Patterson named to Lou Groza Award Watch List

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Senior place kicker Riley Patterson continues to pile on the accolades as he has been named to the Lou Groza Award watch list announced Wednesday. Patterson was named a semifinalist for the award in 2019.

Patterson became the first FBS kicker since 2016 Groza winner Zane Gonzalez to kick at least five 50-yard field goals while connecting at better than 90 percent overall. With 351 career points, he is the FBS active leader in scoring by a kicker, while his career 80.3 percent accuracy (49-for-61) is the best by any FBS kicker currently entering their fourth season.

He is one of four returning FBS kickers who scored at least 120 points last season and is one of 10 FBS kickers who made more than 20 field goals while connecting at least 80 percent of the time.

Against Penn State in the 84th Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic, Patterson individually rewrote the record books. Patterson made a program and NCAA bowl record six field goals and converted on three PATs to score a school and Cotton Bowl record 21 points. His 51-yard field goal in the third quarter against the Nittany Lions was also a Cotton Bowl record.

Patterson's 21 points kicking in the Cotton Bowl broke his previous school record of 18, which he set during the Tigers' ranked victory against SMU earlier in the season. Against the Mustangs, Patterson scored 18 points with a perfect 4-for-4 effort in field goals and 6-for-6 performance in PATs.

After making three PATs in the Cotton Bowl, Patterson broke former Tiger Jake Elliott's school record of 202 made PATs. Patterson is 204-for-209 in career PATs entering the 2020 season.

He finished the 2019 campaign with 23 made field goals, tying the single-season program record set by Elliott in 2015 and Joe Allison in 1992.

Allison became the first winner of the Lou Groza Award after his 1992 campaign. Just like Patterson, Allison connected on 23-of-25 field goals that season and finished the year with a then-school-record 90 consecutive PATs made for his career.

Memphis is set to take on Arkansas State at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium on Sept. 5 to kick-off the 2020 campaign.

About the Lou Groza Award
The Award is named for National Football League Hall of Fame kicker Lou "The Toe" 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. Although an All-Pro offensive lineman as well, Groza ushered in the notion that there should be a place on an NFL roster for a kicker.

For more information on the Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award and to see the "Stars of the Week" throughout the season, please go to www.lougrozaaward.com. For even more updates on the best kicking performances throughout the season, follow @LouGrozaAward on Twitter.

University of Memphis Athletics

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Players Mentioned

Jake Elliott

Riley Patterson

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