Nov. 2, 2017
By Greg Ostendorf
AuburnTigers.com
AUBURN, Ala. ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" Auburn kicker Daniel Carlson was named a semifinalist for the 2017 Lou Groza Award on Thursday.
Carlson has been a finalist for the award, which is given to the best place kicker in college football, in each of the past two seasons. This year, he's 15 of 19 on field goals, including three from 50 yards or more, and he's a perfect 35 of 35 on extra points. He also became the SEC's all-time leading scorer earlier this season against Ole Miss.
"It's a big deal," Carlson said after the game. "It's been a long time coming. A lot of kicks. It's something I personally have wanted to do. Coming back this senior year, that was one of the things I really wanted to do."
The new mark is at 434 career points and climbing. Carlson is also the FBS active leader with 84 career field goals, and he's tied for fifth all-time.
Semifinalists for the Lou Groza Award will be voted on by a panel of more than 100 FBS head coaches, SIDs, media members, former Groza finalists and current NFL kickers, and three finalists will be announced on Nov. 21. Then, the same panel will select the winner, which will be announced live on ESPN at the Home Depot College Football Awards Show on Dec. 7.
Greg Ostendorf is a Senior Writer for AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: Follow @greg_ostendorf