Graham Gano

Graham Clark Gano (born April 9, 1987) is a Scottish-American professional American football placekicker for the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League (NFL).[2] He played college football at Florida State University and was signed by the Baltimore Ravens as an undrafted free agent in 2009.

Graham Gano
Gano with the Carolina Panthers in 2016
No. 9 – Carolina Panthers
Position:Placekicker
Personal information
Born: (1987-04-09) April 9, 1987
Arbroath, Scotland[1]
Height:6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight:197 lb (89 kg)
Career information
High school:J. M. Tate
(Cantonment, Florida)
College:Florida State
Undrafted:2009
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Roster status:Active
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics as of 2018
Field goals:224
Field goals attempted:273
Field goal %:82.1
Longest field goal:63
Touchbacks:437
Player stats at NFL.com
Player stats at PFR

Gano has also played for the Las Vegas Locomotives and the Washington Redskins.

During his tenure with the Panthers, Gano attained the franchise's record for longest field goal at 63 yards in 2018.

Early years

Gano's father, Mark, was a United States Navy Master Chief Petty Officer and Vietnam veteran who was stationed in Scotland when Gano was born. Gano has a long line of ancestors who served in the military, including his great grandfather Richard Gano, and grandfather Raymond of Martinsburg, West Virginia.[3] Gano grew up in Cantonment, Florida, near Pensacola, Florida and attended J. M. Tate High School, Home of the Mighty Mighty Aggies, where he was a two-sport star in football and track. In high school football, he was an All-American First-Team selection by USA Today and the nation's third-ranked kicker by Rivals.com.[4] Gano played in the CaliFlorida All-Star game, completing a 50-yard field goal in the game. During his senior season, Gano kicked three field goals over 55 yards (57, 64, and 65 yards) and had a 71-yard field goal made which was negated by a penalty. A total of 36 of his 38 kickoffs were touchbacks and he averaged better than 42 yards per punt as a senior.[4]

As a standout track & field athlete, Gano was one of the state's top performers in the sprinting events. He captured three state titles in track at the 2005 FHSAA 3A District 1, winning the 100-meter dash, with a time of 10.55 seconds, the 200-meter dash, with a time of 21.70 seconds, and the 400-meter dash, with a time of 48.00 seconds.[5]

College career

Gano attended Florida State University from 2005 to 2008, playing as a kicker and punter for the Florida State Seminoles.

During his senior year in 2008, Gano finished first in the FBS for field goals made, percentage of field goals converted and 50-yard field goals made, and was the Lou Groza Award winner as the nation's top kicker. He was one of only two kickers in college to make over 90% of his field goal attempts in the 2008 season. He was the highest scoring kicker in America and fourth overall in the FBS in scoring. He was a Rivals.com, Scout.com, and CBS Sports first team All-American. Gano was listed as Walter Camp, Associated Press, Sporting News, SI.com, and Phil Steele second team All-American. He earned All-ACC First Team honors as well.

Gano was four-time ACC Specialist of the Week for his kicking performances against NC State, Virginia Tech, Clemson, and Maryland. He also was a two-time Lou Groza Star of the Week honoree for his performances in Florida State's victories over NC State and Clemson. He was named offensive special teams player of the year for the Seminoles as selected by the Florida State coaching staff. He led the ACC in field goals per game with a career-high 2.2 field goals per game average. Gano has the highest field goal percentage in the ACC; in 2008, he made 92.3 percent of his field goal attempts (24 of 26) and led the league in field goals made with 24. He was also the ACC's leading scorer with 105 points and a 9.5 points per game average. Gano is the only kicker in FSU history to convert over 90% of his field goals in a season. He is one of only two punters ever to be named the MVP of a bowl game, when he was named the Most Valuable Player in the 2008 Champs Sports Bowl. He holds the Seminoles single season record for 50+-yard field goals, completing five straight attempts from 50 yards or longer. Despite only kicking for one season, Gano finished second in career 50-yard field goals at FSU behind two time Lou Groza Award winner Sebastian Janikowski.[4]

Professional career

Baltimore Ravens
Gano at Ravens training camp in 2009

Gano signed with the Baltimore Ravens as an undrafted free agent immediately after the 2009 NFL Draft. After the Ravens named Steve Hauschka as their kicker, they waived Gano on September 5.

Las Vegas Locomotives

Gano was signed by the Las Vegas Locomotives of the United Football League after being cut by the Ravens. He earned the first points for the league after converting a 32-yard field goal, and hit a then-UFL record long field goal of 53 yards. He was responsible for the winning field goal which gave the Locomotives the first ever UFL championship.[6] He finished the season leading the league in scoring and field goals made.[7]

Washington Redskins
Gano at Redskins training camp in 2012

On December 8, 2009, Gano was signed by the Washington Redskins, replacing veteran Shaun Suisham. He successfully connected on his first career NFL field goal attempt, a 46-yard attempt against the Oakland Raiders on December 13, 2009. Gano continued to play for the Redskins in the 2010 season. He cemented his status as a clutch kicker for the Redskins by contributing to three overtime game-winning field goals when playing against the Green Bay Packers, Tennessee Titans, and Jacksonville Jaguars.

