UTEP Athletics

UTEP’s Baechle Announced as Top 20 Semifinalist to Lou Groza National Collegiate Place-Kicker Award

11/10/2022 8:00:00 AM

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Senior kicker Gavin Baechle is one of 20 semifinals for the 2022 Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award presented by the Orange Bowl as announced by the Palm Beach County Sports Commission on Wednesday.

The top 20 kickers have all excelled throughout the season in earning their places as semifinals as Baechle has kicked his way to national recognition.

"Bagel" leads the nation with 20 made field goals and is currently the only FBS player to reach 20 field goals thus far. Baechle has also connected on a school record 20 consecutive field goals made. Nationally, he ranks fourth with 21 attempts and ranks 11^th in field goal percentage (95.2). Baechle averages 2.0 field goals per game, ranking tied third nationally.

After missing his first attempt of the season he's been perfect and is coming off a 3-for-3 effort at Rice on Nov. 3. Baechle tied his career high with makes of 46, 51 and 32 yards against the Owls. Baechle's 51-yard attempt was the third career make of 50+ plus yards. Baechle scored a season-high 12 points, adding a 3-for-3 effort on PATs.

Baechle's headlining moment came against Florida Atlantic when he connected on a walk-off 27-yard attempt as time expired on Oct. 22. He went 3-for-3 against the Owls. Not only was his last attempt a game winner, but it was also career make no. 51 which set a new school record that afternoon. The walk-off victory was also the first for the Miners since 2010.

For his career following Thursday's game, Baechle has made 56 career field goals.

Baechle hit career-long 54-yard make at no. 9 Oklahoma. He added a 5-for-5 performance on extra points at Charlotte, tying his career best on made PATs. He went 4-for-4 on PATs at LA Tech the following week.

Overall, Baechle is 20-of-21 on field goals and 22-of-22 on PATs. The three-time Conference USA Special Teams Player of the Week leads the league in field goals made per game (2.0) and ranks third in field goal percentage (95.2).

Baechle ranks fourth in C-USA in total points (82) and points per game (8.2).

For his career, he ranks second in program history with 269 points for kickers only. His 101 career extra points rank third in school history.

Jay Mattox (2015) was the last UTEP kicker to earn Lou Groza recognition.

MORE ON THE LOU GROZA 2022 SEMIFINALS
Eight have been semifinalists before, including last year's winner Michigan senior Jake Moody and Syracuse senior Andre Szmyt who won the award as a freshman back in 2018. Joining them are semifinalists from every year in between: NC State senior Christopher Dunn (2019), Georgia senior Jack Podlesny (2020), Clemson senior B.T. Potter (2020), Alabama senior Will Reichard (a finalist in 2020), Boise State junior Jonah Dalmas (2021), and the only three-time semifinalist in Missouri junior Harrison Mevis (2021 and 2020).

Among the names on the list are all 11 kickers who have made 15 or more field goals while connecting at 80 percent or better, including UTEP senior Gavin Baechle, the only FBS kicker to reach 20 field goals at this point. He's joined by Wyoming sophomore John Hoyland (19), Dunn (18), Buffalo senior Alex McNulty (16), Podlesny (16), Reichard (16), University of Miami sophomore Andres Borregales (15), Oklahoma State senior Tanner Brown (15), North Texas senior Ethan Mooney (15), Potter (15) and Szmyt (15).

Four of the semifinalists are still perfect on field goals, with Dunn's 18-for-18 mark leading the nation, followed by Stanford junior Joshua Karty (14-for-14), Arkansas State freshman Dominic Zvada (13-for-13) and South Alabama junior Diego Guajardo (12-for-12).

If Moody or Szmyt were to repeat their win, they would join Sebastian Janikowski as the only two-time Lou Groza Award recipients. On the other side of the coin, Zvada is joined by Iowa's Drew Stevens as the only freshmen on the list, vying to become just the fourth freshman winner and the first since Szmyt himself.

Semifinalists will be voted on by a panel of more than 100 FBS head coaches, SIDs, media members, former Groza finalists, and current NFL kickers to select the three finalists. These finalists will be announced on November 29^th and honored at the 31^st annual Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award Banquet on December 5^th in Palm Beach County. The same panel then selects the winner, who will be announced live on ESPN during the Home Depot College Football Awards on Thursday, December 8^th.

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.

Since the first Lou Groza Award was handed out in 1992, 28 finalists, including 16 winners, have gone on to appear in the NFL, earning 13 trips to the Pro Bowl and taking home 7 Super Bowls. That list includes 2022 NFL kickers Rodrigo Blankenship, Randy Bullock, Daniel Carlson Mason Crosby, Jake Elliott, Ka'imi Fairbairn, Graham Gano, Matt Gay, Zane Gonzalez, Dustin Hopkins, Younghoe Koo, and Cairo Santos.

For more information regarding the Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award, please visit LouGrozaAward.com, or follow @LouGrozaAward on Twitter for updates as they happen. Additional information can be obtained by contacting Jared Fleet, Director of Event Operations at the Palm Beach County Sports Commission at (561) 233-3120 or jfleet@palmbeachsports.com.

NATIONAL COLLEGE FOOTBALL AWARDS ASSOCIATION
The Lou Groza Award is a member of the National College Football Awards Association. The NCFAA encompasses the most prestigious awards in college football. Founded in 1997, the NCFAA and its 25 awards now boast over 800 recipients, dating to 1935. Visit ncfaa.org to learn more about our story.

ABOUT THE PALM BEACH COUNTY SPORTS COMMISSION
The Palm Beach County Sports Commission is a private, not-for-profit organization contracted by Palm Beach County to promote and market the County as a sports and sports tourism destination. The Commission brings sporting events and activities to the County, enhances economic impact, stimulates bed tax revenues (primarily in the off-season), and maximizes utilization of County facilities. The Commission offers a full range of event service support, corporate partnerships, sponsorships, and a local membership program that support its goals. Local, regional, national, and international marketing efforts are ongoing by the Commission with sports organizations and event owners. The Commission also produces sports-related programs for the residents of Palm Beach County including the annual Lou Groza Award program, the Palm Beach County Sports Hall of Fame, the Kids Fitness Festival of the Palm Beaches, and the annual Holiday Basketball Classic of the Palm Beaches. For more information on the Palm Beach County Sports Commission, go to www.palmbeachsports.com.

For complete coverage of UTEP Football, be sure to follow the Miners on social media at @UTEPFB (Twitter/Instagram/Facebook) or visit the official home of UTEP Athletics at UTEPMiners.com.

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