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Reice Griffith earned first-team All-Southern Conference honors for Mercer last season, making 14-of-17 field goal attempts, including a career-long 51-yarder.
Rocket Spotlight on Reice Griffith
4/9/2026 8:25:00 AM | Football
On how an NFL kicker from his hometown prompted him to give up soccer and start playing football, and the Toledo record he'd love to break in 2026
Reice Griffith is a senior placekicker from Pace, Fla. He made 40-of-52 field goals and never missed an extra point (145 straight) in three seasons at Mercer. He earned first-team All-Southern Conference honors last season, making 14-of-17 field goal attempts, including a career-long 51-yarder. Griffith left Mercer as the Bears' all-time leading scorer with 265 points.
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On his hometown and family
I'm from Pace, Fla., which is right outside of Pensacola. I have an older sister, Mary. My dad played college soccer at Mississippi College, and my sister played soccer in high school.
On sports he played as a kid
I just played soccer my whole life. I didn't play baseball. I didn't play football. I messed around in the backyard but I didn't play anything competitively other than soccer. I started playing soccer when I was about four years old, and I played travel soccer until eighth grade.
On having his father as his soccer coach
Growing up, my dad was a hardcore soccer coach. It was fun having him as my coach, but sometimes it wasn't fun because he was kind of hard on me because I was his own kid. He was also the coach at my high school.
On his switch from soccer to football
Ryan Santoso was a kicker from my high school and played with the Jacksonville Jaguars, the Detroit Lions, and a couple other NFL teams. He was the first one to tell me I should start playing football instead of soccer. Pace is a small town so he was well known around our area. Everybody knew who he was. One of my dad's friends from church put me in contact with him. That's how we got to know each other. He came out to work with me one day in my eighth-grade year and then put me in touch with some kicking coaches. I didn't play football until my freshman year of high school.
On injuring his leg in high school
I got hurt my sophomore year when I had a tibia fracture on my left (kicking) leg. I hurt it in a punt block drill. It was just a freak accident. So it kind of put me in a hole. I was in a cast for like six months. So I didn't play football or soccer in my sophomore year.
On reflecting on his choice to give up soccer
I do miss it sometimes, but I don't have any regrets (about not playing soccer). I had a talk with my dad after my injury. He said it was better to not risk getting hurt again because I was just starting to get recruited (for football). He said my future was in football. It's just kind of hard to get recruited for soccer in north Florida. I think I knew my path was more open in football. By eighth grade, I was already kicking 45, 47-yard field goals.
On how he got noticed as a kicker and ended up signing with Mercer
I started off by going to train with Mike McCabe with One On One Kicking in Birmingham, Ala. I still go train with him when I'm on break. It really started going for me recruiting-wise was when I went to Jamie Kohl's kicking camp. I got ranked pretty high in my class which put me on the radar. Going into my junior year, I made a lot of (college) visits and went through the recruiting process, which was very stressful. I was getting recruited by some pretty big schools, but they wanted me to be a preferred walk-on. Mercer basically offered me a full scholarship. Mercer was a good school where I could get a good education, and I played right away and started as a true freshman.
On why he chose to transfer to Toledo
I was very successful at Mercer. No regrets. But you can only do so much before it becomes what you did already. When Coach Jacobs left and the new staff at Mercer came in, I started looking. I love Coach Jacobs. I love Coach U (special teams coordinator Matt Ulrich). I have so much respect for them and how much they've shaped me into the kind of kicker I am today. I chose Toledo because I didn't really want to feel like I had to start over with new coaches in my senior year. I liked it at Mercer, so I was like, why would I not just follow them (to Toledo)? I love it here so far. It's a great place. This is right where the Lord wants me to be. I'm excited to be here in Toledo. Everyone has been so welcoming to me. I'm just very blessed.
On how long a field goal he thinks he can kick this year
My longest field goal at Mercer was 51 yards, which tied the school record. I'm hoping this year I can get a 57- or 58-yarder (Toledo record is 55 yards). Fifty-nine yards would be a miracle. Okay, not a miracle, but it would be pretty cool. They tell me it can be tough to kick up here in November. But I think the ball will travel in the cold. It's the wind that affects it more .
On his goals for 2026
Now that I'm playing at an FBS school, one of my goals is to be one of the semifinalists for the Lou Groza Award (top placekicker in the nation).
