Korean American professional football player and Atlanta Falcons kicker, Younghoe Koo, is on track to become the NFL’s lead scorer.
Leading kicker: Koo, one of four Korean Americans playing in the NFL right now, managed to get a 5-for-5 on field-goal tries and 4-for-4 extra-point attempts against the Las Vegas Raiders at Sunday’s game, according to CBS Sports.
- The 26-year-old athlete made 109 points in the current season, making him the lead scorer for the Atlanta Falcons. He also has an average of 10.9 points per game.
- He made 29 field goals out of his 30 attempts, which gives him a 96.7 field goal percentage. Koo sits at the top for Field Goals Made (FGM) in the NFL stats.
- In addition to field goals made, Koo is also currently at 6-6 from 50+ yards.
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Who is Younghoe Koo: The athlete was born in South Korea and later immigrated to Ridgewood, New Jersey at 12 years old, according to NFL. He won a regional soccer kicking competition as a child in Seoul, South Korea.
- Koo made friends and learned English when he was asked to play football with his classmates at Benjamin Franklin Middle School, according to North Jersey’s athlete profile. Koo’s father encouraged the young athlete to pursue football instead of high school soccer.
- “My middle school coach, my teammate’s dad, came to my house and told my dad, ‘He has a future in [football],'” Koo said. “Because my dad looked at it like I was just kicking a football. But my middle school explained to my dad, ‘You can get a scholarship and you can have a future in this.'”
- Koo managed to land a full scholarship to Georgia Southern University, where he became a finalist for the Lou Groza Award after making 26 field goals out of 29 attempts.
- He also went viral for his incredible kick that circulated online. The video eventually captured the attention of some NFL scouts.
Becoming part of the NFL: Koo was signed as an undrafted agent for the Los Angeles Chargers in 2017 and later replaced with a more veteran player.
- Koo also joined the Alliance of American Football team, Atlanta Legends, and later the New England Patriots after his time with the Los Angeles Chargers.
- In 2019, the Atlanta Falcons signed Koo as their kicker to replace long-time, leading scorer Matt Bryant.
Feature Image via Getty
