You dont see barefoot kickers in the National Football League anymore but there was a time when kicking with their shoes off was so common, it was cause for zero notice. Majority of Jans money comes from being a football player. said Jan Stenerud. ", "Plenty," Stenerud said later. Mark Moseley, who kicked four field goals, had a chance to . As Stenerud lined up, he remembered actually eyeing up the goal posts at the other end of the field before asking himself what the hell am I doing? and driving the ball to around the opposing 30. "He brought me in a month early before my first season. The reason most kickers don't kick barefoot is that you will not make perfect contact with the football every time. Ski jumping requires concentration and, of course, kicking field goals requires concentration as well. He converted 373 out of 558 field goals (67 percent) and 580 out of 601 extra points (97%) for a total of 1,699 points scored. General 73 SPD 77 ACC 64 AGI Kicking 99 KPW 93 KAC Fake 37 SAC 33 MAC 38 THP 23 RUN You were exceptional, and I salute you. The sentences, yelled by Montana State football coach Jim Sweeney Hey, skier, get down here! He kicked three field goals in Kansas Citys Super Bowl IV win, made the Pro Bowl four times, was named an All-Pro four times, earned spots on both the 75th and 100th NFL Anniversary teams, had his number retired by the Chiefs, and is a member of both the Chiefs and Packers team Halls of Fame. Not only did Butker make two more field goals in that game including the game-winning 43-yard attempt with eight seconds left he also didnt miss either a PAT or a field goal for the next two months. And painfulhe was wearing tennis shoes. Gano due to the contract that former Chief kicker Ryan Succop had just negotiated with the Tennessee Titans scored a four-year, $17 million deal with the Panthers last spring, while the Chiefs still have Butker on an inexpensive deal for two more seasons. [Football] is so important to the people of the community and the people of the state. His status then was the same as any five-year redshirt. We liked him coming out. I can honestly say that if you havent played football in Green Bay and youve been in the NFL a long time, youve missed out on something special, he said in an interview with Monday Night Football in 2000. Jan Steneruds mothers name is unknown at this time and his fathers name is under review. Though ineligible for football competition that season, Sweeney encouraged Stenerud to suit up with the team for the final home game of 1964, to help him better understand the unfamiliar American game. Website design & development by americaneagle.com copyright 2021 Pro Football hall of fame all rights reserved, Black College Football Hall of Fame Classic. On one of the other days Jan was running steps, a kicker on the football team practicing on his own encouraged Jan to join him. "What do you call that?" It was supposed to be a fake, with the ball snapped directly to Stenerud. He kicked with his toe like [50 Greatest Vikings member] Fred Cox," Stenerud explained. In 1981, when he was with the Green Bay Packers, he made 22 of 24 field goals, a league record of 91% -- 91.7 -- and he had an impact also on the Hall of Fame because he was the very first specialist to enter Pro Football's Hall of Fame. Stenerud kicked 18 of 33 field goals in two years at MSU. Stenerud, who grew up playing soccer, went down to the field and tried kicking the football. Up and Down arrows will open main level menus and toggle through sub tier links. When the professional average was 50 percent, Stenerud hit better than 70 percent in his first four years with the Chiefs, and his deep kickoffs were part of a movement to push them back to the 35 (and later the 30). "I was out with some of the other skiers, getting my legs in shape for the season. AZ, CO, CT, IL, IN, IA, KS, LA, (select parishes), MD, MI, NH, NJ, NY, OH, OR, PA, TN, VA, WV, WY, CA-ONT only.Eligibility restrictions apply. He made another that day, but the Chiefs had seen enough. NOW: So I'm talkin' to Jan Stenerud, the Hall of Fame kicker, . Get in-depth, sideline coverage of Kansas City area sports - only $1 a month. My dad, who was never afraid of thinking big, and my mother, who realized that goals could not be reached without an all-out effort. Chiefs meet with Florida defensive tackle ahead of NFL Draft. In his postgame press conference, he took a cue from Butkers Twitter handle @buttkicker7, and referred to him as Buttkicker-dot-com.. CHIEFS WIN!! He is best known for being a Football Player. Jan Stenerud is a Football Player, zodiac sign: Sagittarius. A group of receivers are set to make some noise this week. He didn't have a prima donna bone in his body. But for the Chiefs, the best news might be the spectacular deal they got on Butker. Now he hustled up to Stram. By David Eulitt Fifty years ago this. She's still explaining the game to me.". For 19 years, Jan Stenerud has been winning games with field goals. Every day he had me out there kicking 50 ballsand he was doing all the holding. [fetch instagram= display=posts show=2 ]. He was a great competitor, and no one was better than Jan when the game was on the line. Jan Stenerud, a native of Fetsund, Norway, took a crooked path to football immortality. There also are a couple of other people I would like to acknowledge that were teammates at Montana State. May 20, 2012 11,113 12,747 113. Well, I didn't know that until Stram pointed it out. In his first collegiate season, Jan connected on seven field goals more than the Bobcats had converted in the previous three seasons combined. