No. 19 | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Position: | Placekicker | ||||||||
Personal information | |||||||||
Born: | Wildwood, New Jersey, U.S. | August 30, 1974||||||||
Height: | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | ||||||||
Weight: | 220 lb (100 kg) | ||||||||
Career information | |||||||||
High school: | Spanish River Community (Boca Raton, Florida) | ||||||||
College: | Michigan | ||||||||
Undrafted: | 1997 | ||||||||
Career history | |||||||||
* Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||||||
Career highlights and awards | |||||||||
| |||||||||
Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
| |||||||||
Career Arena statistics | |||||||||
| |||||||||
Player stats at PFR · ArenaFan.com |
Remy Martin Hamilton (born August 30, 1974) is a former American football kicker who played in the National Football League (NFL) and Arena Football League (AFL). In college, he was an All-American for the Michigan Wolverines football team. As a professional, he played for the Detroit Lions of the NFL in addition to exhibition and training camp experience with the Seattle Seahawks, St. Louis Rams and Chicago Bears. He also played for the Grand Rapids Rampage, Carolina Cobras, Milwaukee Mustangs, Los Angeles Avengers, and Dallas Desperados of the AFL. In the AFL, he holds records for all-time career points and single-season kick points.
At Michigan, he set the current Big Ten Conference record for single-season field goals, which is 25. He ranks both first and second in school history in single-season field goals made and co-holds the school record for consecutive field goals made along with Brendan Gibbons. He is the only All-American placekicker in Michigan history.
Hamilton attended Spanish River Community High School in Boca Raton, Florida, where he was a three-sport athlete in football, soccer, and tennis. In football, he played as a kicker, punter, defensive back, and quarterback.
As a senior starting quarterback, the Sun-Sentinel named him the Offensive Player of the Year, after completing 74 of 121 passes for 1,147 yards, 11 touchdowns, and rushing for 249 yards and six touchdowns.
Hamilton was named after the Rémy Martin brand of cognac, which his parents once served as owners of the New Jersey Bolero Motel and Bar. [1]
Hamilton attended the University of Michigan, where he played football from 1993 to 1996. During this first season at Michigan, he only made one field goal. [2] After making a 47-yard field goal in his only attempt as a freshman, he lost the kicking job to Erik Lovell in spring practice. Lovell handled the kicking duties in the 1994 NCAA Division I-A football season opener and Hamilton did not get the starting assignment until immediately before the second game. [3] Lovell missed an extra point in the opener, which gave Hamilton his second chance. [4] Thus, before the second game of his sophomore season, he had not recorded any field goals that season, still had a career total of one and was mostly used for kickoffs. However, during the September 10, 1994 Michigan – Notre Dame rivalry game against third-ranked Notre Dame, he made four field goals and two extra point conversions, including the game-winning 42-yarder with two seconds remaining. [5] [6] Notre Dame called a timeout to ice Hamilton, but it inadvertently helped Michigan, which had prematurely packed away the kicking net on its sidelines. [4] The field goal redeemed Hamilton for a missed tackle on a kickoff return, which he felt would have cost his team the game. [4] For his performance, the Big Ten named him the Special Teams Player of the Week. [7] Michigan fans still remember Hamilton for this game, and regularly congratulate him for the kick. [8] Two games later, he had a three-field goal game in the Big Ten Conference opener against Iowa. [9] Hamilton had another four-field goal outing later in the season against Illinois. [10] This earned him another Player of the Week recognition. [7]
He was named to the 1994 College Football All-America and 1994 All-Big Ten teams. [2] Hamilton was a first team All-American selection by the Walter Camp Football Foundation and second team selection by the Associated Press and the Football News . [2] [11] Despite NFL alumni that include Jay Feely, Hayden Epstein and Ali Haji-Sheikh, Hamilton remains the school's only All-American placekicker. [2] During the 1994 football season, Hamilton established the current Big Ten single-season record for successful field goals at 25, which has since been tied three times,. [12] The Big Ten was talented at the placekicker position that season, with four of the twenty semifinalists for the Lou Groza Award being from the conference (Hamilton, Illinois' Chris Richardson, Minnesota's Mike Chalberg and Northwestern's Sam Valenzisi). [13] Hamilton won the NCAA statistical championship for field goal kickers that season. [14] He also set Michigan's single season kick point record with 101 in 1994. [15]
