ALBUQUERQUE – University of New Mexico place-kicker Vladimir Borombozin has been selected as one of 20 semifinalists for the Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award, the Palm Beach County Sports Commission announced today. 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.
Borombozin, a senior from Hollywood, Fla., is the most accurate kicker in school history, making 20 of 25 attempts (.800) throughout his 18-game career. He is 10-10 on field goals this year and has made 12 straight and 14 of his last 15 attempts dating back to last year. The 12 consecutive makes established a new school record, breaking the previous mark of 11 set by Bob Berg in 1974-75.
Borombozin has 100 points in his career, including 49 this season, which ranks him sixth in scoring among all players and third among kickers in the Mountain West Conference at seven points per game. He also ranks 18th in the nation with 1.43 field goal makes per game.
The voters for the Lou Groza Award are comprised of all Division I head coaches, sports writers and sportscasters from across the country, conference officials, various NFL kickers, and all previous Lou Groza Award winners. The three finalists for the Lou Groza Award will be announced on November 12. A brief biography of each semifinalist can be found at www.palmbeachsports.com/Groza.
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 in to football the idea that a player could be used exclusively for kicking.
For more information regarding the Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award, please go to www.palmbeachsports.com, or call the Palm Beach County Sports Commission at (561) 233-1015.