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1991. "But really," says Stenerud, "I had my mind made up five minutes after I talked to Stram. You play to win, not merely prevail. The site navigation utilizes arrow, enter, escape, and space bar key commands. When no deal could be made, the Panthers cut Butker, held their breath and placed him on their practice squad after he cleared waivers. I always felt if I had two bad games in a row, I would be unemployed. Jan Stenerud, Kansas City Chiefs -- 1971 Before the AFC divisional playoff matchup between the Chiefs and Miami Dolphins on Christmas Day became the longest game in NFL history, Stenerud had a chance to end it in regulation. "Right down the middle," Reid yelled. His list of outstanding achievements is long. Shoeless. * 21+ (19+ CA-ONT) (18+ NH/WY). They were too young to see action in World War II and too old to participate in the fun of the Summer of Love. Jan Stenerud. "The wind had been blowing hard all day and our punter was having trouble getting the ball back to the line of scrimmage. As a placekicker at Tech, Butker will be long remembered for two field goals in 2014 one in the last second against Virginia Tech to win the game, and a 53-yarder against Georgia that sent the game into overtime along with another in the final minute of the 2015 game against Florida State. After asking if he could try it. Passing, Rushing, & Receiving. The schools basketball coach noticed him booting the ball around the field, tipped off the football coaches, and the rest is history. Along with his 13 seasons in Kansas City, Stenerud was a member of the Green Bay Packers for four seasons and the Minnesota Vikings for two seasons until retiring in 1985. He was one of the winningest coaches in all of college football. We have Bobby Bell, a great linebacker, Len Dawson, Buck Buchanan, Willie Lanier and, of course, our owner Lamar Hunt, who is also in the Hall of Fame. Once more details are available on who he is dating, we will update this section. And while that may be true, Steneruds story might be worth bringing him through our hypothetical time portal. [3][5] In 2013, Stenerud recalled that he had a significant tail-wind aiding him on that kick in Bozeman; the ensuing kick-off went over the end-zone bleachers at Gatton Field,[4] whose elevation exceeded 4,900 feet (1,495m) above sea level. The 6-2, 187-pound Stenerud excelled for 19 seasons and 263 games in pro football. Also, it can get really cold out there. Oops. Jan Stenerud, who was born November 26, 1942, in Fetsund, Norway, was an outstanding ski jumper who attended Montana State on a skiing scholarship. So he snapped it to a surprised Dawson, and the out-of-rhythm Stenerud tried to adjust but missed. Jan Stenerud Autographed Signed 8X10 Photo Packers Kicking Fg JSA WIN. Kansas City Chiefs Jan Stenerud in action, taking kick from QB Len Dawson vs Miami Dolphins. Is Butker finally the right man for the job? He never missed a game because of injury or illness. If there are qualitiesI have inherited from both of themis the stability and determination. "One day I was in school on a ski scholarship, the next I was on the football team. Three months later, he signed a free agent contract with the Green Bay Packers, with whom he stayed with for four seasons. It made a difference.". If you buy something from an SB Nation link, Vox Media may earn a commission. In 2008, free agent Nick Novak didnt last the season, either; he was replaced by Connor Barth after just six weeks. The White House was occupied by a B-movie actor, Hollywood seemed to want to make any cocaine-fueled idea for a movie that it could find, and football kickers were punting and scoring field goals in the dead of winter. He was a consensus All-America selection. Stenerud, the middle of Johan and Klara Steneruds three children, was skiing since before he can remember: from the jumps his father built outside their house in Fetsund (population approximately 7,000) to the improvised ones hed contrive like other local kids or at any of a half-dozen venues that lit the town at night. Jan Stenerud was born on November 26, 1942 in Norway (80 years old). A native of Decatur, Georgia who attended Atlantas exclusive Westminster School, he is a product of Georgia Tech, from which he graduated with a degree in industrial engineering. Jan Stenerud (born November 26, 1942) is a former professional football player for the American Football League's Kansas City Chiefs (1967-1969), and the NFL's Chiefs (1970-1979), Green Bay Packers (1980-1983), and Minnesota Vikings (1984-1985). There are certain occasions in everybody's life that make you think about the people that influenced you the most and helped you. "But it was me it helped, not Jan. He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1991 and