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K Mike Nugent (All American, Lou Groza Winner, National Champion)

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It?s Monday Night Football, Nugent Style
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By KAREN CROUSE
Published: November 14, 2006
It was 71 degrees and dry, without a hint of a breeze, as Mike Nugent lined up for the kick. The conditions would have been perfect except for the door frame and back wall that compressed Nugent?s approach to a single step.

A day after booting a 34-yard field goal and two extra points in the Jets? surprising victory at New England, Nugent spent a couple of hours in a 12th-floor office at the Ed Sullivan Theater on Broadway, where the ?Late Show With David Letterman? is taped, setting up to kick a football through a window pane.

It was a surreal experience for Nugent, a second-year place-kicker out of Ohio State, and not just because he was being asked to do two things yesterday ? kick a ball indoors and try to shatter a window a few yards away while he was at it ? that might have gotten him grounded during his childhood in Ohio. ?When they approached me about doing it, I couldn?t believe it,? Nugent said. ?I thought somebody was messing with me.?

Nugent, 24, toiled in relatively anonymity last season for the Jets, the No. 2 N.F.L. team in the No. 1 media market. While the Giants advanced to the playoffs, the Jets went 4-12, which meant that on those rare occasions when Nugent did receive outside attention, it tended not to be a positive thing. He was noticed for all the wrong reasons in this year?s season opener, missing two field goals and an extra point at Tennessee.

But there he was yesterday, wearing an earpiece and conversing with Letterman while the comic-slash-actor Robin Williams cooled his heels backstage. It did not matter that the appearance had been set up a few days before the Jets traveled to Foxborough, Mass., to play the Patriots.

The timing could not have been better, Nugent?s national television appearance occurring the day after the Jets raised their national profile overnight with a 17-14 defeat of a Patriots team that has won more Super Bowls this decade (three) than the Jets have won playoff games (two).

Nugent placed a football on a tee, lined up for the kick, and to the accompaniment of a drum roll, nailed it on the first try. He shattered a pane of glass that had been installed especially for the stunt, and a camera caught the football sailing into a drizzly night and landing on a rooftop.

Asked if he was nervous before his stupid human trick, Nugent said, ?Not too much.? He added, ?I was just excited to get an opportunity to do something like that.?

Besides, the conditions Nugent faced Sunday were much trickier. It rained steadily the night before the game, turning the Gillette Stadium field into a sodden mess. In the third quarter, with the Jets ahead, 7-6, Nugent made a 34-yard field goal with a cold wind licking his face. Nugent slipped and fell while converting an extra point in the fourth.

After time ran out on the Patriots, the Jets celebrated as if they were college kids who had just beaten their traditional rival. It was a familiar feeling for Nugent, who went 4-0 against Michigan while at Ohio State.

?There was so much excitement,? Nugent said, ?just because it was a division game and the fact that it was the Patriots, which people are talking about in terms of having created a dynasty.?

The excitement Nugent felt yesterday was different but no less memorable. Letterman replayed the kick, homing in on Nugent?s follow-through. He joked that Nugent looked like a man who was wondering to himself, ?And now what??

It is the question many people with the Jets had to be asking yesterday, in all seriousness, after an ending that felt more like a dawning.
Click to expand...

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/14/sports/football/14nugent.html
 
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Jets' Nugent kicks away questions about his abilities

sssmw

By DENNIS WASZAK Jr.

HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. - Mike Nugent measured his steps and gazed at his target 54 yards away. He knew he was going to make the field goal.
The New York Jets' second-year kicker high-fived holder Ben Graham as the ball sailed through the uprights easily for a career-long field goal, just as he imagined seconds earlier.
"If you don't have confidence in yourself, you might as well not even be out on the field," said the soft-spoken and mild-mannered Nugent, a Centerville, Ohio, native who played at Ohio State. "If you're the only one in the whole stadium that has confidence in yourself, well, that's the most you need on the field to do your job."
Nugent tied a career high with four field goals in the Jets' 26-11 win over Houston on Sunday and made a big statement with his 54-yarder that was plenty long and 1 yard shy of the team record.
"It was all that turkey," Graham jokingly shouted in his Australian accent as he strolled past Nugent's crowded locker Monday.
"Mike really nailed it," coach Eric Mangini added. "Mike is the type of guy that everybody cheers for because of the way he works, the way he cares. He's easy to root for. Obviously, everybody wants three points, but aside from that, it's just good to see him hit that type of field goal."
Questions about Nugent's leg strength started to creep in after he struggled to reach the end zone on kickoffs. He was also 0-for-3 on field goals of 50 or more yards in his young career.
But similar to a relief pitcher in baseball, Nugent has learned to have a short memory, never allowing one bad kick to linger. He also refuses to let doubts about his abilities affect him.
"If you're doing your job on the field, then you're going to get to keep doing what you do, do what you do best and what you love," he said.
With his small stature - he's 5-foot-9 and 182 pounds - and boyish looks, Nugent can easily be mistaken for a reporter or equipment manager in the Jets' locker room. On the field, he has stood tall for years.
Nugent set or tied 22 school records at Ohio State, where he established a reputation for having a powerful and accurate leg. Those credentials made him one of the highest-drafted kickers in the last 23 years when the Jets took him in the second round, 47th overall, in 2005.
Big things were obviously expected, but his NFL career got off to a dubious start. Nugent's first field-goal attempt was blocked in the opener against Kansas City, but he rebounded to have a decent rookie season. He made 22 of 28 field goals, including a 49-yarder in the season finale against Buffalo.
Nugent then had a horrific opening game this season in a 23-16 win at Tennessee, missing two of his three field-goal attempts and an extra point.
"Even though I had that Tennessee game, I'm glad we got the win, and my teammates are so supportive, it's unbelievable," Nugent said.
Until Sunday, Nugent had missed his only try from 50 this season - a 52-yarder at windy Cleveland four weeks ago. He was 0-for-3 in his career from 50-plus yards when Mangini and special teams coordinator Mike Westhoff let Nugent try one Sunday.
"The warmups went really well, so I was thinking, `Just hit it like I did during warmups,'" Nugent recalled. "I knew I had to do my job."
Besides the 54-yarder, Nugent made kicks of 23, 34 and 40 yards Sunday. He also booted three kickoffs into the end zone on a day when the wind wasn't much of a factor.
Nugent also showed some toughness, making an open-field tackle on Dexter Wynn during a kickoff return.
"It wasn't just a tackle, it was a great hit, too," special teams ace Brad Smith said. "He did a great job of doing his job all day long."
Nugent hasn't had many opportunities to make his mark in games, converting 12 of 15 attempts, tied for the fewest kicks in the NFL.
"I'd say that's probably the main reason it might be kind of a tough thing, because you can kick one field goal and then maybe none for the next two games," he said. "But when you get called upon, that's the time you have to perform at your best."
The Jets had two opportunities to try for 50-yard field goals against Chicago two weeks ago, but Mangini decided instead to punt. New York was shut out 10-0, and many wondered if the coach's confidence in Nugent had been shaken.
"I think once you get one on the board, it always helps to make the next decision," Mangini said. "But it will still be week to week. ... It ties into the game day as well as him being able to hit that, which I think helps his argument."
 
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BIG DAY: Four FGs vs. Titans a career best for 2nd-year man

Jets' Nugent a confident kicker now
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 11/29/06

