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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Shene Named Preseason Contender For Lou Groza Award
8/12/2009 | Football
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - A semifinalist for the honor last year, Ole Miss' Joshua Shene was among 30 members of the preseason watch list for the 18th annual Lou Groza Award, given to the finest place kicker in college football's FBS division (Division1-A) and announced by the Palm Beach County Sports Commission.
A senior from Oklahoma City, Shene enters his fourth season as the Rebels' starting kicker and was named preseason All-America by several media outlets. He is the SEC active career leader in field goals (42), and his current streak of 74 consecutive PATs is the second-longest in school history. Last year, Shene led the SEC in FG pct. (17-of-21, 81.0 pct.) and PATs (52-of-52, 1.000 pct.), and he tied for 32nd in the nation in total FGs (1.31 per game).
Headlining the group are 2008 finalist Josh Arauco of Arkansas State and 2007 Lou Groza Award recipient Thomas Weber of Arizona State. Shene is among nine 2008 semi-finalists and five SEC 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.
Among past Groza recipients is the Rebels' Jonathan Nichols in 2003, while other previous finalists include NFL kickers Nate Kaeding, Sebastion Janikowski, Mike Nugent, Martin Gramatica, Jason Elam and Mason Crosby.
For more information on the Lou Groza Award and the Palm Beach County Sports Commission visit www.lougrozaaward.com.
| 2009 Preseason Lou Groza Award Watch List | |||||||
Last Name | First Name | School | Year | 2008 FGM | 2008 FGA | 2008 FG% | 2008 PTS |
| Arauco | Josh | Arkansas St | Sr. | 17 | 19 | 89.5 | 88 |
| Aho | James | New Mexico | So. | 18 | 24 | 75 | 79 |
| Bosher | Matt | Miami | Jr. | 18 | 20 | 90 | 94 |
| Brotzman | Kyle | Boise St | Jr. | 17 | 26 | 65.4 | 101 |
| Czajkowski | Josh | NC State | Jr. | 16 | 19 | 84.2 | 81 |
| Evans | Ross | TCU | So. | 16 | 20 | 80 | 97 |
| Fangmeier | Clark | Rice | Sr. | 6 | 10 | 60 | 91 |
| Forbath | Kai | UCLA | Jr. | 19 | 22 | 86.4 | 78 |
| Glusman | Sam | Troy | Sr. | 20 | 29 | 69 | 108 |
| Goessling | Kevin | Fresno State | So. | 15 | 22 | 68.2 | 91 |
| Hartman | Ben | E Carolina | Sr. | 21 | 31 | 67.7 | 87 |
| Henery | Alex | Nebraska | Jr. | 18 | 21 | 85.7 | 110 |
| Lawrence | Hunter | Texas | Sr. | 10 | 12 | 83.3 | 90 |
| Lincoln | Daniel | Tennessee | Jr. | 10 | 18 | 55.6 | 52 |
| Maggio | Nick | Duke | Jr. | 11 | 14 | 78.6 | 61 |
| Pettrey | Aaron | Ohio State | Sr. | 7 | 8 | 87.5 | 22 |
| Phillips | Jonathan | Florida | Sr. | 12 | 13 | 92.3 | 114 |
| Rogers | Jake | Cincinnati | Jr. | 16 | 23 | 69.6 | 82 |
| Salerno | Mike | N Illinois | Sr. | 18 | 24 | 75 | 88 |
| Shene | Joshua | Ole Miss | Sr. | 17 | 21 | 81 | 103 |
| Steigerwald | Alex | Toledo | Sr. | 16 | 21 | 76.2 | 77 |
| Stevens | Jimmy | Oklahoma | So. | 8 | 12 | 66.7 | 118 |
| Swenson | Brett | Mich St | Sr. | 22 | 28 | 78.6 | 100 |
| Teggart | Dave | Uconn | So. | 13 | 15 | 86.7 | 55 |
| Tiffin | Leigh | Alabama | Sr. | 20 | 29 | 69 | 106 |
| Walker | Brandon | Notre Dame | So. | 14 | 24 | 58.3 | 81 |
| Walsh | Blair | Georgia | So. | 15 | 23 | 65.2 | 95 |
| Weber | Thomas | Arizona St | Jr. | 19 | 25 | 76 | 86 |
| Welch | Philip | Wisconsin | Jr. | 20 | 24 | 83.3 | 99 |
| Wiggs | Carson | Purdue | So. | 8 | 11 | 72.7 | 43 |
About the NCFAA
The Groza is a member of the National College Football Awards Association (NCFAA). The NCFAA was founded in 1997, as a coalition of the major collegiate football awards to protect, preserve and enhance the integrity, influence and prestige of the game's predominant awards. The NCFAA encourages professionalism and the highest standards for the administration of its member awards and the selection of their candidates and recipients. For more information, visit the association's official website, ncfaa.org.
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 Awards program, the Sports Hall of Fame, the Kids Fitness Festival and awards the annual Sam Budnyk Student-Athlete Scholarship. For more information on the Palm Beach County Sports Commission go to www.palmbeachsports.com.
