Cal may have won the 125th Big Game 27-20, but none of their players picked up a Pac-12 Player of the Week award. As for Stanford, junior kicker Joshua Karty picked up Pac-12 Player of the Week honors after going 2-2 on his field goals (42 yards, 61 yards) while also making both of his extra points.
The 61 yarder came right as time expired, making it the longest Big Game field goal, longest Stanford field goal, and second longest Pac-12 field goal in history (62 yards, Jason Hanson, Washington State, 1991). It was also the longest FBS field goal this season by 5 yards.
While it had no effect on the final outcome of the game, it did feel like Karty was sending a bit of a statement with that kick. He didn’t just make the 61 yard field goal. He made it with plenty of yards to spare. He could have made that kick from the Valley Life Sciences Building (VLSB) on the UC Berkeley campus.
In a season that has been frustrating for the Cardinal, Karty has been a major bright spot. He hasn’t missed a field goal all season and with an offense that has struggled to find the end zone, he’s had a chance to really shine. The Arizona State victory was all him as he scored all 15 of Stanford’s points.
As a result of his stellar kicking, Karty is a semifinalist for the Lou Garza Award, given out to the top kicker in the nation. He has not missed a field goal or extra point all season and has been nothing short of perfect this season. I think it’s going to be tough to find a kicker in the nation who has had a better season than him.
Even though he knew the game was not within reach, I think it’s really cool that David Shaw gave Joshua Karty the chance to set the Stanford and Big Game record for longest field goal. While the team may have come up short, Karty at least etched himself in the Big Game record books forever.
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