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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
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| Great Footage! And Jets Notice | Great Footage! And Jets Notice |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Havard Rugland does not have the pedigree one might expect for someone who has become an Internet sensation for kicking a football. He knows next to nothing about the sport. Just ask him to name the quarterback of the New England Patriots or the Denver Broncos. | |
| “I have no idea,” said Rugland, a 28-year-old from Norway. | “I have no idea,” said Rugland, a 28-year-old from Norway. |
| When asked how many yards an offense is penalized for a false start, Rugland paused. “I’d just be guessing,” he finally admitted. | When asked how many yards an offense is penalized for a false start, Rugland paused. “I’d just be guessing,” he finally admitted. |
| “Look, I don’t know much about football,” Rugland said by telephone from his home in Algard, a small town near the southwestern coast of Norway. “But I’m fascinated by it. There’s great athletes and speed and big hits. I thought it was interesting. So I wondered, What can I do?” | “Look, I don’t know much about football,” Rugland said by telephone from his home in Algard, a small town near the southwestern coast of Norway. “But I’m fascinated by it. There’s great athletes and speed and big hits. I thought it was interesting. So I wondered, What can I do?” |
| Using tools not typically associated with athletic prowess — YouTube, Facebook, Skype and Gmail — Rugland parlayed a homemade video that went viral into a tryout as a kicker with the Jets last week. He might be the first professional prospect to replace college football experience with social media savvy. In the four-minute video, posted on YouTube in mid-September under the title “Kickalicious,” the left-footed Rugland pulls off some of the most amusing tricks with a football since Lucy began duping Charlie Brown. It has been viewed more than 1.5 million times. | Using tools not typically associated with athletic prowess — YouTube, Facebook, Skype and Gmail — Rugland parlayed a homemade video that went viral into a tryout as a kicker with the Jets last week. He might be the first professional prospect to replace college football experience with social media savvy. In the four-minute video, posted on YouTube in mid-September under the title “Kickalicious,” the left-footed Rugland pulls off some of the most amusing tricks with a football since Lucy began duping Charlie Brown. It has been viewed more than 1.5 million times. |
| In one clip Rugland kicks the ball from a dock to someone in a canoe floating about 25 yards away. Twice. In another, he kicks the ball into the arms of someone standing through a car’s sunroof. That might not seem so spectacular, except the car is cruising along a country road. The most eye-popping trick is saved for last. Rugland punts one ball high into the air and then quickly kicks a second ball off a tee. The balls collide in midair. | In one clip Rugland kicks the ball from a dock to someone in a canoe floating about 25 yards away. Twice. In another, he kicks the ball into the arms of someone standing through a car’s sunroof. That might not seem so spectacular, except the car is cruising along a country road. The most eye-popping trick is saved for last. Rugland punts one ball high into the air and then quickly kicks a second ball off a tee. The balls collide in midair. |
| “That last kick, it took about eight tries,” Rugland said. “The basketball kick, I wanted it to go straight in, but it kept hitting the rim. That actually took a while. That could have been like 40 tries.” | “That last kick, it took about eight tries,” Rugland said. “The basketball kick, I wanted it to go straight in, but it kept hitting the rim. That actually took a while. That could have been like 40 tries.” |
| Rugland is so accurate on so many difficult kicks that his video almost seems too good to be true. It brings to mind doctored videos featuring other athletes, like one of the Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant leaping over a speeding Aston Martin (Bryant never would have risked his knees). But Rugland insisted his video was real. He said that NRK, Norway’s public broadcasting network, reviewed the raw videos and concluded they were legitimate. | Rugland is so accurate on so many difficult kicks that his video almost seems too good to be true. It brings to mind doctored videos featuring other athletes, like one of the Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant leaping over a speeding Aston Martin (Bryant never would have risked his knees). But Rugland insisted his video was real. He said that NRK, Norway’s public broadcasting network, reviewed the raw videos and concluded they were legitimate. |
| Regardless of the video’s legitimacy, Rugland ended up at the Jets’ doorstep, quite an accomplishment for anyone, let alone a Norwegian who had never played football at any level. His journey to New York provides a blueprint of sorts for anyone looking to turn a homemade video into a global hit. | Regardless of the video’s legitimacy, Rugland ended up at the Jets’ doorstep, quite an accomplishment for anyone, let alone a Norwegian who had never played football at any level. His journey to New York provides a blueprint of sorts for anyone looking to turn a homemade video into a global hit. |
| It all started when Rugland’s club soccer team disbanded a year and a half ago. He began looking for another hobby to go along with his interest in video cameras. He got the bug for football after watching a live feed of the Super Bowl in the middle of the night. Rugland said he always had a booming leg in soccer and wondered if his talent would transfer to this new, obscure sport. | It all started when Rugland’s club soccer team disbanded a year and a half ago. He began looking for another hobby to go along with his interest in video cameras. He got the bug for football after watching a live feed of the Super Bowl in the middle of the night. Rugland said he always had a booming leg in soccer and wondered if his talent would transfer to this new, obscure sport. |
| So Rugland bought a football and went on the Internet to study videos of kickers. | So Rugland bought a football and went on the Internet to study videos of kickers. |
| For fun, Rugland made his video in about five days in September with the help of two of his brothers and a friend. In the weeks after he put the video online, it was viewed 5,000 times. One of those viewers was Michael Husted, who kicked in the N.F.L. for nine seasons. Husted, a kicking instructor, connected with Rugland on Facebook. | |
