Bhaghani Named to Lou Groza Award Watch List
August 01, 2025 | Football
Junior kicker Mateen Bhaghani of the UCLA football team has been named to the watch list for the 2025 Lou Groza College Place-Kicker Award, it was announced by the Palm Beach County Sports Commission on Friday morning. The Groza Award recognizes the top place-kicker in college football on an annual basis.
Bhaghani becomes the first Bruin to appear on the Groza Watch List since JJ Molson in 2018. Two Bruins have won the Lou Groza Award all-time: Ka'imi Fairbairn in 2015 and Kai Forbath in 2009.
A native of San Diego, Calif., Bhaghani enters his second season as UCLA's starting kicker in 2025.
Last season, Bhaghani connected on 20-of-24 field goal attempts (83.3%) while making all 20 of his PAT attempts. His 20 field goals made led the Big Ten Conference at the conclusion of the regular season, and he connected on a 57-yard attempt against Iowa ย on Nov. 7 that was the longest by a B1G kicker in 2024 and ranked second all-time in UCLA history (trailing only Fairbairn's 60-yard conversion against California in 2015).
Bhaghani wrested the starting job after a superlative performance in the season-opener at Hawai'i in 2024, as he went 3-for-3 on field goal attempts including a 32-yard game-winner in the final minute en route to Big Ten Special Teams Player of the Week honors. He went on to make multiple field goals in eight games over the course of the season, including each of the Bruins' final five contests.
Just 30 kickers nationwide are named to the Groza Award Watch List. A total of 20 semifinalists will be named by the Groza Committee on Nov. 18, with three finalists named a week later on Nov. 25. The winner will be announced Dec. 12 during the Home Depot College Football Awards on ESPN.
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.
The Lou Groza Award is a member of the National College Football Awards Association (NCFAA), which encompasses college football's most prestigious awards. The NCFAA's 25 awards have honored more than 950 recipients since 1935.