During the 1995 season, one of his more important field goals for the Wolverines came in the 5–0 victory over Purdue. [16] However, when Northwestern beat Michigan at Michigan Stadium, 19–13, for its first victory there since 1959, Hamilton missed a key 37-yard field goal. [17] His 1995 total of 19 field goals ranked second in Michigan history, behind only his own 1994 total. Garrett Rivas tied that single-season total twice, but no one has unseated Hamilton from first and second place. [18]
He also helped the 1996 team take a 9–0 halftime lead and converted an extra point to give them a 16–0 lead in what would eventually be a loss to Northwestern, 17–16. [19] His fourth-quarter points contributed to a 27–20 victory over Indiana. [20] He earned his third Big Ten Special Teams Player of the Week honors following a 13–9 victory over Ohio State in the Michigan – Ohio State football rivalry game on November 23, 1996. [7] He put the team ahead, 10–9, on the last play of the third quarter and added a key field goal with 1:19 remaining. [21] A two-time finalist for the Lou Groza Award, Hamilton finished his career as the all-time Wolverine leader in field goals made (63) and field goals attempted (82). [2] Before his career ended, he became the ninth Wolverine to accumulate over 200 points. [22]
Hamilton holds the Michigan record for consecutive field goals made (14) as well as outright or shared school records for single-game (5), single-season (30) and career (82) field goal attempts. His career field goals made record (63) was eclipsed by Garrett Rivas in 2006 by one. [23] Hamilton was a three-time Big Ten All-Academic selection (1993, 1995, 1996). [24] He was also a three-time Big Ten Conference Special Teams Player of the Week (9/12/94, 10/10/94, 11/25/96). [7] His 14 consecutive field goals mark was one short of Vlade Janakievski's Big Ten record, which has since been broken. [12] Hamilton's 63 career field goals were two short of Todd Gregoire's Big Ten record, which has since been broken. [12]
Hamilton joined the AFL's Grand Rapids Rampage in 1998, for which he played two seasons. [25] In two seasons, he had modest success as a field goal kicker connecting on 31 of 88 attempts (35.2%). [25] In his first season, he also caught a touchdown pass. [26]
He then played in 2000 with the Carolina Cobras and in 2001 with the Milwaukee Mustangs, where he posted 11 of 42 (26.2%) and 18 of 47 (38.3%) field goal performances. [25] While with the Cobras, Hamilton played against the Los Angeles Avengers in the first AFL game played at the Staples Center on April 20, 2000. [27]
In 2002, he joined the Avengers for which he had his best years as a professional, making at least half of his field goal attempts each season. [25] Hamilton was second among kickers in the AFL in scoring in 2003. [28] Following his strong performance, he signed with the NFL's Seattle Seahawks on August 4, [29] [30] where he competed against rookie Josh Brown. [31] After Brown was perfect in both four field goal and seven extra point attempts in the first three preseason games, [32] [33] [34] Hamilton was released on August 25, [35] and he returned to play for Los Angeles again. [25]
Hamilton was the top-scoring kicker in the AFL in 2004. [36] [37] On August 9, 2004, he signed with the Chicago Bears, [38] where he battled Paul Edinger for the kicking duties. [39] Bears head coach Lovie Smith noted Hamilton's skill at onside kicks. [40] In terms of distance, Hamilton had a slight edge with his average kick three yards deep in the end zone compared with Edinger's goal line average. [41] However, Edinger was perfect on six field goals and two extra points in the first three preseason games, [42] [43] [44] and Hamilton missed his only exhibition game field goal attempt, a 36-yarder on August 27. [45] The team waived him a few days later on August 31. [46]
He was again the top-scoring kicker in the AFL in 2005. [47] That year, he eclipsed Jay Taylor's AFL record for single-season field goal percentage, which had been 72%, with a 74.4% 29 for 39 performance. [27] Hamilton started the season with eleven consecutive field goals, giving him a total of twelve in a row for a league record. [27] He earned a couple of NFL tryouts. Hamilton first signed with the St. Louis Rams on July 27, 2005. [48] He played for them during the 2005 exhibition season. [49] He made the team's final points with a field goal in an August 12, 17–13 preseason victory over the Chicago Bears. [50] For the preseason, he made his only field goal and all six extra points. [51] [52] [53] He was released on August 30, as the Rams decided to retain Jeff Wilkins who had been their kicker since 1997. [54] Hamilton then signed with the Detroit Lions for their practice squad on September 15, 2005. [55] He appeared in one NFL game for Detroit, but missed his only point after touchdown attempt, [56] which was blocked by Alfonso Boone. [57] He also executed a couple of kickoffs, [56] and he made the tackle on Jerry Azumah's 33-yard return to the 37-yard line on one in the third quarter. [58] He was activated to replace Jason Hanson who suffered a hamstring injury, [59] [60] which ended Hanson's consecutive games streak at 209. [61] However, Hamilton was released on September 19 and re-signed the next day to the practice squad. [62] He was cut from the Lions practice squad on October 11.
