Dirk Borgognone (born January 9, 1968) is a former
National Football League
The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...
placekicker
In gridiron football, the placekicker (PK), or simply kicker (K), is the player responsible for attempts at scoring Field goal (football), field goals and extra points. In most cases, the placekicker also serves as the team's kickoff specialist ...
who currently holds the record for the longest
field goal
A field goal (FG) is a means of scoring in gridiron football. To score a field goal, the team in possession of the ball must place kick, or drop kick, the ball through the goal, i.e., between the uprights and over the crossbar. Consequently, ...
ever kicked in the history of
high school football
High school football, also known as prep football, is gridiron football played by High school (North America), high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular high school sports, interscholastic sports in both c ...
, 68 yards.
High school career
Borgognone attended
Reno High School, initially playing as a soccer player. He soon switched to football and was trained in a "straight-on" kicking style. On Friday, September 27, 1985, he kicked the longest
field goal
A field goal (FG) is a means of scoring in gridiron football. To score a field goal, the team in possession of the ball must place kick, or drop kick, the ball through the goal, i.e., between the uprights and over the crossbar. Consequently, ...
in high school football history, during a game at
Sparks High School. The kick measured 68 yards and was longer than any that had ever been successfully kicked in the
NFL
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The N ...
or the
NCAA
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...
.
College career
After high school, Borgognone attended the
University of Tennessee
The University of Tennessee, Knoxville (or The University of Tennessee; UT; UT Knoxville; or colloquially UTK or Tennessee) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee, United St ...
for a year before he returned to Reno, and
Truckee Meadows Community College
Truckee Meadows Community College (TMCC) is a public community college and technical college located in the Truckee Meadows region of Reno, Nevada
Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada� ...
eventually transferring to the
University of the Pacific. Borgognone's college career, however, was derailed by a 1988 change to the
NCAA
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...
rule books that banned kicking off tees for field goal attempts. This not only reduced the general range for field goals (the record off a tee was 67 yards, without, only 65), but Borgognone had always kicked off a tee and was unprepared for the rule change. Borgognone left college early, to pursue an
NFL
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The N ...
career as a kickoff specialist.
Professional career
Much like
Ove Johansson, whose 69-yard field goal in the NAIA in 1976 is the only field goal on record to have bested Borgognone's high school kick, Borgognone struggled to make the National Football League. He spent years bouncing between NFL training camps, mainly as a kickoff specialist (the NFL had prohibited the use of kicking tees for field goals and extra points for a decade). Dirk received unsuccessful tryouts from the
Minnesota Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. The Vikings compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. Founded in 1960 as ...
in 1990, the
Atlanta Falcons
The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The Falcons were founded o ...
in 1991, the
Cleveland Browns
The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. The Browns compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team is named after ...
in 1992, and the
Indianapolis Colts
The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. Since the 2008 India ...
in 1993. Both the
Miami Dolphins
The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. The Dolphins compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team ...
and
Washington Redskins
The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East ...
gave him a tryout during the
1994 NFL season
The 1994 NFL season was the 75th regular season of the National Football League (NFL). To honor the NFL's 75th season, a special anniversary logo was designed, and each player wore a patch on their jerseys with this logo throughout the season. ...
, but neither team signed him. He was picked up by the
Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They ar ...
for the
1995 season and was on the roster for two games, filling in for their usual starter
Chris Jacke
Christopher Lee Jacke (born March 12, 1966) is an American former professional football player who was a placekicker in the National Football League (NFL), primarily for the Green Bay Packers. He was a first-team All-Pro in 1993 and was induct ...
. Borgognone, after a poor tryout for the
San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners and nicknamed the Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member ...
in 1996, never played professional football again. He briefly considered a football comeback in 1999 at the request of
Ray Pelfrey, but, despite feeling physically able to do so, decided against making another run at the NFL.
Personal life
Dirk Borgognone currently lives in
Reno, Nevada
Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada–California border. It is the county seat and most populous city of Washoe County, Nevada, Washoe County. Sitting in the High Eastern Sierra foothills, ...
, and is a widower; his wife,
Nevada Highway Patrol officer Kara Kelly-Borgognone, was killed while on duty for the NHP in a car accident on February 25, 2008. Kelly-Borgognone was driving to a location where a bomb was reported—a report that was later determined to be false. Borgognone has two children.
[Ranson, Steve (March 6, 2008)]
Thousands remember Kelly-Borgognone
Nevada Appeal. Retrieved March 21, 2009.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Borgognone, Dirk
1968 births
Living people
People from Elko, Nevada
Players of American football from Reno, Nevada
American football placekickers
Pacific Tigers football players
Tennessee Volunteers football players
Green Bay Packers players