American football placekicker Dustin Hopkins was born on October 1, 1990, and he currently plays for the National Football League (NFL) Cleveland Browns. He was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in in his senior year of collegiate football at Florida State.
After former Seminoles special teams coordinator Jody Allen saw high school game footage of Hopkins’s kickoffs, Hopkins was recruited by Florida State. Notre Dame also expressed interest.[1] In 2009, Hopkins made 19 of 27 field goals as a rookie, or almost 70% of the total. In their game against Clemson on November 13, 2010, Florida State, down the entire time, rallied in the fourth quarter. After the game was knotted at 13 with less than a minute remaining in regulation, Florida State marched into Clemson territory, where Hopkins converted a 55-yard field goal with three seconds remaining to win it.
Hopkins broke the previous FSU record in 2011 after kicking his 109th point after touchdown (PAT) in a straight while facing Wake Forest. Until September 8, 2012, he did not miss a PAT, giving him a record 145 consecutive successful tries—the sixth-longest streak in NCAA history.[2] On November 18, 2012, Hopkins’ 26-yard field goal against the Maryland Terrapins in the second quarter of the game surpassed the Football Bowl Subdivision record for lifetime points scored by a kicker with 442 points. Hopkins would add six more points to the record at the end of the day, bringing it to 448 points.[3] Arizona State University kicker Zane Gonzalez later broke his record for the most career field goals in 2016.
Over Rian Lindell, a seasoned player, Hopkins was selected the starting placekicker on August 19, 2013.[8] It was disclosed that Hopkins had suffered a groyne injury on September 2, 2013. The Bills signed Dan Carpenter as a result. Week 5 saw Hopkins placed on injured reserve due to his delayed recovery from that injury and the need to clear more roster spots.