Due to Gano's inconsistency in the 2010 season, the Redskins brought Shayne Graham to compete.[8] After a good performance in the preseason and horrible performance by Graham in the first preseason game, Gano was kept on the final roster before the start of the new season. In Week 9 against the San Francisco 49ers in the 2011 season, he kicked a 59-yard field goal, which broke the Redskins' franchise record of 57 yards.[9] At the end of the season, he made 31 of 41 field goal attempts with five of the ten misses being blocked kicks.[10]

On March 3, 2012, the Redskins tendered a contract with Gano establishing exclusive negotiating rights and guaranteeing him a league minimum salary.[11] He was once again forced to compete for his job after the team signed Neil Rackers.[12] Originally it seemed that once again, Gano kept his spot on the Redskins' roster after Rackers was cut by the team on August 27.[13][14] In a surprise transaction by the Redskins, Gano was released the next day after the team signed veteran Billy Cundiff.[15]

Carolina Panthers
Gano kicking in Super Bowl 50

On November 20, 2012, Gano was signed by the Carolina Panthers, replacing Justin Medlock.[16] He played in the last six games of the season under head coach Ron Rivera and converted nine out of eleven field goal attempts.[17] In the 2013 season, he converted all 42 extra point attempts and 24 of 27 field goal attempts.[18]

On February 28, 2014, it was announced that Gano had signed a new four-year contract with the Panthers worth $12.4 million.[19] He converted all 34 extra point attempts and 29 of 35 field goal attempts.[20]

On November 2, 2015, Gano kicked a game-winning 52-yard field goal in overtime against the Indianapolis Colts.[21] The successful field goal helped move the Panthers to a franchise-best 7–0 start.

Gano had an NFL-leading 62 points in November 2015, going 15-for-17 on field goals and 17-for-18 on extra-point attempts. For his performance during November, Gano was awarded the NFC Special Teams Player of the Month.[22] He became only the second kicker in Panthers' franchise history to win the award (the first was John Kasay in September 1996). Through the first 12 weeks of the season, Gano ranked second in NFL in points scored with 110, trailing only New England Patriots kicker, Stephen Gostkowski (111).[23] During the Panthers 38–35 victory over the New York Giants, Gano kicked his second walk-off winner this season as time expired to move the Panthers to a 14-0 record.[24] Gano finished the 2015 NFL season with 146 points, breaking John Kasay‘s team record for most in a season (145, 1996).[25] During the season, he also topped the NFL with 69 touchbacks and a 72.0 yard average kickoff distance.[26]

In Super Bowl 50, Gano was one-of-two on field goals and converted the lone extra point for the Panthers. In the third quarter with the Panthers trailing by a score of 13–7, Gano missed a field goal that hit off the right side of the goal post. The Panthers went on to fall to the Denver Broncos by a score of 24–10.[27]

On September 17, 2017, in Week 2, Gano scored all of the Panthers' points in a 9–3 victory over the Buffalo Bills. The three field goals he converted were a 34-yarder, 28-yarder, and a 20-yarder.[28]

In the 2017-18 Playoffs, Gano missed a 25-yard field goal attempt early in a Wild Card Game against the Saints, but would go on to make four field goals, including a 58-yard field goal, tying Pete Stoyanovich for the longest field goal made in the postseason in NFL history.[29]

Gano was named to his first Pro Bowl in 2017 as an injury replacement for Greg Zuerlein.[30]

On March 6, 2018, Gano signed a four-year, $17 million contract extension with the Panthers.[31] On October 7, 2018, Gano kicked a 63-yard field goal game-winning field goal as time expired in a 33-31 victory over the New York Giants, earning him NFC Special Teams Player of the Week. The kick also tied the non-altitude assisted field goal record set in 1970 by Tom Dempsey and tied in 2012 by David Akers.[32][33] He was placed on injured reserve on December 19, 2018 after sitting out the previous two games due to injury.[34] He finished the season having converted 30 of 33 extra point attempts and 14 of 16 field goal attempts.[35]

On August 30, 2019, Gano was placed on injured reserve, ending his 2019 season.[36]

Career statistics

UFL
Year Team PAT FG Points
MadeAttPctMadeAttPctLong
2009LV 2020100%131681.6%5359
Total2020100%131681.6%5359

NFL
Year Team PAT FG Points
MadeAttPctMadeAttPctLong
2009WAS 6785.7%44100%4618
2010WAS 2828100.0%243568.6%49100
2011WAS 252696.2%314175.6%59118
2012CAR 202195.2%91181.8%5147
2013CAR 4242100.0%242788.9%55114
2014CAR 3434100.0%293582.9%53121
2015CAR 565994.9%303683.3%52146
2016CAR 313491.2%303878.9%54121
2017CAR 343791.9%293096.7%48121
2018CAR 303390.9%141687.5%6372
Total30632195.3%22427382.1%63978

Awards and honors

Panthers franchise records
  • Extra Points: season (56 in 2015), game (five on November 22, 2015 against the Washington Redskins), playoff season (10 in 2015), playoff game (five on January 24, 2016 against the Arizona Cardinals)
  • Longest Field Goal: set the franchise record with a 63 yard game-winning field goal over the Giants on October 7, 2018.

