After a regular season full of feel-good moments and historic kicks, University of Hawai‘i star kicker Kansei Matsuzawa will find out where he stacks up among the country's best players on Friday, Dec. 12.
Matsuzawa is one of three finalists for the Lou Groza Award, given to college football's top kicker. The winner of the award will be revealed during the 2025 College Football Awards on ESPN, which airs live at 2 p.m. HST on Friday.
Matsuzawa finished the regular season 25-for-26 on field goals, as well as a perfect 37-for-37 on extra points. He was a perfect 25-for-25 on field goals before missing his last attempt in a 27-7 victory over Wyoming on Nov. 29.
Despite the late miss, Matsuzawa matched an FBS record with 25 consecutive field goal makes to begin a season. His field goal percentage of 96.2 remains tops in the country.
Earlier in the week, Matsuzawa was in Orlando, Fla. for the Groza Award banquet, along with fellow finalists Aidan Birr (Georgia Tech) and Tate Sandell (Oklahoma).
"I was really glad to see them," Matsuzawa said of interacting with Birr and Sandell. "We shared what I think, what they think on the field, off the field. It was a really amazing time to share the thoughts that we have. They have an amazing mindset. I happy to listen what they think. It was amazing."
After going a perfect 3-for-3 on field goals in UH's season-opening win over Stanford, including the game-winner as time expired, Matsuzawa's background as a self-taught YouTube kicker from Japan gained steam and captured the hearts of college football fans.
Matsuzawa, 26, began his college career at Hocking College in Ohio. He joined UH prior to the 2023 season as a walk-on but did not appear in any games. He won the starting job in 2024, making 12 of his 16 field goal attempts. Following the season, Hawai‘i head coach Timmy Chang awarded Matsuzawa a scholarship.
When asked about giving Matsuzawa a scholarship, Chang fondly remembers the look on his face. In the current era of players being poached away by six-figure NIL deals in the transfer portal, Chang believes Matsuzawa represents the sanctity of college football.
"Seeing that smile on his face is what it's about, you know? And if you asked me if you knew he was going to be one of the best kickers in the country when it was said and done, I wouldn't have imagined it. But he knew, and that's what matters, is that he knew. He knew this day would come if he just focused on being himself and the process and so hats off to him," Chang said.
With a budding fanbase both locally and globally, Matsuzawa added substance to his story week after week with each made kick. Hawai‘i games began to get steamed in Japan. A Matsuzawa T-shirt jersey replica was one of the UH bookstore's top selling items. The list goes on.
Were Matsuzawa to win on Friday, he would become the University of Hawai‘i's first major college football award winner in program history. But to UH special teams coordinator Thomas Sheffield, who accompanied Matsuzawa in Orlando, his legacy is already sealed.
"Japanese flags are being flown by so many fans and I think that we've opened up a whole new market of people that are going to start following UH football and coming to UH games. Kansei has built a legacy that's going to last forever," Sheffield said. "He is the best kicker to ever come through this program. I just think that's the coolest thing. I think the impact is astronomical.
"I love that kid so much, and I'm so proud of him and what he's been able to accomplish. And he has taken it on in such a professional way. I think that everybody can can be proud to wear that Kansei Matsuzawa shirt as well as the Hawai‘i logo."
Friday's awards show will be yet another step in Matsuzawa's journey. Following the Hawai‘i Bowl, he's expected to dive straight into preparation for the 2026 NFL Draft.
"He's made a case," Sheffield said of Matsuzawa's Groza Award chances. "I think he's done everything that he could possibly do to put himself in a position to win it. I will say this, and I mean no disrespect, he's the best kicker in the country. We don't need an award to tell us that. And he doesn't need an award to tell him that. He knows he's the best kicker in the country. We know that he's the best kicker in the country, and for him to even be a finalist is such an honor, and to share that stage with two other great kickers from the University of Oklahoma and Georgia Tech. I mean, what more could you ask for?
"This is just the start. There's still so much for him to do at the next level, and how he's going to represent him, his family, his country, the University of Hawai‘i at the next level, he is the best kicker in the country, and I'll stand on the tallest mountain and scream it from the tallest mountain until the cows come home."
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Christian Shimabuku can be reached at christian@alohastatedaily.com.