remains the only player who was primarily a kicker enshrined in Canton, Ohio. Its a special experience. He is the first pure placekicker to be. ProFootballHistory.com. Jan, thanks very much for the honor of permitting me to present you here today and have you joinour other great players and Lamar Hunt in the National Football League Hall of Fame:Bobby Bell, Lenny Dawson, Buck Buchanan, Willie Lanier. The first Norwegian to play in the NFL, Stenerud pioneered the soccer-style kicking that is used by all modern placekickers and was the first pure kicker to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall . [3][4], Following the ski season, Stenerud joined the football team for spring drills in 1965 and as a junior that fall he kicked a 59-yard field goal, then a college football record, in a 247 home win over rival Montana. It seemed like a great time to catch you up on Butkers story, and what we hope will be the beginning of another long period of excellence in the Chiefs kicking game. Most positions require skill, strength, speed, intelligence and mental toughness. Its not an exaggeration to say he was one of the leagues most accurate kickers during that time period. The Chiefs got the ball to the Miami 15 with about 35 seconds. He was a consistent role model for his family, his university, pro football and the great fans of this country. Left and right arrows move across top level links and expand / close menus in sub levels. On this day, Jan heard 10 words that changed not only the trajectory of his life but also the record books in college football and in two professional football leagues in the decades that followed. This story was originally published May 13, 2017, 4:50 PM. MSU students arrived at Gatton Field early to watch Stenerud kick on warmups. A miss in the 2017 postseason a 48-yard attempt in the third quarter of the 22-21 loss to the Tennessee Titans that easily could have made a difference in the game might have removed some of Butkers luster among Chiefs fans, but most fans probably remember uhhh other failures in that game. The result was that Stenerud became a football player. Even on a perfect day, one in which he shoots a 76 in a Pebble Beach Celebrity golf outing. Stenerud was a six-time all-star (four NFL Pro Bowls and two AFL All-Star games) during his career, as well as a four-time first-team All-Pro in the NFL and a two-time first-team All-AFL. The next year, though, he took college football by storm. re: Barefoot Kickers Posted on 8/6/10 at 9:30 am to SM6. People who are born with Jupirer as the ruling planet are optimistic and have a big appetite for life. What do you want me to do?" If that scene sounds absurd by todays standards imagine Andy Reid doing the same for Cairo Santos this was about more than Strams endless innovations and eccentricities. I did. Meanwhile, even his troubles that day are routinely oversimplified in the shorthand of scapegoating. They snagged a drafted rookie without expending any draft capital, and will end up having him on a minimum-cost contract for almost four full seasons a point former sports agent Joel Corry noted last January. "Just because I dont do cartwheels when I make a game-winning field goal doesnt mean Im not extremely pleased.. Like just before our first game against Houston this year. Does all that add up to a player worth swapping for Mason Crosby? When I grew up in Norway, my dream was to become an outstanding ski jumper. Tab will move on to the next part of the site rather than go through menu items. From 1994 until Ryan Succop joined the team in 2009, only one kicker had stayed with the team longer than three seasons: longtime Miami Dolphins placekicker Pete Stoyanovich handled placekicking from 1996 into the 2000 season. And it came while Stenerud was running on the school track. But Stenerud made the most of those opportunities. Stenerud retired after the 1985 season, his 19th (3 AFL, 16 NFL). Jan Stenerud was born in Fetsund, in the county of Akershus, Norway. In 1969 he made 27. In training camp, Butker had a tough battle against veteran kicker Graham Gano and ultimately the Panthers couldnt decide. Soon, Stenerud was running steps during a football practice when he heard Sweeneys gruff voice: Skier, get your butt down here. He speaks that language. He'll show you how to put it on. He had been listed as a senior the year before, but purposely fell seven credits short of graduation in order to take another crack at this crazy game called football. Now how in the hell was I going to help him if he ever got in a slump if I didn't know what he was doing? Those two seasons represented the lowest point of a long, bad stretch of placekicking inconsistency for the Chiefs. "Ah, never mind, son," said Sweeney. KANSAS CITY Mo. Few did at a time Pete Gogolak and Garo Yepremian were the only so-called sidewinders in the professional game. The first time I saw Jan, he was kicking 40-yard field goals like they were extra points in the preseason, pre-warm up game against Tulsa and Montana State in Tulsa, Okla., in 1966. Stenerud missed the FG but my opine, the wrong choice was made pre-kick. While Stenerud remains anguished and unreasonably stigmatized in some circles by a