Kalen DeBoer puts Grady Gross on scholarship after game-winning kick

After beating in-state rival Washington State for the Apple Cup to conclude the 2023 college football season in Week 13, the Washington Huskies and head coach Kalen DeBoer had plenty to celebrate. However, the hero of the game, kicker Grady Gross, who made the game-winning field goal, had the biggest reason to celebrate following a surprise announcement from the Huskies’ head coach.

Following the 24-21 victory, the Washington players And coaching staff celebrated the win. And it was then that DeBoer made his surprise announcement, revealing to Gross and the rest of the Huskies program that the kicker was now a scholarship player.

The moment @gross_grady earned a scholarship 🥹🙌#USvsUS #WinnersWin pic.twitter.com/fqz1Au9Wuq

— Washington Football (@UW_Football) November 26, 2023

DeBoer also addressed Gross earning a scholarship in the post-game press conference following their win over Washington State. According to the Huskies headman, this was something that had been in the works for a while. The only problem for DeBoer was when to announce the news.

“Yeah, it’s something we’ve been talking about; he’s earned it,” said DeBoer. “He’s really had a great year, and I know he’s had a couple of misses, but I mean, he’s just such a mentally tough kid. I see it every day in practice. We’ve seen big kicks in games and all of that.

“We were just looking for the right time. I think today was the right time to make that happen. So we knew, sooner or later, the time was gonna come where we were gonna recognize him. And our team just really believes in Grady. They love him because they know that he didn’t have that scholarship; that might even be one piece to where they love him even more. He’s had some big kicks for us last year.”

Oregon Ducks vs. Washington Huskies odds: Early point spread released for Pac-12 Championship Game

It will be a much-anticipated rematch of Oregon and Washington in the Pac-12 Championship Game on Friday night in Las Vegas. The undefeated Huskies clinched a berth in Week 12 and the one-loss Ducks secured a spot with a Black Friday win on rivalry weekend.

And a red-hot Oregon team is favored to win the rematch over Washington, opening as a 7.5-point favorite for the neutral site game, according to FanDuel. The over/under is not yet set.

How to watch Pac-12 Championship Game

Time: Dec. 1, 7:00 p.m. ET
Channel: FOX, FuboTV (streaming)
Location: Las Vegas

The second edition of this rivalry game has been in the offing since Washington defeated Oregon, 36-33, in Seattle in mid-October. But both teams needed to run a gauntlet of ranked teams to get there — Oregon needing to avoid a second loss to stay in College Football Playoff contention.