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On his career plans after football
I definitely want to try to play at the next level. That's a real dream of mine, to play in the NFL. But you always have to have a backup plan. I'm on track to graduate in the spring of 2027. I'm thinking about going to law school at some point. I might want to be a sports agent. I like sports, so being a sports agent would be kind of cool.
Â
On his hometown and family
I'm from Pace, Fla., which is right outside of Pensacola. I have an older sister, Mary. My dad played college soccer at Mississippi College, and my sister played soccer in high school.
On sports he played as a kid
I just played soccer my whole life. I didn't play baseball. I didn't play football. I messed around in the backyard but I didn't play anything competitively other than soccer. I started playing soccer when I was about four years old, and I played travel soccer until eighth grade.
On having his father as his soccer coach
Growing up, my dad was a hardcore soccer coach. It was fun having him as my coach, but sometimes it wasn't fun because he was kind of hard on me because I was his own kid. He was also the coach at my high school.
On his switch from soccer to football
Ryan Santoso was a kicker from my high school and played with the Jacksonville Jaguars, the Detroit Lions, and a couple other NFL teams. He was the first one to tell me I should start playing football instead of soccer. Pace is a small town so he was well known around our area. Everybody knew who he was. One of my dad's friends from church put me in contact with him. That's how we got to know each other. He came out to work with me one day in my eighth-grade year and then put me in touch with some kicking coaches. I didn't play football until my freshman year of high school.
On injuring his leg in high school
I got hurt my sophomore year when I had a tibia fracture on my left (kicking) leg. I hurt it in a punt block drill. It was just a freak accident. So it kind of put me in a hole. I was in a cast for like six months. So I didn't play football or soccer in my sophomore year.
On reflecting on his choice to give up soccer
I do miss it sometimes, but I don't have any regrets (about not playing soccer). I had a talk with my dad after my injury. He said it was better to not risk getting hurt again because I was just starting to get recruited (for football). He said my future was in football. It's just kind of hard to get recruited for soccer in north Florida. I think I knew my path was more open in football. By eighth grade, I was already kicking 45, 47-yard field goals.
On how he got noticed as a kicker and ended up signing with Mercer
I started off by going to train with Mike McCabe with One On One Kicking in Birmingham, Ala. I still go train with him when I'm on break. It really started going for me recruiting-wise was when I went to Jamie Kohl's kicking camp. I got ranked pretty high in my class which put me on the radar. Going into my junior year, I made a lot of (college) visits and went through the recruiting process, which was very stressful. I was getting recruited by some pretty big schools, but they wanted me to be a preferred walk-on. Mercer basically offered me a full scholarship. Mercer was a good school where I could get a good education, and I played right away and started as a true freshman.
On why he chose to transfer to Toledo
I was very successful at Mercer. No regrets. But you can only do so much before it becomes what you did already. When Coach Jacobs left and the new staff at Mercer came in, I started looking. I love Coach Jacobs. I love Coach U (special teams coordinator Matt Ulrich). I have so much respect for them and how much they've shaped me into the kind of kicker I am today. I chose Toledo because I didn't really want to feel like I had to start over with new coaches in my senior year. I liked it at Mercer, so I was like, why would I not just follow them (to Toledo)? I love it here so far. It's a great place. This is right where the Lord wants me to be. I'm excited to be here in Toledo. Everyone has been so welcoming to me. I'm just very blessed.
On how long a field goal he thinks he can kick this year
My longest field goal at Mercer was 51 yards, which tied the school record. I'm hoping this year I can get a 57- or 58-yarder (Toledo record is 55 yards). Fifty-nine yards would be a miracle. Okay, not a miracle, but it would be pretty cool. They tell me it can be tough to kick up here in November. But I think the ball will travel in the cold. It's the wind that affects it more .
On his goals for 2026
Now that I'm playing at an FBS school, one of my goals is to be one of the semifinalists for the Lou Groza Award (top placekicker in the nation).
Â
On his career plans after football
I definitely want to try to play at the next level. That's a real dream of mine, to play in the NFL. But you always have to have a backup plan. I'm on track to graduate in the spring of 2027. I'm thinking about going to law school at some point. I might want to be a sports agent. I like sports, so being a sports agent would be kind of cool.
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