MORGANTOWN - Scott Kozlowski said playing in a post-season bowl in his home state of Florida is the next best thing to actually playing in the Bowl Championship Series game.

The West Palm Beach, Fla., native said his family and about a half-dozen friends will be in the stands for the Jan. 1 Konica Minolta Gator as West Virginia University takes on Florida State.

"Playing in Florida is awesome," he said. "This is like being in a BCS game for the guys from Florida."

An all-conference selection, Kozlowski led the Big East in punting with a 44.8 yards per kick average. That was also good enough to rank him sixth in the country, and it earned him a third-team spot on Phil Steele's All-America team.

"I'm at a loss for words on that," he said. "It usually goes to guys for their careers, and I basically only played one and a half seasons. I guess I made the most of my opportunity."

Kozlowski was the Mountaineers' starting punter in his freshman season, but found himself relegated to the bench halfway through in favor of Pat McAfee. Kozlowski said he was puzzled by the move, as he had been kicking well. He never received an explanation for the switch from former coach Rich Rodriguez.

In those two seasons in which he was relegated to the bench, Kozlowski entertained thoughts of transferring to a school in which he would see playing time. But he said he did not want to go through the hassles of changing schools. He instead opted to prove his former coach wrong.

"He stayed the course," said WVU coach Bill Stewart, crediting Kozlowski's mental toughness. "He didn't want to leave West Virginia without proving to himself, his mom and dad and to his teammates that he could play at this level. He worked on his game and didn't pout. He's been a valuable asset to this football team.

Kozlowski takes a more stubborn view as to why he stayed the course, saying he was happy Stewart had enough faith in his abilities to give another shot at being the No. 1 guy.

"I not only wanted to prove that I could do it," he said. "I wasn't going to be run out of town or quit the team."

That faith from his coach was tested in the loss to South Florida when he sailed a punt into the end zone for a touchback instead of having it bounce short of the goal line. Stewart said in the week following the game that even the kickers would have to compete for playing time.

So with that in the back recesses of his mind, Kozlowski said he is treating the final game of his collegiate career the same as he would any other contest so as not to get too wound up and possibly hinder his performance, should he be called into action.

"Punters are kind of like quarterbacks," he said. "Everybody's eyes are watching you when you come into the game. You just have one shot to make that play."

Kozlowski has done that for the Mountaineers this season, Seventeen of his 44 punts have pinned opponents inside their own 20-yardline, and 17 of his punts have sailed 50 yards or more. Nineteen punts were not returned by the opponents.

He hopes those numbers are strong enough to warrant a look from pro scouts next season.

"My biggest fear is having to sit behind a desk," he says with a laugh.

The Gator Bowl offers the 9-3 Mountaineers a chance to continue their strong conclusion to the 2009 season, one which saw the team rally with victories over Pitt and Rutgers after losing a three-point heartbreaker to unbeaten and fifth-ranked Cincinnati.

"We knew after the Cincinnati game that we needed to win our last two games because we wanted to be in the best bowl game we could be in," he said. "I want to punt well for the team so I get a chance to hold the trophy at the end of the game."