"Whenever the team got to the 50-yard line (the student section) would start yelling, 'Send in Jan!'" Stenerud said with a laugh. The Norwegian kicked for the Chiefs, Green Bay Packers and Minnesota Vikings in a 19-year football career, culminating in becoming the first dedicated kicker inducted in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1991. 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. By David Eulitt Fifty years ago this. ", The first kick, with Stenerud using his toe as he had seen the others do, was a flop. 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. He'll show you how to put it on. Super Bowl IV and some of the great coaching with Hank Stram, of course, who won the Coach of the Year title four times. Jan Stenerud was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1991. But for the Panthers, thats all spilt milk. He quickly noticed that he booted it farther than the team's kicker. He is best known for being a Football Player. Why try to change whats going well? Jan was the most accurate kicker in all of pro football from '80 to '84; hemade 82% of this field goals. although your skin will start to sting and get irritated after 10 or so kicks. 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." Needless to say, he made a dramatic impact. In his first four seasons with Kansas City, he made 72%of his field goals when the league average was 50%. That's why I got out there every day; I was the guy doing the learning. Butkers field goal tied the game, but then this happened as time expired. He kicked 11 field goals and 49 extra points (in 50 attempts) to set an NCAA record with 82 points. JUMP TO: Jan Steneruds biography, facts, family, personal life, zodiac, videos, net worth, and popularity. [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. The truth is, more than four decades later, Stenerud can vividly recall the circumstances of his MSU conversion from Nordic ski jumper to future Pro Football Hall of Fame kicker. To learn more or opt-out, read our Cookie Policy. Jan Stenerud (/stnrud/, 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). Jan Stenerud. The MSU basketball coach, Roger Craft, noticed Stenerud booming kicks straight and long toward the goal posts and told the football coach, Jim Sweeney, what he had seen. Stenerud, who grew up playing soccer, went down to the field and tried kicking the football. He won Super Bowl IV under Chiefs head coach Hank Stram. Considering he still blames himself, he cant blame you if you think of him for that missed kick. A junior ski jump champion in his native Norway, Jan was recruited to Bozeman and already had earned all-conference and All-American honors as a member of the universitys ski team. Like many famous people and celebrities, Jan Stenerud keeps his personal life private. Jan Stenerud Net Worth Stats Baw Bakery. All along the way, he never forgot the first coach who gave him a shot. Few games were played in domes, and there was scant specialized coaching or equipment taken for granted today. After completing a training session, Stenerud noticed some football players kicking field goals and, recalling his background in soccer, he figured hed give it a try. Jokingly, he tried anothersoccer-styleoff his instep. He won the AFL championship three times. Jan Stenerud is part of the Silent Generation, which followed after the G.I. An amateur placekicker attempts to kick a field goal. 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. A year later, the Chiefs won a bidding war of sorts with the NFLs Atlanta Falcons when they signed Stenerud to a five-year, $250,000 contract that featured a no-cut provision. I can do this, he told the Journal-Constitution. For 27 of those seasons from 1967 through 1993 the Chiefs had only two placekickers: Jan Stenerud and Nick Lowery. He's always thinking. 11834 posts. Salvador Perezs home run on Thursday was overshadowed by a rare stolen base, which was improbable testimony to what he really means to the Royals. In the mid-1960s, the field goal became increasingly important to the game of football, about the same time as I had stepped onto the field at Montana State. But I was developing my skills as a soccer player and ski jumper, which is a perfect combination for a field goal kicker. He joined the football team his senior academic year and ended up playing two seasons of varsity football. I always felt that we would win or lose about four to six games a year with the kicking game. He didn't have a prima donna bone in his body. And this one day, I decided to go down and kick a few footballs, and all of us played a lot of soccer, and I guess I had one urge to try this oval ball. Thank you very much. The street where he grew up, in the municipality Fetsund, was renamed in his honor. His three field goals of 48, 32 and25 yards