Pitt Kicker Earns National Award Recognition

Pitt Panthters kicker Ben Sauls earned National Award Recognition for his play vs. Cincinnati.

Sep 24, 2022; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Panthers place kicker Ben Sauls (90) kicks off to the Rhode Island Rams during the first quarter at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images / Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

PITTSBURGH -- Pitt Panthers redshirt senior place kicker Ben Sauls had one of his best games in the 28-27 comeback win against the Cincinnati Bearcats.

Sauls hit three field goals, the first from 47 yards and the second a career-long of 53 yards right at the end of the first half, scoring the first six points of the game for the Panthers. He would finish off the game with a 35-yarder with less than 30 seconds remaining, which capped off a 21 points comeback from midway in the third quarter, over the Bearcats.

Field goal to win the game? Better call Sauls. 📞 pic.twitter.com/Kq2CmpQ3m0

— ACC Football (@ACCFootball) September 10, 2024

His efforts receivied plenty of plaudits from his coaches and teammates, but he also earned a Lou Groza Star of the Week honor as well. He is one of three place kickers to earn the award, with Kanon Woodill of Northern Illinois, who hit three field goals in the upset win over No. 5 Notre Dame on the road, and Collin Rogers of SMU, who hit five field goals for all 15 points in the 18-15 loss at home to BYU.

Sauls hit both field goals in the season opener against Kent State and is 5-of-5 on the season. He only made 11-of-16 field goals, 69%, last season, which didn't measure his 2022 stats, as he made 20-of-24 field goals, 83%, including all five attempts in the 37-35 win over UCLA in the Sun Bowl.

He also received ACC Specialist of the Week honors, joining three of his teammates on the ACC Team of the Week. This included junior Desmond Reid, who earned ACC Running Back of the Week honors, redshirt freshman quarterback Eli Holstein, who earned ACC Rookie of the Week honors, and senior Konata Mumpfield, who received ACC Wide Receiver of the Week honors.

"It's a combination of great teammates, great coaches, a great plan and I'm blessed to have a great [offensive] line, good snap and hold," Sauls said on his performance post game. "But Eli knows, he knows. Get the ball across the 50[-yard line] and we're gonna have a dang good shot at hitting some points. So it's a combination of all of that."

Sauls and Pitt will face rival West Virginia in the Backyard Brawl this weekend on Sept. 14, with kickoff set for 3:30 p.m., as they look to stay undefeated.

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