University of Memphis Athletics
Photo by: Matthew Smith
Elliott Drafted by Cincinnati
Apr 29, 2017 | Football
Tiger place kicker drafted in the fifth round, Saturday.
MEMPHIS – Memphis place kicker Jake Elliott became the latest Tiger to join the NFL via the draft as he was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals in the fifth round, Saturday.
Elliott becomes the second Tiger kicker to be drafted. Stephen Gostkowski, whose records Elliott broke this season, was drafted in the fourth round (118th overall) by New England in 2006.
Elliott leaves Memphis as the program's all-time leading scorer with 445 points (passing NFL veterans Gostkowski and DeAngelo Williams), also putting him among the career top 10 in FBS scoring by a kicker. In four years at Memphis, Elliott was a perfect 202-for-202 on PATs and his 81 field goals made and 104 attempted are both career records for Memphis. In total, Elliott holds the Memphis school records in scoring and points kicking (445), PAT made (202), PAT attempts (202), field goals made (81), field goal attempts (104) and field goal percentage (77.9). He also holds the school records for the longest field goal with his 56-yarder at USF in 2013 and has kicked four of the five longest field goals in program history (56, 54, 53, 53).
The Western Springs, Ill., native was also a key component of a Memphis special teams unit that ranked as one of the best in the country. In 2016, Memphis ranked second in the country in kick-return defense (16.04 ypr) and Elliott recorded 64 touchbacks on 92 kickoffs (69.6 percent). His 64 touchbacks led the American Athletic Conference and ranked third nationally.
The first football player in American Athletic Conference history to earn first-team, all-conference honors four times, Elliott was a Lou Groza nominee all four seasons at Memphis and was named one of three Lou Groza finalists in 2015. A two-time American Athletic Conference Special Teams Player of the Year, Elliott was also a USA Today All-American (2015) and was voted a CoSIDA Academic All-American in 2016, becoming the first Tiger since 1992 to first team academic all-American honors. Following the completion of his senior season, he was named the American Athletic Conference's Football Scholar-Athlete of the Year, was named a Senior CLASS All-America second team honoree and was named to the National Football Foundation (NFF) Hampshire Honor Society.
In the Memphis community, Elliott was a regular visitor to LeBonheur Children's Research Hospital and also participated in events for St. Jude.
A three-time American All-Academic team member, Elliott will graduate from the University of Memphis on May 6th with a degree in marketing management.
Elliott becomes the second Tiger kicker to be drafted. Stephen Gostkowski, whose records Elliott broke this season, was drafted in the fourth round (118th overall) by New England in 2006.
Elliott leaves Memphis as the program's all-time leading scorer with 445 points (passing NFL veterans Gostkowski and DeAngelo Williams), also putting him among the career top 10 in FBS scoring by a kicker. In four years at Memphis, Elliott was a perfect 202-for-202 on PATs and his 81 field goals made and 104 attempted are both career records for Memphis. In total, Elliott holds the Memphis school records in scoring and points kicking (445), PAT made (202), PAT attempts (202), field goals made (81), field goal attempts (104) and field goal percentage (77.9). He also holds the school records for the longest field goal with his 56-yarder at USF in 2013 and has kicked four of the five longest field goals in program history (56, 54, 53, 53).
The Western Springs, Ill., native was also a key component of a Memphis special teams unit that ranked as one of the best in the country. In 2016, Memphis ranked second in the country in kick-return defense (16.04 ypr) and Elliott recorded 64 touchbacks on 92 kickoffs (69.6 percent). His 64 touchbacks led the American Athletic Conference and ranked third nationally.
The first football player in American Athletic Conference history to earn first-team, all-conference honors four times, Elliott was a Lou Groza nominee all four seasons at Memphis and was named one of three Lou Groza finalists in 2015. A two-time American Athletic Conference Special Teams Player of the Year, Elliott was also a USA Today All-American (2015) and was voted a CoSIDA Academic All-American in 2016, becoming the first Tiger since 1992 to first team academic all-American honors. Following the completion of his senior season, he was named the American Athletic Conference's Football Scholar-Athlete of the Year, was named a Senior CLASS All-America second team honoree and was named to the National Football Foundation (NFF) Hampshire Honor Society.
In the Memphis community, Elliott was a regular visitor to LeBonheur Children's Research Hospital and also participated in events for St. Jude.
A three-time American All-Academic team member, Elliott will graduate from the University of Memphis on May 6th with a degree in marketing management.
Players Mentioned
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