Zuerlein's mom plans surprise NFL Draft party

Sports

Discussion

June 22, 2012

Zuerlein's mom plans surprise NFL Draft party

By Richard Polen Globe Sports Writer The Joplin Globe Fri Jun 22, 2012, 12:05 AM CDT

Greg Zuerlein said he thought he would be with family and a few friends during the National Football League draft. His mom had other ideas.

Zuerlein, who broke NCAA and MIAA records by kicking 21 consecutive field goals, was chosen in the sixth round in April by the St. Louis Rams. He signed a four-year contract with the Rams this month.

“I was at my parents’ house in the basement with relatives and family and friends,” said Zuerlein, who played at Missouri Western as a senior. “On the morning of the draft, my mom wakes me up and says, ‘We invited a bunch of people.’ ’’

Rams special teams coordinator John Fassel conducted private workouts with Zuerlein before the draft. The Rams chose him with the 171st pick. He was the second kicker taken in the draft, 10 picks after Houston chose Texas A&M kicker Randy Bullock.

“I had a couple of workouts with coach Fassel and he saw something he liked,” said Zuerlein, a graduate of St. Pius X High School in Lincoln, Neb. “I kicked the ball like I normally do.”

Zuerlein and first-round draft pick Michael Brockers were among the Rams’ rookies who came to Joplin on Thursday to help Habitat for Humanity volunteers build three houses in a devastated area of the city.

Zuerlein, 6-foot, 187 pounds, was redshirted at Nebraska-Omaha in 2006, then kicked a school-record 61 consecutive PATs during his freshman and sophomore seasons in a streak that was snapped at Missouri Southern.

He was a medical redshirt in 2010, then transferred to Missouri Western after UNO dropped its football program. As a senior with the Griffons, he was 9-for-9 from 50 or more yards, including a school-record 58-yarder against Northwest Missouri.

Zuerlein recalled the Griffons’ game last fall at Missouri Southern, which Missouri Western won 35-23.

“We came down here and I had five field goals,” said Zuerlein, whose kicks were from 57, 46 and 47 yards, along with two shorter kicks. “That was the first game where I made a lot of field goals. That game was the first one where they had me kick some longer field goals.”

As a freshman at UNO, Zuerlein had field goals of 42 and 30 yards but missed a PAT in a 40-21 victory against Missouri Southern, then kicked field goals of 25, 42 and 23 yards as a sophomore in a 44-36 victory over the Lions.

When Joplin was struck by a tornado on May 22, 2011, the news spread quickly at Missouri Western, he said.

“I saw it on Fox News or CNN,” Zuerlein said. “Man, you just don’t hear a small town like Joplin make national news. I was watching with some teammates in the lockerroom and thought, ‘Geez.’

“We came down and looked,” he said. “It reminded me of a tornado at Hallam, Neb.”

Hallam, population 213, was struck by an EF-4 tornado on May 22, 2004. The tornado, 25 miles southwest of Lincoln, was 2 1/2 miles wide and had winds up to 200 mph, according to the National Weather Service.

“There was literally nothing left,” Zuerlein said. “In Joplin, the destruction was so widespread. It’s definitely the most destruction I’ve ever seen. We’re going to get out there and help out the community, which is what it’s all about.”

Brockers, a 6-foot-6, 322-pound defensive tackle, played two seasons at LSU before he was chosen with the 14th pick in the first round of the NFL draft. He signed a four-year contract with the Rams this month.

“We weren’t here when the tornado happened,” Brockers said. “As a part of the state of Missouri, it’s important to give back and show we care about them just as much as they care about it.”

Brockers described Rams head coach Jeff Fisher as a player’s coach and said he’s ready to make the adjustment to pro football.

“It’s really not a big difference,” he said. “It’s football. Now you’re going for a Super Bowl instead of a national championship. Playing in the first preseason game and getting into a groove, that’s the thing all rookies look forward to.”