Five things to watch for in Birmingham Bowl between Memphis and Auburn

Oct 4, 2014; Cincinnati, OH, USA; Memphis Tigers place kicker Jake Elliott (46) attempts a field goal against the Cincinnati Bearcats at Paul Brown Stadium. Memphis won 41-14. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports

3. Kicking

This could be an exciting field goal matchup as the kickers for each team finished as finalist for the Lou Groza award, which goes to the nation’s top college kicker.

Junior Jake Elliott for Memphis finished the season 22-26 on field goal attempts with a long of 52, while Auburn’s Daniel Carlson was 22-26 with a long of 56 yards. Elliot made all 62 of the extra points he attempted in 2015, and 72 of his 96 kick off attempts went for touchbacks. He was 6-6 from 20-29 yards, 7-10 from 30-39, 8-9 from 40-49 and was 1-1 from beyond 50 yards.

Carlson, a sophomore, booted through all 36 of his extra point attempts, and 45 of his 63 kickoff attempts went for a touchback. He was 7-9 from 20-29 yards, 7-7 from 30-39, 4-5 from 40-49 and 4-5 from 50 yards or more.

Both kickers finished as the top scorer on their respective teams. Carlson finished the year with 102 points, while Elliott racked up 128 points thanks to that high scoring Memphis attack.

This game very well could come down to a field goal, and if that’s the case both coaches have to feel good about their chances – if they’re kicker is the one kicking the game-winning field goal. There is a good chance that both of these kickers are kicking on Sundays, so while field goals might not be the most exciting part of a football game, at least in this one you’ll be seeing two of the best in the country.

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