Thomson's Guy Elected To American Football Kicking Hall of Fame

2009 American Football Kicking Hall of Fame Inductees Announced

Augusta, GA (January 21, 2009) - Prokicker.com announced today the 2009 inductees of the American Football Kicking Hall of Fame. The three American football legends are being recognized for their “firsts” in role of advancing the kicking game. This year’s class includes Mr. Ben Agajanian, American Football’s first kicking specialist, Mr. Peter Gogolak, the first “soccer-style” kicker, and Thomson, Georgia-native Ray Guy, the first professional punter drafted in the first round.

2009 American Football Kicking Hall of Fame Inductees

Ben Agajanian is considered the first “kicking specialist” in pro football. Known as “The Toeless Wonder”, he had four toes on his kicking foot crushed off in a work accident, The Armenian-American kicked field goals for fourteen different teams during his professional career that spanned for the 1940’s to 1960’s. He was one of only two players to play in the All-America Football Conference, the American Football League, and the National Football League. After his playing career he became Pro Football’s first ever kicking coach. His creative teaching ideas enabled him to devise the method of which soccer-style kickers align and approach the ball when kicking field goals. This method was so innovative that it is still the primary way used by soccer-style kickers today. When he retired from play he served as the Dallas Cowboys kicking coach for twenty years.

Peter Gogolak was a Hungarian-born placekicker who played in the NFL for the New York Giants and in the American Football League for the Buffalo Bills. He is credited with being the first “soccer style” kicker. He joined the Bills after leaving Cornell University in 1964. That year his 102 points were 25% of the Bill’s total for the year. In 1965 his peers chose him as a Sporting News All-League player. In addition to being the Giants’ all-time leading scorer with 646 points, other records include most points after touchdowns (8), and most consecutive PAT’s with 133.

Ray Guy is the only pure punter ever selected in the first round of the NFL draft. He was drafted by the Oakland Raiders in 1973 after a standout career at the University of Southern Mississippi. The Thomson, Georgia-native was a key player in three Raider’s Super Bowl victories. During his career he led the NFL in punting three times, played in seven Pro Bowls, was a nine-time All-Pro selection, and never had a punt returned for a touchdown. He was named the punter of the NFL’s 75th Anniversary team, has been inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame, and is the only punter to be a finalist for induction into the NFL Hall of Fame.

The American Football Kicking Hall of Fame was created to recognize the individuals who excelled as kickers, to educate the public on the historic contributions of the kicking game, promote the advancement of kickers as strategic playmakers, and provide an arena to honor the players who put the “special” in special teams. The Kicking Hall of Fame inductees will be presented during the All-Area Football Banquet presented by The Augusta Chroncile and WBJF News Channel 6, to be held January 22 in Augusta, Georgia.