THE PRO COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYER PROSPECT SCOUTING DATABASE
FREE AGENT PUNTER
P - Kluwe, Chris, UCLA - Minnesota Vikings
Height: 6-4 Weight: 215 Age: 27
Born: 12/24/1981 Philadelphia , PA
College: UCLA
Experience: 5th season
High School: Los Alamitos HS [CA]
General Area Workouts for Pro Teams: NA
Scouting (Staff):
Paul Assad, Pro College Football Player Development and Scouting comments: Has tremendous strength and ability. Hits the ball hard on the upswing. Gets great hang time and distance. One of the best preps we've ever seen hitting 5 plus second punts offered first by UCLA and accepted immediately. Was a tremendous kicker as well hitting a 52 then after a penalty 57 yard field goal to put high school team into O.T. and the victory in CIF Section Championships.
Career:
GAMES/STARTS (regular season, playoffs) 2005 (15/0), 2006 (16/0), 2007 (16/0), 2008 (16/0, 1/0). Total- 63/0, 1/0.
• Set Vikings record with a 47.6-yard gross punting average and set team mark with 33 punts of 50+ yards in 2008.
• Earned NFC Special Teams Player of the Month in September 2005, the only rookie in Vikings history to win a Player of the Month award.
OFF THE FIELD Known for his Guitar Hero skills, the game inspired him to learn to play guitar and now plays in a band...Married to Isabel, the couple has a daughter, Olivia...Political science and history major...Played at UCLA when RB coach Eric Bieniemy was on staff...Has taken his Guitar Hero talents and uses them for a good cause, hosting charity tournaments playing the video game...Avid paintball player.
HONORS 2008 USA Today All-Joe Team...NFC Special Teams Player of the Month in September 2005.
PRO In 4 seasons, has already etched his name into the Vikings record book in several areas, including top single-season gross average (47.6 in 2008), 50-yard punts in a season (35 in 2008), 50-yard punts in a game (6 at Tennessee and vs. Detroit in 2008) and gross punting average in a game (57.5 at Detroit in 2007)...Owns Vikings career record with 100 punts of 50+ yards...Agreed to long-term contract extension with Vikings in October 2007...Converted fake FG for a 1st-down vs. Detroit (12/2/07), hitting Jeff Dugan with a shovel pass for a 27-yard gain...Came to the Vikings as a virtual unknown in 2005 when he was claimed off waivers after being released by Seattle…Holder for FGs and PATs.
2008 Recognized by USA Today with a spot on the All-Joe Team, honoring players whose work goes largely unnoticed…Set new team records for gross average in a season at 47.6, breaking a team mark that stood since 1964, and set new mark for 50-yard punts in a season with 35…Boomed 6 punts of 50+ yards to set new single-game Vikings record at Tennessee (9/28) and vs. Detroit (10/12)...Served as the holder for K Ryan Longwell’s team-record setting 6 FGs of 50+ yards during the season.
2007 Set new team records for punts inside the 20 with 34 and booted team-record 29 punts of 50+ yards...Had career-best season with a gross average of 44.7 and net average of 37.0, both ranking in the top 5 in Vikings history for a season...Ranked 3rd in the NFL for punts inside the 20 with 34...Tied a team record and set a career-high by landing all 5 punts inside the 20 in season opener vs. Atlanta (9/9)...Set a new Vikings record for single-game gross punting average at 57.5 yards (4-230 yds) at Detroit (9/16)...Boomed longest punt of career, a 70-yarder, at Kansas City (9/23)...Held on Ryan Longwell’s 55-yard game-winning FG at Chicago (10/14) as time expired, the longest FG of his career and the 2nd-longest overall FG in Vikings history...Completed 1st career pass attempt on a fake FG vs. Detroit (12/2), hitting Jeff Dugan for a 27-yard gain and a 1st down.
2006 Punted 93 times on the season, a team record…Booted 3 punts of 50+ yards and landed 3 punts inside the 20 vs. Carolina (9/17)…Also flipped the ball on a fake field goal to K Ryan Longwell, who then connected with Richard Owens on a 16-yard TD pass…Punted 4 times and landed all of them inside the 20 at Buffalo (10/1)…Hit 3 punts of 50+ yards on Monday Night Football vs. New England (10/30), including a 61-yarder…Followed that up the next week with 4 punts of 50+ yards vs. Green Bay (11/12) and had a season-best 41.9 net average…Booted 3 punts of 50+ yards at Detroit (12/10)…Posted a career-long 68-yard punt vs. N.Y. Jets (12/17).
2005 Led all NFL rookie punters...Ended rookie season ranked #2 in the NFC and #6 in the NFL with a gross average of 44.1 yards per punt...Boomed 15 punts of 50+ yards on the season with a season-high 3 in the opener vs. Tampa Bay (9/11)...Came on strong in his 1st NFL game vs. Tampa Bay (9/11) in the regular-season opener, booming a season-long 62-yarder and hit 4 punts for a 54.3 gross average and a 42.5 net average, the 2nd-best single-game average in team history (minimum 4 punts) and the best in Vikings history by a rookie...Named the NFC Special Teams Player of the Month for September, the 1st Vikings rookie to ever earn Player of the Month honors...Season-high 8 punts in win at NY Giants (11/16)...Season-high punting yardage came at Chicago (10/16) with 256 yards.
COLLEGE One of the top punters in college football as a senior...Selected as a 2004 finalist for the annual Ray Guy Award, presented to the top college punter...As a senior, landed career-high 25 punts inside the opponent’s 20 and averaged 43.4 yards per punt to rank 2nd in the PAC 10 and 14th in the nation...Set UCLA records as a junior with 91 punts for 3,908 yards.
PREP Named to USA Today All-America team as a senior punter...A 1st-Team All-CIF honoree as a junior and senior...Connected on an Orange County and CIF-record 60-yard FG as a senior vs. Loyola...Chosen to play in California-Texas Shrine Game and CaliFlorida Bowl.
