Auburn's Daniel Carlson falls short for Lou Groza

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Dec. 8, 2016

By Charles Goldberg
AuburnTigers.com

ATLANTA -- Daniel Carlson didn't win the Lou Groza Award on Thursday night, but the Auburn kicker still walked down the red carpet for the second year in a row as one of the best kickers in college football.

"I guess I'm getting used to it. It's an awesome experience," he said of the red carpet treatment at the College Football Awards Show at the College Football Hall of Fame.

He was one of three finalists for the award for the second year in a row.

Arizona State's Zane Gonzalez, who holds six NCAA records, won the award over Carlson and Younghoe Koo of Georgia Southern.

Auburn coach Gus Malzahn has consistently called Carlson the best kicker in America. Carlson sat with his family at the ceremony.



Carlson leads the SEC in scoring, having hit 26 field goals, scoring a touchdown on a fake and kicking a lot of extra points. He scored a touchdown early in the season. His six field goals in Auburn's 18-13 win over LSU tied an SEC record. He's also one of best at kickoffs in the nation.

The junior attended the Lou Groza Award banquet in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., on Monday before attending the awards show Thursday.

He was named to the Walter Camp All-American second team Thursday night. Gonzalez was first.

Carlson was named the SEC's Special Teams Player of the Year Wednesday in a vote of the league coaches. He was also named to the coaches and the Associated Press All-SEC first teams this week. He was named the league's top kicker Wednesday by Pro Football Focus.

Check back for more comments from Daniel Carlson and coach Gus Malzahn

Charles Goldberg is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: Follow @AUGoldMine