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WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (SMU) – SMU kicker Collin Rogers was named to the 2025 Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award Watch List, as announced by the Palm Beach County Sports Commission on Friday.
 
Rogers performed at an elite level for the Mustangs last season, becoming SMU’s all-time leading scorer. In 2024, both his seven field goals from 50 or longer and 15 field goals from 40 or longer fall just one short of their respective all-time FBS records. In total, his 24 field goals were the most in a single season by a Mustang.
 
Nationally, the Alabama native ranked 12th for total points scored with 124. In SMU’s inaugural season in the ACC, Rogers led the conference in field goals per game (1.71). His 25 career field goals from 40 or longer are the most by any active kicker in the FBS.
 
Rogers is one of three ACC kickers to make the thirty-player list, joining Clemson’s Nolan Hauser and Virginia Tech’s John Love. The kicker received honors from the Palm Beach County Sports Commission during his record-breaking 2024 season as he was named a semifinalist for the same award. Additionally, Rogers earned Lou Groza Award Star of the Week recognition for both Week 2 (Sept. 10) and Week 4 (Sept. 24).
 
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.
 
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.
 
The Lou Groza Award is a member of the National College Football Awards Association (NCFAA), which encompasses college football’s most prestigious awards. The NCFAA’s 25 awards have honored more than 950 recipients since 1935.