Seth Marler Named Finalist for Groza Award
Nov 12, 2001 | Football
Nov. 12, 2001
NEW ORLEANS, La. - Tulane University junior Seth Marler (Lilburn, Ga.) has been named a finalist for the 2001 Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award, the Palm Beach County Sports Commission announced Monday.
The award, which is presented by the FedEx Orange Bowl, will be given out during a ceremony on Tuesday, December 4, at the Sheraton West Palm Beach Hotel at CityPlace in West Palm Beach, Fla. The winner will then go to Orlando, Fla., and participate in the ESPN Home Depot College Football Awards Show on Thursday, December 6.
"I can't really describe the feeling," Marler said. "It has been one of my goals this year. The past two years, I was a semifinalist, so I wanted to at least make it down there for the ceremony. I have had a good year so far, I just tripped up a little on Saturday."
Marler has compiled a near-perfect season to date. The Wave's kicker has connected on 15 of his 16 field goal attempts in 2001. His .937 percentage is second in the nation among those with 14 or more field goal attempts. In addition, the Georgia native is 39-of-39 on extra points. Since the end of the 1999 season, Marler has made 18-of-19 field goals from inside the 40-yard line. This season, he has scored seven field goals of over 40 yards, including three of 50 yards or more. He connected on a 51-yard boot versus TCU and made a career-record 53-yarder versus East Carolina, the second-longest in Tulane history. He needs three more field goals to break the Tulane career record of 48.
"Seth is very deserving of this award, he has worked hard this fall in his approach to each and every game," Tulane Head Coach Chris Scelfo said. "I think it's a great testament to Seth and his accomplishments this year. It is a fantastic honor for Tulane to have a Lou Groza Finalist and a National Scholar-Athlete in the same year, two of the top awards in the nation."
Green Wave quarterback Patrick Ramsey was named a recipient of a National College Scholar-Athlete Award from the National Football Foundation two weeks ago.
Marler was a semifinalist for the Groza Award in each of the last two seasons. In addition, he earned All-Louisiana Second Team honors last year.
Joining Marler as semifinalists are Travis Dorsch from Purdue University and Damon Duval from Auburn University. Marler had been named one of 20 semifinalists on Oct. 28.
The voters for the Lou Groza Award are comprised of Division I head coaches, sportswriters and sportscasters from across the country, conference officials, various NFL kickers, and all previous Lou Groza Award winners.
The award, now in its 10th year, is named for NFL Hall-of-Fame kicker Lou 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. Nicknamed "The Toe," Groza was one of the first people to truly make kicking an art form, and he helped usher into football the idea that a player could be used exclusively for kicking.
More information on the Lou Groza Award is available by visiting the official web site at www.palmbeachsports.com/Groza. The site includes a brief biography of each semifinalist.
