Content deleted Content added
2 refs |
|||
| (31 intermediate revisions by 13 users not shown) | |||
Line 1:
{{Short description|American football player (born 1943)}}
{{for|the American musician|Curtis Knight}}
{{
{{Use American English|date=August 2023}}
{{Infobox NFL biography
| name = Curt Knight
| image =
| caption =
| position = [[Placekicker|Kicker]]
| number = 5
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1943|4|14}}
| birth_place = [[Gulfport, Mississippi]], U.S.
| death_date = {{Death date and age|2022|3|23|1943|4|14}}
|height_ft=6▼
| death_place = ▼
|height_in=2▼
▲| height_ft = 6
|weight_lbs=190▼
▲| height_in = 2
|undraftedyear=1969▼
▲| weight_lbs = 190
|college=[[Texas longhorns football|Texas]]<br>[[Coast Guard Bears|Coast Guard]]▼
|teams=▼
* [[Washington Redskins]] (1969–1973)▼
▲| teams =
|highlights=▼
* [[Virginia Sailors]] (1968)
▲| highlights =
* [[Pro Bowl]] (1971)
* All NFL (1971)
* NFL Leader FGs Made (1971)
| statlabel1 = Field Goals Attempt
| statvalue1 = 175
| statlabel2 = Field Goals Made
| statvalue2 = 101
| statlabel3 = Field Goal Pct
| statvalue3 = 57.7%
| statlabel4 = Long
| statvalue4 = 52
| pfr = K/KnigCu20▼
| HOF =
▲|pfr=K/KnigCu20
| CollegeHOF = ▼
▲|CollegeHOF=
▲|death_place=
}}
'''Luther Curtis Knight
==Early Life==
Curt Knight was born in Gulf Port, MS to Luther Curtis Knight, Sr. and Dolores Juanita Miller Knight on April 14, 1943. His father was in the Coast Guard. He went to [[Mineral Wells Independent School District|Mineral Wells High School]] for one year in 1960-61 where he played football and ran track.<ref name="1971 Topps"/><ref name="MWHOF"/><ref name="rams">{{cite web |title=former mineral wells rams/mountaineers |url=https://ram176067.tripod.com/former.htm |access-date=19 November 2024}}</ref>
Knight went to college at the [[United States Coast Guard Academy]] where was played both soccer and football, but after his second year he was convinced to focus on football, despite having been an All-New England player in soccer.<ref name="style"/> He played split end, safety and kicker in 1965.<ref name="1971 Topps">{{cite web |title=Curt Knight |url=https://www.tcdb.com/GalleryP.cfm/pid/11085/col/0/yea/0/Curt-Knight?sTeam=&sCardNum=&sNote=&sSetName=&sBrand= |access-date=18 November 2024}}</ref><ref name="Archives">{{cite web |title=CURT KNIGHT |url=https://profootballarchives.com/players/k/knig00400.html |access-date=18 November 2024}}</ref>
From 1966-67 he was in the Army, where he also played football.<ref name="style"/> He was the Best Kicker in league at Division Level both years.<ref name="rams"/>
==Pro Football==
Knight had been a soccer-style kicker in high school and college; long before [[Charlie Gogolak]] had made it popular while kicking at Princeton.<ref name="style">{{cite news |last1=Denlinger |first1=Kenneth |title=Tinkering With Style Pays For Redskins' Kicker Knight |work=The Washington Post |date=24 September 1969}}</ref> He switched to straight-on kicking when, as an undrafted free agent, he was offered a tryout with the [[Dallas Cowboys]]. They passed on him and he was brought to the Redskins by his former Coast Guard coach [[Otto Graham]] who was the Redskins head coach at the time.<ref name="gogolak">{{cite news |last1=Brady |first1=Dave |title=No-Cut Gogolak Put on Cab Squad |work=The Washington Post |date=13 September 1969}}</ref> He signed with the Redskins later in 1968 but was cut during camp and resigned to the taxi squad. He spent the 1968 season on the taxi squad while also playing for the [[Virginia Sailors]] of the [[Atlantic Coast Football League]] during a season when they made it to the Championship game.<ref name="1971 Topps"/> For the Sailors he played both kicker and punter, led the league in average punt distance and was named an All-Pro.<ref name="Archives"/><ref>{{cite news |title=Hartford Team takes Two titles |url=https://virginiachronicle.com/?a=d&d=NVS19681129.1.4&e=-------en-20--1--txt-txIN-------- |access-date=18 November 2024 |work=Northern Virginia Sun |date=29 November 1968}}</ref><ref name="rams"/>
He became the Redskins kicker in 1969, after the prior year starter [[Charlie Gogolak]] struggled in the preseason.<ref name="gogolak"/> That year Knight was the NFL's 6th leading scorer. In 1970 he was 7th in the NFC in scoring.<ref name="1971 Topps"/>
In 1971, Knight led the NFL in [[field goal]]s made (29) and field goals attempted (49),<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nfl.com/stats/player-stats/category/field-goals/1971/reg/all/kickingfgmade/desc|title=1971 Player Stats - Field Goals |website=NFL.com}}</ref> and he led the NFC in scoring with 114 points (setting the then team record).<ref>{{cite news |title=The Washington Redskins are trying to repeat 1982. |url=https://www.upi.com/Archives/1983/11/21/The-Washington-Redskins-are-trying-to-repeat-1982-The/3363438238800/ |access-date=18 November 2024 |date=21 November 1983}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.statmuse.com/nfl/ask/most-points-scored-player-washington-in-a-season|title=Most Points Scored Player Washington In A Season|website=StatMuse}}</ref> Against Chicago he set a team record by kicking 5 field goals in a 15-16 loss where he also missed a 6th field goal.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Walsh |first1=Paul |title=Redskins 29, Bills 14 |url=https://www.upi.com/Archives/1990/12/30/Redskins-29-Bills-14/3987662533200/ |access-date=18 November 2024 |date=30 December 1990}}</ref> That season he was named All-NFL by the Newspaper Enterprise Association, made the Pro Bowl and was named All-NFC by the Sporting News.<ref name="Archives"/>
