The First Barefoot Placekicker

[sheajets]

Just like to pop in and say I'd like to see the single bar facemask make it's triumphant return one day. Once a staple of kickers. It gave them their own special identity

Kickers in the 80's and early 90's seemed to always the last to abandoned those old relic 70's facemasks. Mike Lansford had one, so did Pat Leahy.

I think a few had the Mark Duper facemask as well

[luckyshow]

Are you saying that Hunter Hahnemann of Newport Knights in Bellevue, kicks dropkicks? He has field goals, one from 41 yards. Are these by dropkick?

[Reaser]

Are you saying that Hunter Hahnemann of Newport Knights in Bellevue, kicks dropkicks? He has field goals, one from 41 yards. Are these by dropkick?

I'm saying what I said: "The Newport v. Mount Si game was the WA High School televised game tonight and after a Newport TD early 2nd quarter they lined up for the PAT normal - well left-footed kicker but normal enough - then the holder shifted to the left side of the line and direct snap to the kicker who drop kicked the XP."

So yes, he dropkicked that specific time.

That's the only Newport game I've seen this year, but I've seen highlights and I've seen him kick a FG (placekick) so no, he doesn't exclusively dropkick.

Not surprising he's a good kicker (and punts also) considering his dad was a professional soccer player (who is also from WA and played for the Seattle Sounders) ...

[JeffreyMiller]

Did anyone mention Jess Rodriguez of the 1929 Buffalo Bisons?

[Evan]

Mike Lansford was somewhat schizophrenic when it came to barefoot kicking. In early 1982, he kicked off with sock and shoe, but kicked field goals and extra points barefoot. I heard the reason was that he felt he got the ball up quicker kicking barefoot, which helped him on the FGs and PATs.

So back in the days before commercial breaks after every kick, Lansford would kick a FG or extra point barefoot, then hustle to the sideline where an assistant would have his sock and shoe ready to be put on for the ensuing kickoff (and I would figure somehow clean his foot of debris as well before socking up).

I wonder if the Rams ever came close to a delay of game from this, or if you even can have a delay of game before a kickoff.

[Andrew McKillop]

Hawaiians would play entire games barefoot.
http://archives.starbulletin.com/96/05/ ... tory1.html

[MarbleEye]

Just like to pop in and say I'd like to see the single bar facemask make it's triumphant return one day. Once a staple of kickers. It gave them their own special identity

Kickers in the 80's and early 90's seemed to always the last to abandoned those old relic 70's facemasks. Mike Lansford had one, so did Pat Leahy.

I think a few had the Mark Duper facemask as well

I thought the old single bar facemask ala' Joe Theismann and Bob Griese was a thing of the past and is now not permitted by NFL rules?

Correct me if I am wrong but I thought I recalled reading or hearing that on a telecast at sometime in the past.

[Gary Najman]

Just like to pop in and say I'd like to see the single bar facemask make it's triumphant return one day. Once a staple of kickers. It gave them their own special identity

Kickers in the 80's and early 90's seemed to always the last to abandoned those old relic 70's facemasks. Mike Lansford had one, so did Pat Leahy.

I think a few had the Mark Duper facemask as well

I thought the old single bar facemask ala' Joe Theismann and Bob Griese was a thing of the past and is now not permitted by NFL rules?

Correct me if I am wrong but I thought I recalled reading or hearing that on a telecast at sometime in the past.

I remember that the last player to wore a single bar facemask was punter Scott Player, who retired in 2007 (he was grandfathered). I believe that kicker Gary Anderson was the only other player who wore a single bar after 2000.

Interestingly, kicker Morten Andersen's two bar facemask was also unique. It ws used by quarterbacks like Terry Bradshaw, Bob Griese, Mike Livingston and Archie Manning in the 70s, then Andersen started to use it as a rookie in 1982 and continued (like Anderson) to used it in every team he played, even that it was not wore by no one else. Interstingly, QB Trent Dilfer was allowed to wear it in a Sunday NIght game in 1998 while playing for Tampa Bay.

[JohnTurney]

Mike Lansford was somewhat schizophrenic when it came to barefoot kicking. In early 1982, he kicked off with sock and shoe, but kicked field goals and extra points barefoot. I heard the reason was that he felt he got the ball up quicker kicking barefoot, which helped him on the FGs and PATs.

So back in the days before commercial breaks after every kick, Lansford would kick a FG or extra point barefoot, then hustle to the sideline where an assistant would have his sock and shoe ready to be put on for the ensuing kickoff (and I would figure somehow clean his foot of debris as well before socking up).

I wonder if the Rams ever came close to a delay of game from this, or if you even can have a delay of game before a kickoff.

Lansford felt that with a tee, he could wear a shoe because the cleats would not ever catch and he could, as you say, get it up quicker. Kicking from the turf, he thought the shoe's cleats might catch and he wanted to kick ball as low as possible to get it up