against the Vikings gave us a 9-0 lead, and his 48-yard kick had a stunning effect on Minnesota. Late in my career, in 1980 when everybody else in the league thought I was washed up, Bart Starr, the great player and then the coach for the Green Bay Packers, took a chance on me, and that paved the way for six more years for me in the league. Stenerud played parts of four seasons in Green Bay from 1980 to 1983, converting 59 of 73 field goal attempts and 115 of 118 extra points in that span. He talks, and he knows exactly what went wrong when [the placekicker] misses. "You can forget that," says Stram. The basketball coach, of all people, walked across the field and he ran over to the football coach, Jim Sweeney, and informed him that a ski jumper was kicking the hell out of the ball out there. No one has more respect for the people seated behind me that are members of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He got me started in this great American game, and Coach, without your enthusiasm, your intensity and desire to win, obviously I wouldn't be here today. But he came into the NFL with a statistical oddity: at Tech, he had been more accurate at long distances than medium distances. Height: 6-2; Weight: 187. He was such a transformative presence as to become a factor in rules changes and led a wave that ultimately rendered obsolete the traditional straight-on kickers, a fact underscored by the 1.2 million patented tees and instructional books sold in his name. Then wife starts to scream, Heidi Gardner coaches Chiefs Travis Kelce in commercial for Saturday Night Live, Ned Yost enters Royals Hall of Fame as epitome of their rise from futility to glory, What a rebuilding year looks like: On Chiefs 2022 season and what it portends, Why Super Bowl victory over Eagles was Andy Reids masterpiece and cements his legacy, On a through-line from Satchel Paige to Patrick Mahomes and a Super Bowl breakthrough, Why Patrick Mahomes second NFL MVP award is more revealing recognition than the first, Brothers keeper: On the poignant stuff beyond the hype surrounding the Kelce Bowl. 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. ", "Plenty," Stenerud said later. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Butker had been raised in an environment where such things mattered. Barefoot kickers, cats and dogs living together, MASS HYSTERIA. A group of receivers are set to make some noise this week. Is Butker finally the right man for the job? newsletter, before giving way to 18-year veteran John Carney, learned most of what he knew about American football by playing, overtime kick against the Broncos in Denver, placed Santos on injured reserve and plucked Harrison Butker off the practice squad, more accurate at long distances than medium distances, Toub told the media after Butkers first game, scored a four-year, $17 million deal with the Panthers last spring, Butker and his wife Isabelle informed the world. 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. It made a difference.". Soon, the Norwegian who came here by way of a skiing scholarship at Montana State prepared for his first Chiefs camp by kicking with coach Hank Stram as his personal holder at the teams facility in Swope Park. See our ethics statement. Jan Stenerud is a Football Player, zodiac sign: Sagittarius. "Well I'll be a" said Craft, who had been watching from the bleachers. There isn't a doubt in my mind that he's the greatest long-distance field-goal kicker who ever played the game. With no agent to represent him, Stenerud scoffs now at how the no-cut might have worked out if he hadnt produced. During the 1969 season, Stenerud made a then-record 16 field goals in a row and 27 of 35 overall as the Chiefs went 11-3 and beat the Jets and Raiders to get to the Super Bowl. "The wind had been blowing hard all day and our punter was having trouble getting the ball back to the line of scrimmage. Though it wasnt his best in terms of accuracy, Steneruds 1983 season might have been his finest in Green Bay. Still, maybe its not a lot to ask to remember the rest of his story, too one that stretched the imagination, changed the game and helped the Chiefs to their only Super Bowl win. Please make sure JavaScript is enabled and then try loading this page again. In a game better known for Stram being miked and 65 Toss Power Trap and Len Dawson being chosen MVP and dominant defense, Eller would later say Stenerud psyched us out. Jan Stenerud was born on November 26, 1942 in Norway (80 years old). Discover what happened on this day. The 6-2, 187-pound Stenerud excelled for 19 seasons and 263 games in pro football. $109.99. Kicker: 1980-83. The Packers have a perfectly good kicker! Once they saw Stenerud kick, all doubts were erased. And now I would like for you to meet the most important people in my life, Shane, Clancey, Betsy and of course, my wife, Lindy. It was supposed to be a fake, with the ball snapped directly to Stenerud. His status then was the same as any five-year redshirt. He kicked with his toe like [50 Greatest Vikings member] Fred Cox," Stenerud explained. 