CHICAGO – Illinois State senior kicker Nick Aussieker has been added to another preseason watch list, after he was announced as one of 36 Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), Division II, III, National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) collegiate place-kickers on the watch list for the 2014 Fred Mitchell Award.
The players were nominated by their colleges for excellence on the football field and in the community. The Fred Mitchell Award is provided annually to the nation's top collegiate place-kicker among more than 750 FCS, Division II, III, NAIA and NJCAA football teams. The award is named for Fred Mitchell, the record-setting place-kicker, Wittenberg University Athletic Hall of Famer, author, philanthropist and Chicago Tribune sports columnist.
"These place-kickers are impressive on the football field and off the field representing their schools, their football teams, their conferences, their communities, their families and themselves," Fred Mitchell Award selection committee chairman Chris Kearney said. "We look forward to following their accomplishments during the next few months. Of the 36 kickers, 21 led their team in scoring last season and 12 finished second on their team in scoring, so there is a lot of scoring power returning this season."
The preseason honor is the second for Aussieker, who was previously named to the 2014 College Football Performance Awards (CFPA) Placekicker Award Watch List. In 33 career games with the Redbirds over the past three seasons, Aussieker has made 29-of-41 (70.7 percent) of his field goal attempts and has been successful on 119 point after tries. He currently ranks second on the ISU all-time list in field goal percentage, third in PAT kicks made and sixth in total points scored with 206.
A 2013 All-Missouri Valley Football Conference Honorable Mention selection, Aussieker handled all placekicking and kickoff duties for the Redbirds and led the team in scoring with 62 points scored. The Wildwood, Mo., native was a perfect 35-for-35 on extra point attempts and made 9-of-11 field goal attempts, with both misses being blocked. A two-time Fred Mitchell Award Finalist, Aussieker needs 66 points to surpass Stephen Carroll as the school's all-time leading scorer on the gridiron.
Top performers will be recognized monthly during the college football season, and the winner (who is not required to be on the Watch List) will be announced in mid-December. The school of the winner receives scholarship funds and the Fred Mitchell Award trophy will be presented each February at the National Football Foundation Chicago Metro Chapter Awards Ceremony at Halas Hall.
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