Fresno State Athletics
Goessling Makes Groza Watch List
8/12/2009 12:00:00 AM | Football
Aug. 12, 2009
FRESNO, Calif. - The 18th annual quest to name the finest place kicker in college football's FBS division (Division1-A) begins as the Palm Beach County Sports Commission unveils its pre-season watch list of 30.
One of those is Bulldog kicker Kevin Goessling, a Fresno State record holder after just one season in the program.
Headlining the group are 2008 finalist Josh Arauco of Arkansas State and 2007 Lou Groza Award recipient Thomas Weber of Arizona State.
Nine 2008 semi-finalists are named to the list including seniors, Arauco, Leigh Tiffin of Alabama, Sam Glusman of Troy State and Jonathan Phillips of Florida. Eighteen of the kickers listed are under classmen. The SEC is the most recognized conference with five members included. The Big Ten and Big Twelve each placed four kickers on the list.
More than three hundred media representatives, coaches, past recipients, conference and university officials make up the voting panel which selects the recipient of the Lou Groza Collegiate Place Kicking Award. The Award will be presented on Dec. 10, 2009, as part of the ESPN Home Depot College Football Awards program. The three finalists will be honored at the 18th annual Lou Groza Award Banquet to be held at the Kravis Center in West Palm Beach, Florida on Tuesday Dec. 8.
Goessling kicked a game-winning 58-yard field goal last season as time expired to beat Utah State. It was the longest by a kicker in Bulldog history, and one of the longest game winning kicks in recent NCAA history.
For the year, Goessling made 15-of-22 field goals, and was nearly perfect at the end of the season making seven of his final eight attempts.
For more information on the Lou Groza Award and the Palm Beach County Sports Commission visit : www.lougrozaaward.com
2009 Lou Groza Award Watch List Candidates
1. Josh Arauco, Arkansas State
2. James Aho, New Mexico
3. Matt Bosher, Miami
4. Kyle Brotzman, Boise State
5. Josh Czajkowski, NC State
6. Ross Evans, TCU
7. Clark Fangmeier, Rice
8. Kai Forbath, UCLA
9. Sam Glusman, Troy
10. Kevin Goessling, Fresno State
11. Ben Hartman, East Carolina
12. Alex Henery, Nebraska
13. Hunter Lawrence, Texas
14. Daniel Lincoln, Tennessee
15. Nick Maggio, Duke
16. Aaron Pettrey, Ohio State
17. Jonathan Phillips, Florida
18. Jake Rogers, Cincinnati
19. Mike Salerno, Northern Illinois
20. Joshua Shene, Mississippi
21. Alex Steigerwald, Toledo
22. Jimmy Stevens, Oklahoma
23. Brett Swenson, Michigan State
24. Dave Teggart, UConn
25. Leigh Tiffin, Alabama
26. Brandon Walker, Notre Dame
27. Blair Walsh, Georgia
28. Thomas Weber, Arizona State
29. Philip Welch, Wisconsin
30. Carson Wiggs, Purdue
PRACTICE UPDATE
The Dogs held their first practice in Bulldog Stadium on Wednesday afternoon and to add to the ambience, head coach Pat Hill play very loud crowd effects and music through the public address system in order to simulate the game day sounds of large stadiums.
"We know we will be playing in some large and loud stadiums early in the season," said Hill, talking about road trips to Wisconsin, Cincinnati and Hawaii. "We need to be prepared with our signals in order to be able to communicate effectively. We need to have that practice. I expect all three of those stadiums to be very loud, especially when our offense had the ball."
The team worked on live situations and two-minute drills during the practice. Hill expects to use the loud sound system several more times before the season starts. The Dogs return to practice on Thursday for two practices, one at 9 a.m. and the second at 8 p.m.
Fans are welcome to attend practice sessions through the August 15 scrimmage in Bulldog Stadium. After that date, all practice sessions will be closed. Fans are asked to remain on the hillside that surrounds the practice facility and no video cameras, including cell phones with video capacity, are permitted. Fresno State asks that fans not post video practice highlights on the internet, as it could help opponents prepare when they play the Bulldogs.
FRESNO STATE FACT: Each of the last four kickers for the Bulldogs have found themselves in the Fresno State record books, including current kicker sophomore Kevin Goessling. Goessling owns the longest kick in Bulldog history of 58 yards and he did that in his freshman season. His predecessor Clint Stitser finished his brilliant career with 223 points, sixth-most in school history. The kicker before Stitser was Brett Visintainer, who in 2003 made 21 field goals and scored 98 points, 10th-most in a season in school history. Asen Asparuhov preceded Visintainer and he holds the top two single-season scoring records in Bulldog history, making 23 field goals in each in 2001 and 2002. His 129 points in 2001 are the most in Fresno State history. Asparuhov ranks No. 3 on the all-time scoring list with 300 points, trailing Derek Mahoney (1990-93) and Barry Belli (1984-87), who had 364 and 333, respectively.
"We Are Your Team" - The `Dogs will be starting their 2009 Football season off right with Football Fiesta Night on Saturday, September 5th at 7pm when the UC Davis Aggies come to town. Football Fiesta Family Pack tickets are available now - the package includes four game tickets, a gift coupon to the Bulldog Shop, and a $4 drink and hotdog special. To inquire about the Football Fiesta Family Pack, contact the Bulldog Ticket Office at 559-278-DOGS.