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. Jan Stenerud 25 yard field goal : 19: 22: Game Info. Jan recalls what went through his mind when Sweeney invited him to join the 1964 team on the Montana State sidelines: This is America. If you think he needed help, let me show you some charts. My dad, who passed away two years ago, always had ambitious dreams and goals, while my mother had always been a realist. Meet the newest member of the Butker family! James Augustine Butker 1/27/19 12:29am9lb 5 oz, 21 inchesSs. NOW: So I'm talkin' to Jan Stenerud, the Hall of Fame kicker, . 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. The story is that when Stenerud heard he had been drafted, he started looking on the map for Vietnam. At first blush, it seems a little odd. After Butkers miss in the second quarter, it was Colquitt, a 13-year veteran, who gave the rookie a pep talk that boosted Butkers spirits, so much so that in critical situations late in the fourth quarter, Reid had no qualms in trusting Butker to make his kicks. A free education in what his father considered the greatest country on Earth couldnt be passed up. The early 1940s were dominated by World War II. He was enjoying life in America immensely, fascinated by all things unfamiliar, including a peculiar sport played with an oval ball (as he put it). Dustin is like a kicker whisperer, Toub told the media after Butkers first game. We had the greatest players that anybody had ever seen on the football field. If there are qualitiesI have inherited from both of themis the stability and determination. Norwegian-American football player (born 1942), "Hometown Hero: Bobcat legend Jan Stenerud honored by MSU, Pro Football Hall of Fame", "Stenerud to be honored by Hall of Fame in Bozeman Thursday", "Bobcat legend Stenerud to be honored in Bozeman", "The distinctions aren't as easy to make any more, but, God willing, some things will never change", National Football League 75th Anniversary All-Time Team, National Football League 100th Anniversary All-Time Team, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jan_Stenerud&oldid=1142242649, American Football League All-Star players, National Football League players with retired numbers, Short description is different from Wikidata, NFL player missing current team parameter, Infobox NFL biography articles missing alt text, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Career statistics and player information from, This page was last edited on 1 March 2023, at 08:20. Kansas City Chiefs Jan Stenerud in action, taking kick from QB Len Dawson vs Miami Dolphins. Jan Stenerud on the Kansas City bench on Jan. 1, 1976. * 21+ (19+ CA-ONT) (18+ NH/WY). Thank you, American football, for giving me this truly unbelievable moment. Jan Stenerud was born on the 26th of November, 1942. We don't have much information about She's past relationship and any previous engaged. He made five field goals twice against Buffalo the year we won the Super Bowl. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1991. For that matter, Stenerud set a collegiate record that never will be broken: Technically, anyway, he attempted a 113-yard field goal. I didn't know the first thing about a soccer-style kicker. 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. This is the land of opportunity, Stenerud remembered thinking. 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. In 1984, the Packers traded Stenerud to the Minnesota Vikings for a seventh-round draft choice. The Chiefs might run through a few, for instance, on a Friday afternoon. "But really," says Stenerud, "I had my mind made up five minutes after I talked to Stram. Today with these memories and this honor, I got the same feeling, the feeling that my feet are now touching the ground. ", "Sure it helped," said Stram, grinning. Enter and space open menus and escape closes them as well. ", "It was kind of silly, really," remembers Stenerud, now the Kansas City Chiefs' field goal specialist. Also, it can get really cold out there. The other 42 field goals21 as a rookie last seasonhave been for the Chiefs, who surprised their rivals by drafting Stenerud as a future early in 1966. pic.twitter.com/Uu5Bm27dSq. She is not dating anyone. He scored 100 or more points in seven different seasons. What college did Jan Stenerud attend? NFL placekicker who became the first pure placekicker to earn an induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. During a game, Stenerud gives in to assorted superstitions. pic.twitter.com/3N9Zv2HICJ. 