Vanderbilt Kicker Brock Taylor Named to Lou Groza Award Watch List
Brock Taylor was deservedly named as one of 30 kickers to the Lou Groza Award watch list today, August 1st. The Lou Groza award is given annually to the best placekicker in all of college football. In 2024, Kenneth Almendares of Louisiana took home the hardware.
Vanderbilt kicker Brock “Brocket Launcher” Taylor is coming off a very good Sophomore year and is looking to take a big step forward during the 2025 season. Last season Taylor went 18-21 (85.7%) overall on field goal attempts, tied for 27th in the country. But the impressive part of Brock Taylor’s game is his accuracy from distance. Brock Taylor went 5-6 from 50+ yards last season, those 5 kicks put him tied for the 8th most made 50+ yard field goals in the country. Taylor also went 4 of 5 from 40-49 yards, 5-6 from 30-39 yards, and 4-4 on kicks from 20-29 yards. He did miss 1 extra point, going 39-40 last season.
Vanderbilt needs Brock Taylor to maintain his consistency and his accuracy from distance, Vanderbilt fans all know how important the kicking game is when your team is consistently in tight battles – having a good kicker can be the difference. With another year under his belt, I expect Brock Taylor to continue to deliver from distance but also come through in the clutch more consistently.
The 20 semi-finalists for the Lou Groza ward will be announced on Tuesday, November 18th. The top 3 finalists will be announced on Tuesday, November 25th, and the winner will be selected on Friday, December 12th, during the Home Depot College Football Awards on ESPN.
Other SEC Kickers on the watch list include –
Damian Ramos, LSU
Blake Craig, Missouri
Peyton Woodring, Georgia
Lucas Carneiro, Ole Miss
Max Gilbert, Tennessee
Alex McPherson, Auburn
Tate Sandell, Oklahoma
Mason Shipley, Texas
Trey Smack, Florida
