July 7, 2011
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - San Diego State senior Abelardo Perez was named to the 2011 Lou Groza Award Watch List, the Palm Beach County Sports Commission announced today. Perez is one of 30 candidates nominated for the annual award, which is given annually to the nation's top place-kicker.
Hailing from Tijuana, Mexico, Perez was a second-team all-Mountain West selection in 2010. A season ago, the place-kicker posted a league-best 28 touchbacks and converted 17 of 22 field-goal attempts, including his final eight. He also led the league in field goals per game (1.42) and in scoring (8.3 ppg.).
Perez is one of two MW kickers on the list for this award, joining TCU's Ross Evans. Perez is the first Aztec place-kicker to be nominated for the award since J.C. Mejia was nominated in 2003.
The Lou Groza Award Watch List is determined based on statistics from the previous season and preseason expectations. More than 300 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, which was established in 1992. The award is named for the NFL Hall of Fame kicker, who played 21 seasons with the Cleveland Browns.
This year's award winner will be announced on Thursday, Dec. 8, 2011, during the Home Depot ESPNU College Football Award Show. Oklahoma State senior Dan Bailey claimed the award in 2010.
2011 Lou Groza Award Watch List Candidates
Abelardo Perez, San Diego State
Michael Barbour, East Carolina
Casey Barth, North Carolina
Rob Beard, Oregon
Maikon Bonani, USF
Randy Bullock, Texas A&M
Dan Conroy, Michigan State
Derek Dimke, Illinois
Ross Evans, TCU
Mitch Ewald, Indiana
Trey Farquhar, Idaho
Erik Folk, Washington
Nate Freese, Boston College
Kevin Goessling, Fresno State
Jack Griffin, Florida International
Zach Hocker, Arkansas
Dustin Hopkins, Florida State
Danny Hrapmann, Southern Miss
Aarin Jones, Baylor
Ross Krautman, Syracuse
Grant Ressel, Missouri
Bryson Rose, Ole Miss
David Ruffer, Notre Dame
Jimmy Stevens, Oklahoma
Will Synderwine, Duke
Dave Teggart, UConn
Justin Tucker, Texas
Blair Walsh, Georgia
Phillip Welch, WIsconsin
Alex Zendejas, Arizona