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. If the opportunity knocks, who knows what could happen?. This story was originally published May 13, 2017, 4:50 PM. hurtful thing." (When The New York Times called to ask Stenerud about the kick a year . Enter and space open menus and escape closes them as well. "Here's another one: 92 out of 103. He never missed a game because of injury or illness. Down went the ball. As Stenerud recalls it now, after badly topping his first attempt, he boomed several some 70 yards. He put his hand on my shoulder and said, Young man, what are you doing tomorrow?. Your request appears similar to malicious requests sent by robots. Jan Stenerud, who was born November 26, 1942, in Fetsund, Norway, was an outstanding ski jumper who attended Montana State on a skiing scholarship. [2] Craft notified football head coach Jim Sweeney of the Norwegian ski jumper's kicking abilities, and Sweeney offered him a tryout, which was successful. Jan also made a great impact on the American Football Leagueand National Football League,as he helped usher in the age of soccer-style kickers. After awhile they asked me to try. 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. When is Jan Steneruds birthday? But the Chiefs had been paying attention. "The things I do. 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. They have AstroTurf there and we worked out on it. He had an impact on the record books. Shoeless. The basketball coach saw him kicking and alerted the football coach, Jim Sweeney, who gave Stenerud a tryout. Stenerud, the Kansas City . But I never dreamed that my greatest jump of all would be to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Oops. It all recalls the nickname Andy Reid gave him after his first game as a Chief. Hed become all the more enchanted with the sport after attending the nearby Oslo Olympics in 1952. I didn't even know what a field goal was. They have one thing in common, however;Jan is named on all of them. Stenerud spent time in Green Bay and Minnesota before retiring in 1985. Called the bank shot just forgot to tell Colquitt. Tommy O'Boyle, our Director of Player Personnel, and I went to the game and watched him kick the opening kickoff through the uprights and eight rows into the bleachers. Stenerud retired after the 1985 season, his 19th (3 AFL, 16 NFL). Jan Stenerud, who was born November 26, 1942, in Fetsund, Norway, was an outstanding ski jumper who attended Montana State on a skiing scholarship. As a halfback at Purdue, Stram kicked a 22-yard field goal to beat Pitt 10-7 in 1946. Thats how the scouts from around the league heard about me, Jan said. Jan 29, 2018 . "I've been kicking a ball since I was old enough to walk.". Why I could miss that kick, I dont understand it If I can make a goddamn 31-yard field goal, we win the game, he said, So I hold myself completely accountable for that. The result was that Stenerud became a football player. Clark Hunt, Mark Donovan need to listen | Opinion, Couple stops at gas station for Michigan lottery tickets. Please ignore . And in the meantime, some of my teammates at Montana State had informed me that they see a guy on television from the Buffalo Bills, Pete Gogolak, who had been kicking in the same style that I had displayed, and they also had convinced me to go out for the team. Its not the 59-yarder, but at 23 yards, you cant even tell hes kicking barefoot, just as he had during every other game of his career. win and I believe a home title tilt (certainly with the next day's "Balti" win at Cleveland, it would have manifested), it was certainly very possible, a . Nothing. People born under this sign are seen as warm-hearted and easygoing. I love you and I appreciate that for the rest of my life. Stenerud is distinguished as being the first . Quiz But he missed a potential go-ahead field goal with 35 seconds remaining. In the AFL, Jan made his first kick a 54-yard field goal in the 1967 season opener against Houston. The 40s also brought us the Slinky, Velcro, Jeep, Tupperware and Frisbee. 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 . Dating & Relationship status She is currently single. [6] He was named an All-American by The Sporting News as a senior in 1966,[4] and was also an All-American in ski jumping and a three-time Big Sky champion.[7]. James and Augustine, Pray for Us! 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. He is the first pure placekicker to be inducted in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Butker is now well-established as the Chiefs placekicker, and its wouldnt be a stretch to think the Chiefs will do their best to hang on to him when his rookie contract expires in 2021. He was released immediately. What do you want me to do?" "I was out with some of the other skiers, getting my legs in shape for the season. But after Lowery left the team, the word consistency hasnt generally been associated with Chiefs placekickers. Stenerud is the first pure placekicker to enter the Hall. Zodiac Sign: Jan Stenerud is a Sagittarius. 