Hamilton returned to the AFL for Los Angeles, [25] and he led the AFL's kickers in scoring again in 2006. [63] This earned Hamilton his second consecutive AFL's "Kicker of the Year" title and second consecutive First Team All-Arena League selection. [27] His 2006-point total is 2nd in AFL history to his own 2005 total. [27] On June 7, 2006, he signed with the Rams to compete in training camp, [49] [64] and he played for them in exhibition games during 2006. [65] [66] He made four of six field goals (including a 48-yarder) and four of five extra points during the preseason. [67] [68] [69] On August 28, he was released, after the Rams kept Wilkins again. [54] Hamilton returned to the AFL for his final season in Los Angeles. [25]
He ranked third in kicker scoring in the AFL for Los Angeles in 2007. [70] He joined the Dallas Desperados for 2008. [25] He spent the 2011 season with the Dallas Vigilantes. [71] In 2012, Hamilton was assigned to the Philadelphia Soul. By the time of his assignment he was the AFL's all-time leader in field goals made (188), extra points made (1,082) and scoring by a kicker (1,646 points). [72]
In a May 2009 article, the Los Angeles Times reported that, less than 15 hours after a 53–52 overtime loss to the Georgia Force at Staples Center, Hamilton's wife, Heather, delivered the couple's first child, a boy named Tate. [73] Hamilton has served as a personal trainer for other kickers. [36]
Hamilton and his wife, Heather, also went on to having a beautiful baby girl Elle Jessie Hamilton. Soon after Elle they had another baby boy, Hawk Campbell Hamilton.
The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 season, making it the third longest-running professional football league in North America after the Canadian Football League (CFL) and the National Football League (NFL) until the AFL closed in 2019.
Gino Raymond Michael Cappelletti was an American professional football player. He played college football for the Minnesota Golden Gophers and was an All-Star in the American Football League (AFL) for the Boston Patriots, winning the 1964 AFL Most Valuable Player Award. Cappelletti is a member of the Patriots Hall of Fame, and the Patriots' All-1960s Team. He served as the Patriots' radio color commentator until July 2012. His nicknames included "the Duke" and "Mr. Patriot".
George Frederick Blanda was an American football quarterback and placekicker who played in the American Football League (AFL) and National Football League (NFL). Blanda played 26 seasons of professional football, the most in the sport's history, and had scored more points than anyone in history at the time of his retirement.
Michael John Vanderjagt is a Canadian former football placekicker who played in the National Football League (NFL) for nine seasons, primarily with the Indianapolis Colts. He served as the Colts' placekicker from 1998 to 2005 and was a member of the Dallas Cowboys during his final NFL season in 2006. Prior to the NFL, Vanderjagt played four seasons in the Canadian Football League (CFL), three with the Toronto Argonauts and one with the Saskatchewan Roughriders.
Morten Andersen, nicknamed "the Great Dane", is a Danish-born former football kicker who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 25 seasons, most notably with the New Orleans Saints and Atlanta Falcons. Following a career from 1982 to 2007, Andersen holds the NFL record for regular season games played at 382. He also ranks second in field goals (565) and points scored (2,544). In addition to his league accomplishments, he is the Saints all-time leading scorer at 1,318 points. Andersen was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2017. Along with Jan Stenerud, he is one of only two exclusive kickers to receive the honor.
