Tom Dempsey: the defining moment in this kicker's career was, of course, his record 63-yard field goal against the Lions in 1970 - The Game I'll Never Forget

Football Digest, July-August, 2003 by Chuck O'Donnell

WHEN I LINED UP TO KICK MY record-setting 63-yard field goal in 1970, we had the ball in the closed-in area of Tulane Stadium. The winds in that stadium sometimes would swirl and push balls wide to the left or wide to the right. The stadium was shaped like a big horseshoe, open at one end of the stadium and closed at the other. When it got windy, it was difficult to judge what was going to happen to the ball once it was kicked. But I got a good snap and a good hold, and I knew I had hit it well enough to go the distance. Considering that stadium, though, the question of whether the ball would stay straight was in the back of my mind.

It was sort of a strange season for the New Orleans Saints. That week, coach Tom Fears had been fired and replaced by J.D. Roberts. It was rare that a coach ever was fired in the middle of the season. We weren't very good; we still were basically an expansion team. We just didn't have enough good players.

Heading into the game against the Detroit Lions in which I made that record-setting kick, we had only one win. We came out and played hard that day. I don't know if we were trying to impress our new coach or what, but we played really well.

We should have had the lead, but we were trailing 17-16 with just seconds left in the final quarter. The Lions had kicked a field goal to go ahead, and Don Heinrich, our offensive coordinator, called downstairs and told the coaches to have me get ready because we were going to play for a field goal. I don't think anyone had a 63-yarder in mind, but I knew all along we were going to try for a long one. Our plan was to receive the kickoff and get out of bounds. Then the plan was to throw a sideline, pass to get out of bounds again and stop the clock, and send the field goal team out.

That's exactly what happened. Out we came. By now, the stadium was half-empty. A lot of people had left thinking we had lost the game. That was one of our smaller crowds of the year, but I think 300,000 people have claimed to have been at that game.

We lined it up, and I didn't even look up to see how far away we were. I didn't want to know. I just wanted to put my head down and kick it as hard as I could. A lot of people probably didn't think we could do it; the Lions probably didn't think we could do it.

To be honest, you need everything to go right to kick a 63-yarder. My snapper was Jackie Burkett and my holder was Joe Scarpati. It's important to have a good holder. You end up spending a lot of time with your holder from the first day of training camp through the season because you really can't practice kicking by yourself. You can practice kickoffs and onside kicks, but just to stand there and kick a ball without the snap and the hold--well, it was useless to me. I had some drills I would do. I would practice kickoffs and onside kicks, but when it came time to practice field goals, you're at the mercy of how much time the holder and snapper can give you. I was very lucky because the snapper and holder would give me all the time I needed every day.

I was confident I could make this kick, even though there wasn't much breeze and the balls hadn't been carrying much that day. But I had made field goals from way past that point in practice many times.

Everything was perfect for me that day: I got a perfect snap, I got a perfect hold, and I got a lot of protection. No one ever accomplishes anything alone in football. We all like to think that we can, but that's just not true. It's always been a team game, always will be. So everything went well, and everyone else did their job. The last thing was for me to try to do mine.

I thought I kicked it pretty well--I thought it had a chance. I was hoping the winds wouldn't swirl and drive the ball off-course. It seemed like it took forever to get there. I just kept watching it, wondering if it had enough distance. Finally, the referees raised their hands that it was good.

A lot of people remember the kick, but they don't remember that it gave us the victory. So, it was an important kick in scheme of the game, not just because it set a record.

I'm surprised the record has stood as long as it has. Records are meant to be broken. When I set it, I had to break Bert Rechichar's record. You can't sit back and have bad feelings. I know how tough it is to kick a ball 63 yards.

Of course, Jason Elam fled my record in 1998 while kicking for the Denver Broncos. I admired him because I knew what it took. I faxed him a letter the next day, and he called me back and we talked for a while.

I wanted to congratulate Jason because when I set the record, Bert Rechichar was very gracious to me. He called to congratulate me, sent me a telegram. I told Jason that if someone breaks our record, it would be up to him to do the same thing. He just laughed.

More Than Just a Record

THAT TOM DEMPSEY'S NAME IS STILL IN the record book some 33 years after he made a 63-yard field goal is amazing. More amazing, though, is that he set the record at all.

Dempsey was born with half a right foot and no right hand, but he never used that as an excuse. He never let it keep him from chasing his dreams. In high school, he was quite a lineman, and also was on the wrestling and track teams. He made the leap to college ball, playing defensive end at Palomar Junior College in California. Still, football immortality seemed light years away. And even when he signed with the San Diego Chargers in 1968. he was assigned to the team's taxi squad and seemed destined to be around just long enough to finish his cup of coffee.