Every week on ESPN’s College GameDay, a student in attendance has a chance to kick a field goal and win a hefty cash prize courtesy of Pat McAfee, who pays the winners out of his own pocket.
Some attempts are good, some attempts simply aren’t, but one Vanderbilt student had the best kick we’ve seen yet.
Vanderbilt student Tyler Hwang was chosen out of the crowd to attempt a 33-yard field goal with $500,000 on the line. And there was never much doubt, especially about the distance.
Tyler, wearing a Diego Pavia jersey, looked confident the entire time as he hyped up the crowd before his kick. He then gave everyone a bit of a hint of what was to come when he lined up his kick and took his steps backward liked a trained kicker who had done this before. There was a reason for that – Hwang was a high school soccer player who even took kicks for his football team.
And judging by the kick, Hwang could have had a future if he decided to pursue kicking instead of his chemical engineering degree at Vanderbilt.
Tyler from Vanderbilt wins $500,000 in Pat McAfee’s kicking contest and probably earned several NIL offers from colleges in need of kickers. What a kick! pic.twitter.com/xi5JVAa9vm
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) October 25, 2025
“The whole deal here,” Kirk Herbstreit said. “This has got a shot, man.”
“He’s got his steps,” McAfee said. “He’s no stranger.”
When the kick left his foot, there was little doubt as the ball went through the uprights with ease. The kick would have been good for well over 40 yards – at least in terms of distance. Earlier this week, Vanderbilt’s actual kickers held a practice for prospective participants, but it looks like it wasn’t necessary.
Tyler immediately pulled out a well-deserved golf-themed celebration before running to give some high-fives to the excited crowd.
“Take the lap, kid!” McAfee said, urging him to celebrate with the crowd before giving him a hip bump himself.
That kick earned him $500,000 for Tyler and another $250,000 for charity. But based on the distance he had, it might have earned him some looks from kicker-needy colleges, too.
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