Three ACC Standouts Named to 2025 Lou Groza Award Preseason Watch List

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (theACC.com) – Three standout kickers from the Atlantic Coast Conference have been named to the 2025 Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award Preseason Watch List, introduced Friday by the Palm Beach County Sports Commission. The annual award honors the highest place-kicker in school soccer.
 
The ACC representatives are amongst 30 of the nation’s high returning kickers acknowledged on this yr’s watch record.
 
With all three of final yr’s finalists having graduated, the race for this yr’s award is large open. Just over half of the gamers on the preseason watch record have beforehand been named semifinalists, setting the stage for fierce competitors. The record additionally options 11 returning FBS kickers who made good on greater than 20 subject objectives final season, together with all 4 returning FBS kickers who tried a minimum of 15 subject objectives and transformed at a 90 p.c success fee or higher.
 
ACC Players Named to the 2025 Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award Preseason Watch List
Name, School, Class
Nolan Hauser, Clemson, Sophomore
Collin Rogers, SMU, Senior
John Love, Virginia Tech, Junior
 
Accomplishments are tabulated all through the season and the Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award will announce its 20 semifinalists on Tuesday, November 18. From this record, a panel of greater than 100 FBS head coaches, SIDs, media members, former Groza finalists, and present NFL kickers selects the highest three finalists for the award, introduced on Tuesday, November 25. That similar group then selects the nationwide winner, who shall be introduced on Friday, December 12, throughout The Home Depot College Football Awards on ESPN.
 
The thirty fourth Annual Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award, introduced by the Orange Bowl, acknowledges the three finalists throughout a celebration in Palm Beach County, culminating with a gala awards banquet on December 8 in West Palm Beach, Florida. 
 
The award is known as for National Football League Hall of Fame kicker Lou “The Toe” Groza, who performed 21 seasons with the Cleveland Browns. Groza gained 4 NFL championships with Cleveland and was named NFL Player of the Year in 1954. Although an All-Pro offensive lineman as nicely, Groza ushered within the notion that there must be a spot on an NFL roster for a kicker.
 
The Lou Groza Award is a member of the National College Football Awards Association (NCFAA), which encompasses school soccer’s most prestigious awards. The NCFAA’s 25 awards have honored greater than 950 recipients since 1935. Visit NCFAA.org for extra info.