Texas Tech University Athletics
Trlica, Woods Named to Watch Lists
August 28, 2007 | Football
Aug. 28, 2007
LUBBOCK, Texas - Texas Tech senior kicker Alex Trlica (Friendswood, Texas) and junior running back Shannon Woods (McKinney, Texas) have been named preseason candidates for the a pair of prestigious awards - the Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award and Doak Walker Award. Both players join teammate Graham Harrell on preseason watch lists.
Trlica is one of 29 kickers named to the Groza list, announced Tuesday by the FedEx Orange Bowl, sponsor of the award. He joins fellow Big 12 kickers Garrett Hartley of Oklahoma, Jason Ricks of Oklahoma State and Jeff Wolfert of Missouri. Also named to the watch list are two former winners of the award: Arthur Carmody of Louisville and Alexis Serna of Oregon.
Trlica, an All-Big 12 selection a year ago and Texas Tech's record-setting kicker, holds the NCAA record for 166 extra points with no misses. He is only nine field goals short of breaking Bill Adams (1977-79) school record of 43 field goals made in a career.
The 20 semi-finalists will be announced on Tues. Nov. 6 followed by the naming of the three finalists on Tues., Nov. 20. A panel of over 300 experts vote on the award, including Division I-A head coaches, sports writers and sportscasters, conference representatives, professional kickers and all previous award finalists.
The top three finalists will be honored during the Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award Banquet on Tues. Dec. 4, with the winner being announced Thurs. Dec. 6 during The Home Depot College Football Award Show live on ESPN.
One of 51 running backs nationally selected to the Doak Walker Award Candidate List, Woods joins Big 12 running backs Mike Goodson and Jorvorskie Lane of Texas A&M, Jamaal Charles of Texas and Albert Young of Iowa State on the list, which was announced Tuesday by the Guaranty Bank SMU Athletic Forum. Also named to the list is last year's winner, Darren McFadden of Arkansas.
Woods, the returning leader in all-purpose yards in the Big 12, rushed for 926 yards and accumulated 572 receiving yards in his first year as a starter en route to earning league first-team honors as an all-purpose back. Woods also led all Division I running backs in receptions a year ago with 75.
The award, named for SMU's three-time All-America running back Doak Walker, is the only collegiate award that requires all candidates to be in good academic standing and on schedule to graduate within one year of other students of the same classification.
The list of candidates will be narrowed to semifinalists on November 12, and the Doak Walker Award National Selection Committee, made up of former NFL All-Pro and college All-America running backs, will cast votes to determine the finalists to be announced on November 19.
The recipient of the award will be announced live on ESPN as part of the The Home Depot College Football Awards on Thurs., Dec. 6. The Doak Walker Award Presentation Banquet being held at The Hilton Anatole Hotel in Dallas, Texas, on Fri., Feb. 15, 2008.