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. ? Mike Nugent measured his steps and gazed at his target 54 yards away. He knew he was going to make the field goal.
The Jets' second-year kicker high-fived holder Ben Graham as the ball sailed through the uprights easily for a career-long field goal, just as he imagined seconds earlier.
"If you don't have confidence in yourself, you might as well not even be out on the field," the soft-spoken and mild-mannered Nugent said. "If you're the only one in the whole stadium that has confidence in yourself, well, that's the most you need on the field to do your job."
Nugent tied a career high with four field goals in the Jets' 26-11 win over Houston on Sunday and made a big statement with his 54-yarder that was plenty long and 1 yard shy of the team record.
"It was all that turkey," Graham jokingly shouted in his Australian accent as he strolled past Nugent's crowded locker Monday.
"Mike really nailed it,"
coach Eric Mangini said. "Mike is the type of guy who everybody cheers for because of the way he works, the way he cares. He's easy to root for. Obviously, everybody wants three points, but aside from that, it's just good to see him hit that type of field goal."
Questions about Nugent's leg strength started to creep in after he struggled to reach the end zone on kickoffs. He was also 0-for-3 on field goals of 50 or more yards in his young career.
But similar to a relief pitcher in baseball, Nugent has learned to have a short memory, never allowing one bad kick to linger. He also refuses to let doubts about his abilities affect him.
"If you're doing your job on the field, then you're going to get to keep doing what you do, do what you do best and what you love," he said.
With his small stature ? he's 5-foot-9 and 182 pounds ? and boyish looks, Nugent can easily be mistaken for a reporter or equipment manager in the Jets' locker room. On the field, the Centerville, Ohio, native has stood tall for years.
Nugent set or tied 22 school records at Ohio State, where he established a reputation for having a powerful and accurate leg. Those credentials made him one of the highest-drafted kickers in the last 23 years when the Jets took him in the second round, 47th overall, in 2005.
Big things were obviously expected, but his NFL career got off to a dubious start. Nugent's first field-goal attempt was blocked in the opener against Kansas City, but he rebounded to have a decent rookie season. He made 22 of 28 field goals, including a 49-yarder in the season finale against Buffalo.
Nugent then had a horrific opening game this season in a 23-16 win at Tennessee, missing two of his three field-goal attempts and an extra point.
"Even though I had that Tennessee game, I'm glad we got the win, and my teammates are so supportive, it's unbelievable," Nugent said.
Until Sunday, Nugent had missed his only try from 50 this season ? a 52-yarder at windy Cleveland four weeks ago. He was 0-for-3 in his career from 50-plus yards when Mangini and special teams coordinator Mike Westhoff let Nugent try one Sunday.
"The warmups went really well, so I was thinking, "Just hit it like I did during warmups,' " Nugent recalled. "I knew I had to do my job."
Besides the 54-yarder, Nugent made kicks of 23, 34 and 40 yards Sunday. He also booted three kickoffs into the end zone on a day when the wind wasn't much of a factor.
Nugent also showed some toughness, making an open-field tackle on Dexter Wynn during a kickoff return.
"It wasn't just a tackle, it was a great hit, too," special teams ace Brad Smith said. "He did a great job of doing his job all day long."
Nugent hasn't had many opportunities to make his mark in games, converting 12 of 15 attempts, tied for the fewest kicks in the NFL.
 
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Nugent riding high after Jets' victory Kicker confident recent FGs have restored Mangini's faith
BY ANDREW GROSS
GANNETT NEWSPAPERS Everybody else identifies Mike Nugent as a second-round pick. But the Jets kicker spends his time trying to fulfill what he considers the job requirements, not the expectations of his draft position."You have to be consistent," Nugent said. "You have to be dependable."
Lately, that's exactly what the second-year pro, picked 47th overall out of Ohio State in 2005, has been.
He kicked a career-best 54-yard field goal in this past Sunday's 26-11 win over the Texans and tied a career high by making all four of his field-goal attempts.
That's helped to shake, somewhat, Nugent's reputation for not having the strongest of legs. His previous career high was 49 yards, and he came into the game 0 for 3 from 50 yards and beyond in his career.
"Mike is the type of guy that everybody cheers for because of the way he works, the way he cares," Jets coach Eric Mangini said. "It's just good to seem him hit that type of field goal. I think once you get one on the board, it always helps to make the next decision."
Likewise, Nugent has had problems consistently getting his kickoffs deep.
But he booted three of his seven to at least the goal line against the Texans. Even better, he went low to upend Dexter Wynn and make the stop on his 33-yard kickoff return in the second quarter.
"It wasn't just a tackle," teammate Brad Smith said. "It was a great hit, too. He did a great job of doing his job all day long."
Nugent said he made a couple of similar tackles at Ohio State but has not played defense since going in for "three plays," in eighth grade.
Overall, Nugent has hit 10 of 11 field goals plus all 11 point-after attempts in his last six games.
This week could be challenging as the Jets (6-5) are at Green Bay (4-7), where temperatures could drop to the single digits and snow is in the forecast.
"I played with B.J. Sander, who was a punter for Green Bay the last two seasons, at Ohio State," Nugent said. "So I hope that he's someone I will be able to talk to and try to get info about what the wind does there and how the field is."
Nugent's recent solid play is a huge turnaround from earlier this season after he went 1 for 3 -- missing from 30 and 34 yards -- with a missed point-after in a season-opening 23-16 win at Tennessee. Mangini then brought in three kickers the following Tuesday to push Nugent for his job.
Now he believes he's restored Mangini's confidence in him.
"I think it does," Nugent said. "I think you really have to earn that kind of confidence."
Not that Nugent's confidence was ever shaken.
"Not really," Nugent said. "That's the biggest thing I've tried to learn from other guys that I've talked to, especially in the NFL. If you don't have confidence in yourself, you might as well not even be out on the field. If you're the only one in the whole stadium that has confidence in you, that's the most you need."
 
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