University of Houston Athletics
Bell Again Named To Groza Award List
8/9/2004 12:00:00 AM | Football
Aug. 9, 2004
HOUSTON, Texas - For the third straight season University of Houston kicker Dustin Bell was named to the 2004 Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award Preseason Watch List. The Watch List is comprised of the top 30 preliminary candidates for the 13th annual Groza Award, presented by the FedEx Orange Bowl. The finalists for the award will be honored at a banquet held on Tuesday, December 7, 2004, at the West Palm Beach Marriott. The award will then be presented at the 2004 ESPN Home Depot College Football Awards Show on Thursday, December 9, 2004, in Orlando. A hometown product out of Jersey Village High School, Bell returns for his senior season as one of the premier kickers in all of Division I-A football. Bell enters his final season as a Cougar on a streak of 66 consecutive converted extra points, including a perfect 56-for-56 last season. In 2003 Bell came within just two points of becoming just the second kicker (Roman Anderson did it three times 1988-90) in UH history to score 100 points in a season. Besides his PAT prowess a year ago, Bell also nailed 14-of-19 field-goal attempts and drilled a remarkable 54.4 percent of his kickoffs into the end zone resulting in 36 touchbacks. He is currently the school's all-time leader in field-goal percentage at .788, converting 26 of his 33 attempts. Heading into 2004, Bell has 166 total points, which ranks him fifth all-time. He needs just 34 points to become just the third kicker to score over 200 points in a career, joining Anderson (423) and Mike Clendenen (207, 1981-84) in this illustrious category. Bell is a two-time winner of the Conference USA Special Teams Player of the Week. Bell is one of four kickers from C-USA to make the list, joining Memphis' Stephen Gostkowski, Nick Hayes from UAB and Southern Miss' Darren McCaleb. Bell joins sophomore Kevin Kolb as Cougar honorees on preseason watch lists. Last month Kolb was placed on both the Maxwell Award and Davey O'Brien Quarterback Award watch lists. The award, now in its 13th season, 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 the www.lougrozaaward.com or contact Jennifer Killian at the Palm Beach County Sports Institute at 561-233-1015. --- www.UHcougars.com ---