References
  1. "Graham Gano Player Profile". NFL. Retrieved December 4, 2016.
  2. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on December 19, 2013. Retrieved November 20, 2012.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  3. "Long History Of Military Service Runs Deep In Graham Gano's Family - Redskins Journal". Blogs.fredericksburg.com. November 11, 2011. Archived from the original on May 31, 2012. Retrieved July 29, 2012.
  4. 43   Graham Gano (April 9, 1987). "Graham Gano Profile - Florida State University Official Athletic Site". Seminoles.com. Archived from the original on July 29, 2012. Retrieved July 29, 2012.
  5. http://fl.milesplit.com/meets/11117/results/23569
  6. "Las Vegas tops Florida to win inaugural UFL championship - ESPN". Sports.espn.go.com. November 28, 2009. Retrieved July 29, 2012.
  7. "UFL Stats: Player". ufl-football.com. Archived from the original on October 26, 2009. Retrieved December 2, 2009.
  8. Jones, Mike (August 1, 2011). "Redskins place kicker Graham Gano welcomes competition in Shayne Graham". WashingtonPost.com. Retrieved August 23, 2012.
  9. Jones, Mike (November 6, 2011). "Gano bounces back with franchise-record field goal". WashingtonPost.com. Retrieved November 6, 2011.
  10. "Redskins Retain Gano With Tender Offer". Redskins.com. Retrieved March 2, 2012.
  11. "Redskins to make TE Fred Davis their franchise player". WashingtonTimes.com. Retrieved March 2, 2012.
  12. Jones, Mike (August 16, 2012). "Redskins kickers Graham Gano, Neil Rackers hoping for their shot vs. Chicago Bears". WashingtonPost.com. Retrieved August 23, 2012.
  13. Jones, Mike (August 27, 2012). "Redskins release Neil Rackers". WashingtonPost.com. Retrieved August 27, 2012.
  14. Maske, Mark (August 27, 2012). "Graham Gano ready for opportunity after besting Neil Rackers in Redskins kicking competition". WashingtonPost.com. Retrieved August 27, 2012.
  15. Jones, Mike (August 28, 2012). "Redskins sign Billy Cundiff, release Graham Gano". WashingtonPost.com. Retrieved August 28, 2012.
  16. "Carolina Panthers waive Justin Medlock, sign Graham Gano". NFL.com. Retrieved July 1, 2019.
  17. "Graham Gano 2012 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved July 23, 2019.
  18. "Graham Gano 2013 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved July 23, 2019.
  19. Sessler, Mark. "Graham Gano signed by Carolina Panthers for 4 years". NFL.com. Retrieved February 28, 2014.
  20. "Graham Gano 2014 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved July 23, 2019.
  21. "Can't-Miss Play: Gano hits game-winning field goal". NFL.com. Retrieved January 8, 2016.
  22. http://www.charlotteobserver.com/sports/nfl/carolina-panthers/article47712665.html
  23. http://www.charlotteobserver.com/sports/nfl/carolina-panthers/article47712665.html#storylink=cpy
  24. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on January 29, 2016. Retrieved December 23, 2015.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  25. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on January 29, 2016. Retrieved January 4, 2016.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  26. Pro Football Focus [@PFF] (February 3, 2016). "Carolina K Graham Gano topped the NFL in @PFF kickoff grading, touchbacks (69), and average kickoff distance (72.0 yards)" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  27. "Super Bowl 50 - Denver Broncos vs. Carolina Panthers - February 7th, 2016". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
  28. "Buffalo Bills at Carolina Panthers - September 17th, 2017". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 14, 2017.
  29. "Adversity, Panthers patience set stage for Graham Gano's big moment". ESPN.com. October 9, 2018. Retrieved July 23, 2019.
  30. "Graham Gano, Trai Turner named to Pro Bowl roster". Panthers.com. January 10, 2018.
  31. Patra, Kevin (March 6, 2018). "Graham Gano signs four-year deal with Panthers". NFL.com.
  32. Reed, Steve (October 7, 2018). "Gano's 63-yard field goal lifts Panthers over Giants 33-31". AP NEWS. Retrieved July 23, 2019.
  33. Maya, Adam (October 10, 2018). "Drew Brees, Isaiah Crowell among Players of the Week". NFL.com.
  34. "Panthers place Graham Gano on injured reserve". Panthers.com. December 19, 2018.
  35. "Graham Gano 2018 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved July 23, 2019.
  36. "Graham Gano placed on injured reserve, ending his 2019 season". panthers.com. Retrieved August 30, 2019.
  37. "2008 CBS Sports All-Americans". Archived from the original on December 15, 2008.
  38. "2008 CFN All-America Teams". Archived from the original on January 20, 2009. Retrieved January 17, 2009.
  39. "Rivals.com 2008 All-America Teams". Archived from the original on December 16, 2008.
  40. Jones, Mike (November 6, 2011). "Gano bounces back with franchise-record field goal". WashingtonPost.com. Retrieved April 18, 2013.
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