Swayze Waters (born May 18, 1987) is a

gridiron football Gridiron football,"Gridiron football"
''Encyclopædia Britannica''. Ret ...

placekicker Placekicker, or simply kicker (PK or K), is the player in gridiron football who is responsible for the kicking duties of field goals and extra points. In many cases, the placekicker also serves as the team's kickoff specialist or punter. Sp ...

and punter who is currently a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player 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 contract at present but who is a ...

. He was most recently a member of the

Toronto Argonauts The Toronto Argonauts (officially the Toronto Argonaut Football Club and colloquially known as the Argos) are a professional Canadian football team competing in the East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), based in Toronto, Ontario ...

of the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ...

(CFL). He was signed by the

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) North Division. The team play their home games at For ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ma ...

(NFL) as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player 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 contract at present but who is a ...

in 2009. He played college football at UAB. He has also been a member of the

Oakland Raiders The Oakland Raiders were a professional American football team that played in Oakland from its founding in 1960 to 1981 and again from 1995 to 2019 before relocating to the Las Vegas metropolitan area where they now play as the Las Vegas Ra ...

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 club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Stee ...

Edmonton Eskimos The Edmonton Elks are a professional Canadian football team based in Edmonton, Alberta. The club competes in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member of the league's West Division and plays their home games at the Brick Field at Comm ...

Carolina Panthers The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL), as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. ...

, and

BC Lions The BC Lions are a professional Canadian football team based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Lions compete in the West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), and play their home games at BC Place. The Lions played their first season ...

Early years

Waters attended

Jackson Preparatory School Jackson Preparatory School (Jackson Prep) is an independent, coeducational, day school enrolling 700 students in grades five through twelve. The school is located in Flowood, Mississippi, a suburb of Jackson, and has a controversial history as a ...

Jackson, Mississippi Jackson, officially the City of Jackson, is the Capital city, capital of and the List of municipalities in Mississippi, most populous city in the U.S. state of Mississippi. The city is also one of two county seats of Hinds County, Mississippi, ...

, where he played kicker, wide receiver and punter. He was his team's leading receiver for three years. He was named all-state selection his senior year. His senior year, he was voted team

Most Valuable Player In team sports, a most valuable player award, abbreviated 'MVP award', is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particu ...

. That year, he had 35 catches, 813 yards and 10 touchdowns and 14 field goals. He also participated in baseball and track.

College career

His college major was Business Management. In 2005, as a freshman, Waters was the kick off specialist. He was named to

Conference USA Conference USA (C-USA or CUSA) is an intercollegiate athletic conference whose current member institutions are located within the Southern United States. The conference participates in the NCAA's Division I in all sports. C-USA's offices are ...

Commissioner's Honor Roll. In 2006, as a sophomore, he was a kick off specialist and a "Long Field goal specialist". In 2007, as a Junior, he kicked and punted. He was named a finalist for 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 Sports Commission. The award is named after former Ohio State Buckeyes and Cleveland Browns player Lou Groza. It has ...

. He was also named first-team All-Conference USA by media and a second-team selection by conference's head coaches. He made 22-of-28 field goals during the season, including being 8-for-10 from 40-49 and 3-of-4 for 50-plus yards. In one game against Alcorn State, he kicked 5 field goals which set UAB single-game record. He had an average of 41.4 yards per punt.

Professional career

Detroit Lions

Waters was signed by the

as an undrafted free agent following the

2009 NFL draft The 2009 NFL Draft was the seventy-fourth annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. The draft took place at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, New York, on April 25 and 26, 2009. ...

. He was cut from the team, only to be re-signed in August. He was waived/injured on August 26 when the team signed

Billy Cundiff.

Oakland Raiders

Waters was signed by the

on April 13, 2010. On September 4, 2010, Waters was released to free agent status by the Oakland Raiders.

Pittsburgh Steelers

Waters was signed by the

on February 10, 2011. He was released on September 2.

Edmonton Eskimos

Waters was signed by the

(CFL) on June 24, 2012, and then released on July 10.

Toronto Argonauts

On July 15, 2012, Waters was signed by the

(CFL) as an injury replacement for starting kicker

Noel Prefontaine Noel Michael Prefontaine (born December 23, 1973) is a former professional Canadian football punter and placekicker in the Canadian Football League (CFL). Early years Prefontaine was born to a French Canadian father and a Vietnamese mother a ...

. The Argos would go on to win the

100th Grey Cup The 100th Grey Cup was a Canadian football game between the East Division champion Toronto Argonauts and the West Division champion Calgary Stampeders of the Canadian Football League to decide the Grey Cup champions of the 2012 season. The ga ...

at the end of the 2012 season, with Waters' serving as the team's placekicker as Noel Prefontaine had returned to handle the punting duties. He won the

John Agro Special Teams Award The John Agro Special Teams Award is presented to the CFL's Most Outstanding Special Teams player that is voted by his peers. The award is named in honour of John Agro, co-founder (in 1965) of the Canadian Football League Players' Association, with ...

for being named the CFL's Most Outstanding Special Teams Player in 2014.

Carolina Panthers

On February 11, 2016, Waters was signed by the

. He was waived on August 15, 2016.

BC Lions

On February 7, 2017, it was announced that Waters had signed with the

(CFL). He was recovering from an injury to start the

2017 CFL season The 2017 CFL season was the 64th season of modern-day Canadian football. Officially, it was the 60th season of the Canadian Football League. The regular season began on June 22 and concluded on November 4. The playoffs commenced on November 12 an ...

, while rookie Ty Long assumed the kicking duties. After Long performed well in the first three games, Waters was released on July 12, 2017.

Edmonton Eskimos

Waters was signed by the

on September 25, 2017. He played in five games for the Eskimos, making 11 of 15 field goal attempts and 12 of 14 one-point converts.

Toronto Argonauts (II)

Upon entering free agency, Waters signed with the

on February 14, 2018 to a one-year deal. However, Waters was released by the Argos on June 6, 2018, partway through the preseason.

Personal life

Swayze Waters is the son of Susan and Joel Waters and is married to Kendal Carr Waters. Contrary to a popular rumor, Waters is not named after actor

Patrick Swayze Patrick Wayne Swayze (; August 18, 1952 – September 14, 2009) was an American actor, dancer, and singer known for playing distinctive lead roles, particularly romantic, tough, and comedic characters. He was also known for his media image and ...

. His grandmother's maiden name was "Swayze" and that is for whom he is named. He appeared in the third season of the TV series Undrafted on

NFL Network NFL Network (occasionally abbreviated on-air as NFLN) is an American sports-oriented pay television network owned by the National Football League (NFL) and is part of NFL Media, which also includes NFL.com, NFL Films, NFL Mobile, NFL Now and N ...

, which aired in 2016. The series follows Waters as he leaves his punting job in the CFL in order to chase after his dream of being a punter in the NFL.

References

External links

UAB Blazers bioToronto Argonauts bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Waters, Swayze 1987 births Living people American football placekickers American football punters American players of Canadian football Canadian football placekickers Canadian football punters Detroit Lions players Edmonton Elks players Oakland Raiders players Pittsburgh Steelers players Players of American football from Jackson, Mississippi Players of Canadian football from Jackson, Mississippi Toronto Argonauts players UAB Blazers football players BC Lions players