Jan Stenerud 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 the Kansas City Chiefs. The first Norwegian NFL player, he played college football for the Montana State Bobcats and earned All-American honors. Stenerud began his career in the AFL after being selected by the Chiefs during the 1966 draft and joined the NFL following the AFL–NFL merger. 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.
Thomas James Feely is an American sportscaster and former professional football player. He started his playing career as a placekicker with the Florida Bobcats in the Arena Football League (AFL) as a free agent in 1999 before playing for several National Football League (NFL) teams. Since his retirement, Feely has worked as a reporter and analyst for CBS/Turner Sports.
Michael Shayne Graham is an American former professional football player who was a placekicker for 15 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Virginia Tech Hokies. He made his professional debut in May 2000 with the Richmond Speed of the Arena Football League's now-defunct developmental league, AF2.
Robert Paul Gould III is an American former professional football player who was a placekicker for 18 seasons in the National Football League (NFL) with the Chicago Bears, New York Giants and San Francisco 49ers. He played college football for the Penn State Nittany Lions. Gould was originally signed by the New England Patriots as an undrafted free agent in 2005. He played with the Bears from 2005 to 2015, earning first-team All-Pro and Pro Bowl honors in 2006, and became the franchise's all-time leading scorer.
Edward Peter Murray is a Canadian former professional football player who was a kicker in the National Football League (NFL) for the Detroit Lions, Kansas City Chiefs, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Dallas Cowboys, Philadelphia Eagles, Minnesota Vikings and Washington Redskins. He played college football at Tulane University.
Connor Thomas Barth is a former American football placekicker who played ten seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at North Carolina and was signed by the Kansas City Chiefs as an undrafted free agent in 2008.
The 1994 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 1994 NCAA Division I-A football season. Led by Gary Moeller in his last season as head coach, the Wolverines participated in the Holiday Bowl.
Zoltán Meskó is a former American football punter. He was drafted by the New England Patriots in the fifth round of the 2010 NFL draft. He played college football at Michigan. Born in Romania, Meskó emigrated with his family to the United States and eventually settled in Ohio. There he was discovered as a potential kicker for his school's football team, the Twinsburg Tigers, and became one of the best high school football kickers in the nation, excelling as both a punter and placekicker. After earning top honors in his state, Meskó was recruited by several college football teams. He selected Michigan over several schools including Indiana, Ohio State, and USC.
The 1996 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 1996 NCAA Division I-A football season. The team's head coach was Lloyd Carr. The Wolverines played their home games at Michigan Stadium. That year Michigan Wolverines football competed in the Big Ten Conference in almost all intercollegiate sports including men's college football. The 1996 Wolverines finished the season with an 8–4 record and lost 17–14 to the Alabama Crimson Tide in the 1997 Outback Bowl. The team was ranked #20 in both the final coaches and AP polls.
The 1995 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 1995 NCAA Division I-A football season. The team's head coach was Lloyd Carr. The Wolverines played their home games at Michigan Stadium.
Garrett Rivas is a former American football kicker who played in af2 and the Arena Football League (AFL). He played college football at Michigan where he held the former school records for career scoring, field goals and point after touchdowns and was a three-time All-Big Ten Conference selection during his time there. As a professional, he played for the Florida Firecats of af2 and the Tampa Bay Storm of the AFL.
Rob Houghtlin is a former kicker for the University of Iowa's football team from 1985 to 1987. He made four game-winning field goals in his career, the most memorable of which led Iowa to a victory over Michigan in 1985.
Quinn Nordin is an American football placekicker who is a free agent. He played college football at Michigan and signed with the Patriots as an undrafted free agent in 2021.
Kenneth Arthur Allen is a former American football punter. He was the starting placekicker and punter for the 2015 and 2016 Michigan Wolverines football teams.
Jake Moody is an American football placekicker for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Michigan Wolverines, twice earning All-American honors and winning the Lou Groza Award in 2021. Moody was selected by the 49ers in the third round of the 2023 NFL draft, making him only the second kicker since 2016 to be drafted in the top 100 selections.