Jonathan Ruffin (born August 1, 1981) is an American former

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

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 played three seasons in the

Arena Football League The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 Arena Football League season, 1987 season, making it the third longest-runnin ...

(AFL). He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

Cincinnati Bearcats The Cincinnati Bearcats are the college sports, athletic teams that represent the University of Cincinnati. The teams compete in the NCAA's Division I and the Football Bowl Subdivision as members of the Big 12 Conference. The Bearcats were pr ...

, where he won the

Lou Groza Award The Lou Groza Award is presented annually to the top college football placekicker in the United States by the Palm Beach County, Florida, Palm Beach County Sports Commission. The award is named after former Ohio State Buckeyes and Cleveland Browns ...

and was recognized as an

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

. He was signed by the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. Founded in 1933 P ...

as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

in 2003, and he played for the

Berlin Thunder The Berlin Thunder were a professional American football team in NFL Europe. History The Thunder came into existence as an expansion team, after the London/England Monarchs franchise shut down operations, prior to the 1999 season. Home games f ...

NFL Europe NFL Europe League (simply called NFL Europe and known in its final season as NFL Europa) was a professional American football league that functioned as the List of developmental and minor sports leagues, developmental minor league of the Nati ...

and the

New Orleans VooDoo The New Orleans VooDoo were a professional arena football team based in New Orleans, Louisiana. They were members of the Arena Football League from 2004 to 2015. The VooDoo were the second team to play in the Arena Football League and play in ...

of the AFL.

College career

Ruffin attended the University of Cincinnati, where he played for the

Cincinnati Bearcats football The Cincinnati Bearcats football team represents the University of Cincinnati in college football. They compete at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level as members of the Big 12 Conference. They have played their home games in histo ...

team from 1999 to 2002. As a sophomore in 2000, he earned recognition as a consensus first-team All-American, and won the

as the outstanding college placekicker in America.

Professional career

Ruffin was signed by the

as an

following the

2003 NFL draft The 2003 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League (NFL) teams selected amateur college football players. The draft is known officially as the "NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting" and has been conducted annually since 1936 NF ...

on April 29, 2003. He was waived on August 22. He was signed by the

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. T ...

on January 8, 2004, and was allocated to

to play for

on January 30. After returning to the Cowboys, he was released on August 13, 2004. He was signed by the

Hamilton Tiger-Cats The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are a professional Canadian football team based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. They are currently members of the East Division (CFL), East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). The Tiger-Cats play their home game ...

of the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; , LCF) is a Professional gridiron football, professional Canadian football league in Canada. It comprises nine teams divided into two divisions, with four teams in the East Division (CFL), East Division and f ...

on June 28, 2006, before being released. Ruffin was signed by the

on May 25, 2007. He made 39-of-41 extra point attempts in

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

, and was re-signed on August 15, 2007. After the 2008 season, the VooDoo franchise folded. The franchise was revived in time for the 2011 season, and Ruffin re-signed with the team on September 27, 2010, after not playing football for two years. Due to a contract conflict with a new job, Ruffin was placed on team suspension in July 2011. On September 27, 2010, Ruffin was assigned to the Milwaukee Mustangs.

References

External links

New Orleans VooDoo bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ruffin, Jonathan 1981 births Living people Players of American football from Louisiana All-American college football players American football placekickers Berlin Thunder players Cincinnati Bearcats football players Dallas Cowboys players Hamilton Tiger-Cats players Milwaukee Mustangs (2009–2012) players New Orleans VooDoo players Pittsburgh Steelers players