| “I was just enamored by his size and his stature,” Husted said of Rugland, who is 6 feet 2 inches and 242 pounds. “I thought there was some potential there. N.F.L. teams like these big kickers.” | “I was just enamored by his size and his stature,” Husted said of Rugland, who is 6 feet 2 inches and 242 pounds. “I thought there was some potential there. N.F.L. teams like these big kickers.” |
| Soon, Husted and Rugland began discussing the art of the trade over Skype. | Soon, Husted and Rugland began discussing the art of the trade over Skype. |
| In mid-October, NRK, the Norwegian television network, did a story on Rugland’s minor celebrity. Soon, Rugland said, the video reached 500,000 views. His Gmail account was flooded with interest from small colleges like Henderson State University in Arkansas and Lincoln University in Missouri. (Despite his age, Rugland is eligible to play college football.) | |
| In late November, Rugland received an e-mail message from someone with more clout: Scott Cohen, assistant general manager of the Jets. | In late November, Rugland received an e-mail message from someone with more clout: Scott Cohen, assistant general manager of the Jets. |
| “Of course, my first thought was, ‘Who of my friends have sent me this e-mail?’ ” Rugland said. “I thought it was a joke.” | “Of course, my first thought was, ‘Who of my friends have sent me this e-mail?’ ” Rugland said. “I thought it was a joke.” |
| After being assured by Rugland that he was serious about pursuing a career as a kicker, Cohen suggested that he train for a few weeks with a kicking coach in the United States. Cohen even recommended a few names, including Husted. | After being assured by Rugland that he was serious about pursuing a career as a kicker, Cohen suggested that he train for a few weeks with a kicking coach in the United States. Cohen even recommended a few names, including Husted. |
| “He had never seen a snap or a hold,” Cohen said. “I told him, ‘If you pay your way over here and work hard, I’ll fly you to New York before you fly back to Norway.’ ” | “He had never seen a snap or a hold,” Cohen said. “I told him, ‘If you pay your way over here and work hard, I’ll fly you to New York before you fly back to Norway.’ ” |
| It was a significant cost for Rugland, who works as a counselor in a state-run facility for at-risk youths. But he bought a ticket to San Diego, where Husted is based. | It was a significant cost for Rugland, who works as a counselor in a state-run facility for at-risk youths. But he bought a ticket to San Diego, where Husted is based. |
| Husted is well connected in the fraternity of current and former N.F.L. kickers. In addition to giving Rugland his first formal lesson on kicking in late November, he arranged to have Nate Kaeding, who signed with the Miami Dolphins recently, evaluate Rugland’s technique. | Husted is well connected in the fraternity of current and former N.F.L. kickers. In addition to giving Rugland his first formal lesson on kicking in late November, he arranged to have Nate Kaeding, who signed with the Miami Dolphins recently, evaluate Rugland’s technique. |
| “Put him out on the field with all of us N.F.L. kickers, he’s going to kick it as high and as far as the rest of us,” said Kaeding, the most accurate field goal kicker in N.F.L. history. “The way that he flights the ball and how he hits it, the pop he puts in it, is like a professional caliber. He can hit from 55, 60 yards.” | “Put him out on the field with all of us N.F.L. kickers, he’s going to kick it as high and as far as the rest of us,” said Kaeding, the most accurate field goal kicker in N.F.L. history. “The way that he flights the ball and how he hits it, the pop he puts in it, is like a professional caliber. He can hit from 55, 60 yards.” |
| Cohen was reluctant to give details about last week’s workout but said the Jets saw enough to conclude that Rugland had a chance to play in the N.F.L. Rugland said the Jets wanted him to return for a workout in March. He added that he planned to spend the next few months in Norway practicing field goals and kickoffs (he is leaving the trick shots behind). | Cohen was reluctant to give details about last week’s workout but said the Jets saw enough to conclude that Rugland had a chance to play in the N.F.L. Rugland said the Jets wanted him to return for a workout in March. He added that he planned to spend the next few months in Norway practicing field goals and kickoffs (he is leaving the trick shots behind). |
| Rugland has also hired an agent, Jill McBride Baxter. After Rugland’s tryout with the Jets, Baxter said, the Oakland Raiders, the Green Bay Packers and the Philadelphia Eagles expressed interest in him. | Rugland has also hired an agent, Jill McBride Baxter. After Rugland’s tryout with the Jets, Baxter said, the Oakland Raiders, the Green Bay Packers and the Philadelphia Eagles expressed interest in him. |
| Still, Rugland remains an untested commodity. Kaeding said there was little room for creativity in kicking and noted that Rugland’s lack of game experience was a glaring obstacle. | Still, Rugland remains an untested commodity. Kaeding said there was little room for creativity in kicking and noted that Rugland’s lack of game experience was a glaring obstacle. |
| “There’s a lot of emotion and psychological hurdles you have to navigate,” Kaeding said. “In high school and college, you learn how to deal with the nuances of the position. He’s fighting against time because he hasn’t had that experience.” | “There’s a lot of emotion and psychological hurdles you have to navigate,” Kaeding said. “In high school and college, you learn how to deal with the nuances of the position. He’s fighting against time because he hasn’t had that experience.” |
| Even if the Jets tryout turns out to be Rugland’s only taste of the N.F.L., he has broken new ground, making kicking look sexy. | Even if the Jets tryout turns out to be Rugland’s only taste of the N.F.L., he has broken new ground, making kicking look sexy. |
| “It’s almost like the world has gotten a little bit smaller,” Rugland said. “I have no background in American football. You couldn’t be more green than me. I made a video and it’s possible for America to watch it. And it ends up with a tryout with the Jets. And let’s hope a lot more.” | “It’s almost like the world has gotten a little bit smaller,” Rugland said. “I have no background in American football. You couldn’t be more green than me. I made a video and it’s possible for America to watch it. And it ends up with a tryout with the Jets. And let’s hope a lot more.” |