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. In the AFL, Jan made his first kick - a 54-yard field goal in the 1967 season opener against Houston. With 21 field goals he is only seven shy of both the AFL and NFL records, with six games yet to play. With 1,699 points, he ranked behind only the fabled George Blanda in all-time scoring at the time of his retirement. Moreover, the crucial practice repetitions among snapper, holder and kicker were afterthoughts. Because of his strong leg and long kicks, he reduced the size of the playing field. Jan is a total Hall of Fame package:productive, consistent and enduring. In October he kicked a 59-yard field goal against Montana, the longest kick in football history to that point. Start date Jan 29, 2018; G. Glenn's take All-American. His excellence on the ski slopes in Bozeman, MT helped him earn All-American honors in the mid-1960s. If you continue to be blocked, please send an email to secruxurity@sizetedistrict.cVmwom with: https://www.norwegianamerican.com/interview-legend-jan-stenerud/, Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 10.0; Win64; x64) AppleWebKit/537.36 (KHTML, like Gecko) Chrome/103.0.5060.114 Safari/537.36 Edg/103.0.1264.62, A summary of what you were doing and why you need access to this site. Atlanta had drafted Stenerud at the end of the season, and he had promised to talk with the Falcons before making a decision. [1][2] In the fall of 1964, Stenerud was training for the upcoming ski season by running the stadium steps of Gatton Field, the football venue through 1971. The next day, the Chiefs placed Santos on injured reserve and plucked Harrison Butker off the practice squad of the Carolina Panthers. "Anytime we get to midfield we're a threat to score three points. Does all that add up to a player worth swapping for Mason Crosby? But if I don't hear the click of the snap before the play ends, I get a horrible feeling that I may miss. In 1967, Norwegian kicker Jan Stenerud was drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs and began a journey that earned him a spot in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Born in Fetsund, in the county of Akershus, Norway to parents Johan Stenerud, and Klara (Kjustad) Stenerud, Stenerud came to the United States as a college student, on a ski jumping scholarship to Montana State University in Bozeman. He was sincere, had great pride and dedication. I was drafted by Kansas City at the right time. Ski jumping requires concentration and, of course, kicking field goals requires concentration as well. "It's really silly," he says. $224.99. 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. Now he hustled up to Stram. Stenerud promptly picked up where he had left off in his native Norway. And he knew what he was talking about. Like just before our first game against Houston this year. Enshrined in 1991, Stenerud, along with George Blanda, Lou Groza, Ray Guy, and 2017 inductee Morten Andersen, is one of only five kicking specialists in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and is one of three who did not play another position (Blanda played quarterback, Groza was a tackle). He influenced the Rules Committee to change the field goal and kickoff rules in 1974, his seventh year in the league. Best-selling Jan Stenerud products on sale for a lim. Now, he knows his legacy is so much more. 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. Independence is one of their greatest strengths, but sometimes they're overly frank with others. Team Stats. They kept both Gano and Butker on the active roster for the first week of the season, apparently hoping to trade one of them. The sentences, yelled by Montana State football coach Jim Sweeney Hey, skier, get down here! The video below features Franklin kicking in the 1985 AFC Championship game. This page is updated often with new details about Jan Stenerud. Its a special experience. After regularly making field goals of 60 yards in practice, Stenerud became a sensation on campus. He was elected in his first year of eligibility after a pro career in which he converted 373 out of 558 field goals (67%) and 580 out of 601 extra points (97%) for a total of 1,699 points scored. Jan Stenerud (/ s t n r u d /, Norwegian: [stnrd] (); born November 26, 1942) is a Norwegian-American former football placekicker who played in the National Football League (NFL) and American Football League (AFL) for 19 seasons, primarily with Kansas City Chiefs.The first Norwegian NFL player, he began his career in the AFL after being selected by the Chiefs during the .