miserable day in 1971, its time to help him let that go by commemorating his improbable story a half-century after it began here. Players for the Eagles, Broncos, Rams, and Steelers were all known to kick off their shoes before kicking off the game (except for the Rams - their kicker always wore shoes on kickoffs). Start date Jan 29, 2018; G. Glenn's take All-American. And with all of his accomplishments, recognition, statistics and records, the best thing about Jan is Jan the person. Jan holds the record for career field goals, 373. Height: 6-2; Weight: 187. pic.twitter.com/Uu5Bm27dSq. Having retired in 1985, Stenerud doesn't kick field goals any more. The Kansas City Chiefs have just concluded their 59th season as a professional football franchise. The basketball coach saw him kicking and alerted the football coach, Jim Sweeney, who gave Stenerud a tryout. But I did get the ball out to mid-field. He won Super Bowl IV under Chiefs head coach Hank Stram. As a high-school youngster in Norway, before accepting the ski-jumping scholarship to Montana State, he had been listed as one of the country's most promising young soccer players. "Do you want to loosen your leg?" Thinking back to his time on the Panthers practice squad, Butker said he always had confidence he could succeed in the NFL. Chinese Zodiac: Jan Stenerud was born in the Year of the Rabbit. Jan Stenerud was selected to the Pro Bowl six times. It is undeniable that a kicker's position is isolated and that the skills that are necessary to become an outstanding kicker are different from those skills required to play most other positions. But both of them along with his fiancee Isabelle and his kicking coach Jamie Kohl flew to Kansas City for Butkers Chiefs debut in Week 4: a Monday night game against the Washington Redskins. Im so used to seeing Carolina blue and Panthers stuff having been in Charlotte and now its red, which is weird, having gone to Georgia Tech.. Now, he will simply call the day a horrible experience, one that he suffers more from because he believes its often referred to with little balance about his broader career. He put his hand on my shoulder and said, Young man, what are you doing tomorrow?. In recent years, Stenerud has been involved in a Kansas City firm involved in designing stadiums and sports arenas. Up went the ball, up and away, through the two skinny poles called goalposts, out of sight. Atlanta had drafted Stenerud at the end of the season, and he had promised to talk with the Falcons before making a decision. She is not dating anyone. When you get off that ramp and you fly through the air for a moment, you feel as though you have conquered the world as you are soaring high above the ground. After three seasons particularly after Santos 2016 overtime kick against the Broncos in Denver doinked off the left upright and slipped in behind the right one to win the game it seemed that the Chiefs might have finally found a long-term solution at the position. Once they saw Stenerud kick, all doubts were erased. AZ, CO, CT, IL, IN, IA, KS, LA, (select parishes), MD, MI, NH, NJ, NY, OH, OR, PA, TN, VA, WV, WY, CA-ONT only.Eligibility restrictions apply. But in 2017, Santos missed several preseason games with a groin injury. The excitement of the Chiefs-Raiders contests. I mentioned Hank earlier, and you know his coaching record, but one thing you don't know about Hank that made the biggest impact on me. Reaching back with his right leg, Stenerud slammed the football so hard with the ball of his right foot that it sounded like two horses colliding. The official source for NFL news, video highlights, fantasy football, game-day coverage, schedules, stats, scores and more. The greatest overall compatibility with Sagittarius is Gemini and Aries. Various publications have their all-time teams and best-ever teams. $346.14. But Succop wasnt the first young kicker the team had tried. Meet the newest member of the Butker family! James Augustine Butker 1/27/19 12:29am9lb 5 oz, 21 inchesSs. The higher education of Jan Stenerud, a ski jumper from Fetsund, Norway, began one fall afternoon in 1965 when Jim Sweeney, then the head coach at Montana State, held up a bloated object and said, "Son, this is a football." Few games were played in domes, and there was scant specialized coaching or equipment taken for granted today. Sponsored by USAA, the 2023 Salute to Service Sign up for our newsletter and receive the mighty updates! Sports Illustrated 366K subscribers Kansas City Chiefs Hall of Fame Kicker Jan Stenerud teaches SI Now host Maggie Gray the proper technique for kicking a field goal. Over the years, Stram and Dawson (the holder) and Bobby Bell (the snapper) have told a handful of interviewers about the miscommunication: Stenerud was so intent on selling the fake that Bell worried he didnt know it was on. So on a blustery day with the punter struggling, Sweeney sent out the field goal unit to get the ball downfield from out of its own end zone. He knelt down and held the football for me 50 times for the last few weeks leading up to camp and that told me a lot about Hank Stram. "If we don't sign this kid right now," said Arbanas, "we'll be making the biggest mistake of our lives."