In 1972, he was the NFC's 9th leading scorer and kicked a 52-yard field goal to tie the Redskins record longest kick set by [[John Aveni]] in 1961.<ref name="1971 Topps"/> That record was broken by [[Mark Moseley]] in 1977. He also set the club record, and tied the NFL record, for most field goals in a playoff game when he kicked four in a 26-3 win over the [[Dallas Cowboys]].<ref>{{cite news |title=NFL Playoff Roundup |url=https://www.upi.com/Archives/1986/12/28/NFL-Playoff-Roundup/7874536130000/ |access-date=18 November 2024 |date=28 December 1986}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Notes from Saturday's AFC wild card game: |url=https://www.upi.com/Archives/1985/12/28/Notes-from-Saturdays-AFC-wild-card-gameNew-England-kicker/6537504594000/ |access-date=18 November 2024 |date=28 December 1985}}</ref>
During the off-season he worked toward a BBA at the [[University of Texas at Austin|University of Texas]].<ref name="1971 Topps"/>
In 1973, he helped the Redskins make it to [[Super Bowl VII]] where they lost to the undefeated [[Miami Dolphins]]. With the Redskins down 14-0, he missed a 32-yard field goal in the 3rd quarter that coach [[George Allen (American football coach)|George Allen]] called "an obvious turning point".
Before the 1974 season, George Allen brought in 14 other kickers to pressure Knight, who lost the job to Moseley.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Cronin |first1=Don |title=Mark Moseley of the Washington Redskins is suffering by comparison to himself. |url=https://www.upi.com/Archives/1984/01/18/Mark-Moseley-of-the-Washington-Redskins-is-suffering-by/2161443250000/ |access-date=18 November 2024 |date=18 January 1984}}</ref> He quit the team before the 1974 season and did not report to training camp because he "was not satisfied with [his] working relationship there".<ref name="Adieu">{{cite news |last1=Shapiro |first1=Leonard |title=Dissatisfied Knight Bids Redskins Adieu |work=The Washington Post |date=28 June 1974}}</ref><ref name="thickskin">{{cite news |last1=Shapiro |first1=Leonard |title=Strong Legs and Thick Skins |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/sports/1977/11/20/strong-legs-and-thick-skins/4e0779cf-6ab2-421c-8048-1d9cc693b2c7/ |access-date=18 November 2024 |date=19 November 1977}}</ref> In October the club put him on waivers and he became a free agent, able to be signed by any team except the Redskins.<ref name="lumber"/> He was never picked up, though he turned down the Jets offer to be their interim kicker (which he found offensive), and he came to believe that he'd been blackballed from the NFL.<ref name="thickskin"/> Ironically, Moseley was injured going into the playoffs, but the Redskins could not sign Knight because they'd waived him.<ref name="lumber"/>
==Later life==
For some time shortly after his career ended, Knight went into the wholesale lumber business with a friend in Alexandria, VA.<ref name="lumber">{{cite news |last1=Shapiro |first1=Leonard |title=Moseley Injury Clouds Playoffs |work=The Washington Post |date=11 December 1974}}</ref>
In 2006, Knight was inducted into the Mineral Wells High School Athletic Hall of Fame.<ref name="MWHOF">{{cite web |title=Athletic Hall of Fame Inductees |url=https://www.mwisd.net/27837_3 |access-date=18 November 2024}}</ref>
Knight died on March 23, 2022.
Curt Knight is frequently cited as a former player for the [[Texas Longhorns football|Texas Longhorn]] and [[North Texas Mean Green football|North Texas Mean Green]] football teams, but he was just a student at those schools.<ref>{{cite news |title=Super Bowl history of Texas college football players |url=https://www.chron.com/sports/texans/slideshow/Super-Bowl-history-of-Texas-college-football-140320.php |access-date=18 November 2024 |date=30 January 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=2010 North Texas Football Facts |url=https://meangreensports.com/documents/2013/7/1/_m_footbl_stats__2010-facts.pdf |access-date=18 November 2024 |date=2010}}</ref>
==References==
Line 41 ⟶ 75:
{{DEFAULTSORT:Knight, Curt}}
[[Category:1943 births]]
[[Category:American football placekickers]]
[[Category:National Conference Pro Bowl players]]
[[Category:Sportspeople from Gulfport, Mississippi]]
[[Category:
[[Category:Washington Redskins players]]
[[Category:Players of American football from Mississippi]]
| |||