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Washington Kicker Earns Scholarship, NIL Offer After Heroics

Former walk-on Grady Gross immediately capitalizes off Apple Cup-winning kick

Matt Wadleigh

Washington Kicker Earns Scholarship, NIL Offer After Heroics
Washington Kicker Earns Scholarship, NIL Offer After Heroics /
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The no. 3-ranked and still undefeated Washington (12-0) survived a tough Apple Cup showdown over the weekend against interstate rival Washington State, earning the last-second win via a 42-yard field goal by walk-on kicker Grady Gross. 

The Huskies now face Oregon in the Pac-12 Championship game with the winner likely earning a spot in the College Football Playoff.

Since his game-winning heroics on Saturday, Gross' story has gone national. Immediately following the game, Huskies head coach Kalen DeBoer announced to the team that they were awarding the sophomore a scholarship. The video of DeBoer' post game speech has gone viral, with Gross' moment as the highlight.

"It's Thanksgiving weekend and I'm thankful for Grady Gross," DeBoer said to his team. "And you know what I hope Grady Gross is thankful for? This scholarship he's earned." 

After the scholarship video, Simply Seattle - a shop for all things Seattle-related -  mentioned Gross on X and reached out to offer a NIL deal. 

"Hey @gross_grady how about a NIL deal and scholarship in the same day?"

Simply Seattle has quite the collection of Washington gear and already released a 12-0 Apple Cup champions shirt. 

Although there hasn't been confirmation of Gross' NIL deal with Simply Seattle yet, expect some social media support to come this week.

Gross finishes the regular season 11-for-15 on field goals, with one of those misses coming against Washington State, but he went perfect on 55 extra-point attempts. 

With the Huskies needing a win to stay alive for the College Football Playoff, Grady Gross' huge leg was the story of the night, and he has quickly become a household name in Washington. 

The Huskies face the Ducks again - in a rematch from earlier this season - on Friday at 7PM ET on FOX.

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Matt Wadleigh
MATT WADLEIGH

Matt Wadleigh covers the NIL on FanNation, writing about all of the topsy-turvy deals in the whacky world of college sports. Matt also works as a staff writer for Trojans Wire and Buffaloes Wire at USA Today and covers sports as a whole at ClutchPoints. In the past, Matt has written for various sites, including FanSided, Sportscasting, and many others. Matt attended Fresno State and is a Bulldogs fan through and through, but grew up in Southern California and still holds loyalties to the Padres, Chargers, Lakers, and Aztecs basketball. It's not always easy being a San Diego sports fan, but the future looks bright. Hopefully. 

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