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As a rule, teams start looking to pick up kickers and punters in the last few rounds, which makes these guys prime candidates for Mr. I status. Because of the league's biased view on kickers, though, even the best might not go 'til last. That makes it hard to choose just one. So here are four punter/kickers who might grab the Lowsman Trophy.
Name: Dan HadenfeldtName: Billy Gramatica
Position: Kicker
School: South Florida
Vitals: 5'9", 188 pounds (soaking wet with lots of spare change in his
pockets)
Stats: Converted 16 of 24 kicks and missed only one inside the 40 last
season. A whopping 62% of his kickoffs went into the end zone.
Notes: The most relevant of our four kicker candidates for Mr. Irrelevant
because of his showing in post-season all-star games ... A raw talent with
more power than accuracy ... The younger brother of Bucs kicker Martin
Gramatica; he kicked a 63-yard field goal last year.
Name: Owen Pochman
Position: Kicker
School: Brigham Young
Vitals: 6'0", 180 pounds
Stats: Did not miss an extra point in 29 attempts last year but was 19-of-24 in field goals, including nine-of-14 from beyond 40 yards.
Notes: High-scoring Pochman is BYU's all-time leading scorer, but will still need to
prove to teams he can kick at sea level, unless the Broncos draft him ...Won't exactly help kickers improve their image. Loves cats and
hopes a New York team drafts him so he can continue to model, and has also been
working on a book on love.
Name: Jamie Rheem
Position: Kicker
School: Kansas State
Vitals: 6'2", 190 pounds
Stats: Nailed 85% of his field goals as a junior and senior, including
several game winners and a 3-for-3 performance in a 29-28 win over
Nebraska.
Notes: Scored a 26 on the Wonderlic ... Kicked five FGs against Texas
in 1999 ... Only fourth Wildcat to ever score 100 points in a season ... A perfect example of how even the best kickers won't get picked 'till
late in the draft. But don't take our word for it -- go to The Jamie Rheem
Shrine.
Next: I introduce Mr. Irrelevant. Unofficially, I missed predicting Mr. I XXVI by eight picks. On my (yes, unpublished) radar screen for the selection was DT Tyrone Robertson from Hinds JuCo in Mississippi, who was taken by the Bills at #238. Another close call was Princeton lineman Dennis Norman, who went to Seattle with pick 222. Officially the closest I came was BYU kicker Owen Pochman, who went to New England at 216. So I missed by 40 picks, which, in the world of draft gurus, makes me Mr. Irrelevant.