Matt Gay
Matt Gay (born March 15, 1994) is an American football placekicker for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Utah.
![]() Gay at MacDill Air Force Base in 2019 | |||||||||||
No. 9 – Tampa Bay Buccaneers | |||||||||||
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Position: | Placekicker | ||||||||||
Personal information | |||||||||||
Born: | Orem, Utah | March 15, 1994||||||||||
Height: | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | ||||||||||
Weight: | 230 lb (104 kg) | ||||||||||
Career information | |||||||||||
High school: | Orem (UT) | ||||||||||
College: | Utah | ||||||||||
NFL Draft: | 2019 / Round: 5 / Pick: 145 | ||||||||||
Career history | |||||||||||
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Roster status: | Active | ||||||||||
Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||
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Career NFL statistics as of 2019 | |||||||||||
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College career
In 2017, Gay was a consensus All-American.[1] He also won the 2017 Lou Groza Award, being the first Ute to win the award as well as being the school's second ever finalist.[2] Gay also won the 2017 Vlade Award.[3] That season, he led the nation in field goals and set a new Pac-12 Conference record with 30 field goals.[4]
Professional career
Gay was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the fifth round, 145th overall, of the 2019 NFL Draft.[5]
2019 season: Rookie year
Gay made his professional debut in the Buccaneers' regular season opener against the San Francisco 49ers. He converted two extra points and one field goal in the loss.[6] On September 22, 2019, against the New York Giants, Gay missed two field goals, one extra point, and had an extra point blocked.[7]
NFL career statistics
General | Field Goals | PATs | Kickoffs | Points | ||||||||||
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Season | Team | GP | FGM | FGA | FG% | Blck | Long | XPM | XPA | XP% | KO | Avg | TBs | Pts |
2019 | TB | 16 | 27 | 35 | 77.1% | 2 | 58 | 43 | 48 | 89.6% | 1 | 14.0 | 0 | 124 |
Career | 16 | 27 | 35 | 77.1% | 2 | 58 | 43 | 48 | 89.6% | 1 | 14.0 | 0 | 124 |
Buccaneers franchise records
- Longest field goal by a rookie kicker - 58 yards (September 29, 2019 vs Los Angeles Rams)
- Most successful field goal attempts by a rookie kicker - 27 (tied with Martin Gramatica)
- Most successful extra point attempts by a rookie kicker - 43
- Most points scored by a rookie kicker - 124
Soccer career
Gay played for Utah Valley University for two seasons, leading the team in goals in 2014. He also spent time at the USA U-17 national team residency program.[8]
References
- Worthy, Lynn (December 13, 2017). "Matt Gay set to become Utes' seventh consensus all-America selection". The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
- Facer, Dirk (December 7, 2017). "Utah's Matt Gay wins Lou Groza Award". Deseret News. Deseret News Publishing Company. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
- Decker, Ryan (December 26, 2017). "Bowl Preview: WVU, Utah Battle in Heart of Dallas". West Virginia Illustrated. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
- Frye, Sean (December 26, 2017). "Utah kicker Matt Gay breaks Pac-12 record for field goals made in a season". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Cox Enterprises. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
- Sessler, Marc (April 27, 2019). "Buccaneers select kicker Matt Gay in fifth round". National Football League. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
- "San Francisco 49ers at Tampa Bay Buccaneers - September 8th, 2019". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 1, 2019.
- "New York Giants at Tampa Bay Buccaneers - September 22nd, 2019". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 1, 2019.
- Genessy, Jody (December 19, 2017). "Angel in the uprights: Utah kicker Matt Gay draws inspiration from friend who died". Deseret News. Deseret News Publishing Company. Retrieved September 19, 2019.