will be announced on Thursday, December 8th during the Home Depot College Football Awards Show.
The 25th Annual Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award, presented by the Orange Bowl Committee, recognizes the three finalists during a celebration in Palm Beach County, culminating with a gala awards banquet on December 5th.
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 @LouGrozaAward on Twitter.
2016 Sun Devil Award Watch Lists
Maxwell Award (America's College Player of the Year) – Demario Richard
Chuck Bednarik Award (College Defensive Player of the Year) – Salamo Fiso
John Mackey Award (Most Outstanding Tight End) – Kody Kohl
Ray Guy Award (Nation's Best Collegiate Punter) – Matt Haack
Lou Groza Award (Nation's Top Placekicker) – Zane Gonzalez
New Season Tickets for the 2016 Season
Secure your spot in Sun Devil Stadium. Season ticket deposits for the 2016 Sun Devil Football season are available now at www.sundeviltickets.com or by calling 480-965-5812. Deposits are applied to the cost of the season ticket and current season ticket holders do not have to place a deposit. Sun Devil Football's 2016 campaign begins with back-to-back games at the new and improved Sun Devil Stadium on Sept. 3 against Northern Arizona and Sept. 10 against Big 12 foe Texas Tech. ASU's six-game home schedule also includes defending Pac-12 South Co-Champion Utah and fellow conference opponents UCLA, Cal and Washington State.
The Groza Award is given annual the country's most outstanding kicker and includes Gonzalez on the preseason watch list for the third consecutive season with him being a semifinalist in two of the past three years.
Gonzalez enters 2016 as the FBS active leader in scoring at 9.9 points per game as well as in field goals per game at 1.87. With 73 career field goals, he needs just 16 to break the FBS record for career field goals held by Florida State's Dustin Hopkins (88) and just nine to break Luis Zendejas' school record of 81.
The Deer Park, Texas native will also threaten FBS records for total points by any player (currently at 386 with the overall record of 500 held by Wisconsin's Montee Ball from 2009-12), total points by a kicker (overall record of 466 held by Hopkins from 2009-12) and career points per game for a kicker (currently at 9.9 with the record of 9.6 being held by Houston's Roman Anderson from 1988-91).
Gonzalez has kicked 20 or more field goals in each season at ASU, matching Zendejas as the only other player to do so in multiple seasons. He also set the Sun Devil record with 165 career extra points, surpassing Jesse Ainsworth's record of 160 and knocking home 91 in a row entering the year.
His 130 points last season – 26 field goals and 52 extra points -- ranked 12th in the country in total scoring, while also placing him second all-time in points by kicking in a season at ASU behind his own record of 138 set in 2013. He now owns the top three spots in ASU history among all kickers for single season points.
Gonzalez's 26 field goals in 2015 where the second-most nationally and also second all-time at ASU behind Zendejas' school record of 28. He missed just one kick in his final five games of the season, finishing the year 14-of-15 on field goals and 21-of-21 on extra points in that span. He matched the Pac-12 record with his six-field goal effort against Cal in the final regular season game of the year and kicked multiple field goals in eight different games on the season.
His 48 total field goals in the past two seasons tied him for first in the country along with Florida State's Robert Aguayo, who was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers with the 59th pick in the 2016 NFL Draft.
A kickoff specialist, a total of 79 of Gonzalez's 88 kickoffs last season went into the end zone and 66 were touchbacks (75.0 percent), the highest touchback percentage in the country and notable as just 27 of 83 opponent kicks were touched back (32.5 percent).
His 64.56 yards per kickoff were .35 yards behind national leader Ka'imi Fairbairn of UCLA (64.55 yards per kick) while the 18 returns allowed were the fourth-lowest total nationally and the lowest among all 67 teams with 71 or more kickoffs.
Thomas Weber in 2007 is the only Sun Devil to win the Groza Award.
About the Groza Award
Accomplishments are tabulated throughout the season and the Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award will announce its 20 semifinalists on Thursday, November 3rd. 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 by Tuesday, November 22nd. That same group then selects the national winner, who will be announced on Thursday, December 8th during the Home Depot College Football Awards Show.
The 25th Annual Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award, presented by the Orange Bowl Committee, recognizes the three finalists during a celebration in Palm Beach County, culminating with a gala awards banquet on December 5th.
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 @LouGrozaAward on Twitter.
2016 Sun Devil Award Watch Lists
Maxwell Award (America's College Player of the Year) – Demario Richard
Chuck Bednarik Award (College Defensive Player of the Year) – Salamo Fiso
John Mackey Award (Most Outstanding Tight End) – Kody Kohl
Ray Guy Award (Nation's Best Collegiate Punter) – Matt Haack
Lou Groza Award (Nation's Top Placekicker) – Zane Gonzalez
New Season Tickets for the 2016 Season
Secure your spot in Sun Devil Stadium. Season ticket deposits for the 2016 Sun Devil Football season are available now at www.sundeviltickets.com or by calling 480-965-5812. Deposits are applied to the cost of the season ticket and current season ticket holders do not have to place a deposit. Sun Devil Football's 2016 campaign begins with back-to-back games at the new and improved Sun Devil Stadium on Sept. 3 against Northern Arizona and Sept. 10 against Big 12 foe Texas Tech. ASU's six-game home schedule also includes defending Pac-12 South Co-Champion Utah and fellow conference opponents UCLA, Cal and Washington State.