Sergio Albert (born October 28, 1951) is a Mexican former

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...

placekicker who played one season with the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...

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 ...

. He played college football at

U.S. International University United States International University (USIU) was a nonprofit university based in San Diego, California that was accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges. At its peak, it had two additional American campuses and three interna ...

Early years

Albert attended high school in Mexico City, Mexico. He first enrolled at Universidad Anáhuac México Norte for 2 years, before accepting a soccer scholarship from the

in 1972. In the fall of 1972, he would walk on to the football team after a tryout as a soccer-style placekicker. Because he was primarily a soccer player, he appeared in only 3 football games that season. In 1973, he appeared in 10 games but had few kicking opportunities, although he made a 54-yard field goal.

Professional career

Albert was selected by the

in the eighth round (189th overall) of the

1974 NFL Draft The 1974 NFL draft took place at the Americana Hotel in New York City, New York, on January 29–30, 1974. Each of the 26 NFL teams were granted 17 selections for a total of 442 picks. Many experts consider the 1974 Pittsburgh Steelers to have ha ...

. He is distinguished as being the third Mexican born player to be drafted into the

(

Tom Fears Thomas Jesse Fears (December 3, 1922 – January 4, 2000) was a Mexican-American professional football player who was a split end for the Los Angeles Rams in the National Football League (NFL), playing nine seasons from 1948 to 1956. He was lat ...

and

Efren Herrera Efren or Efrén is a given name. Notable people with the name include: *Efrén Echeverría (born 1932), musician guitarist, composer, and compiler from Paraguay *Efrén Pérez Rivera (born 1929), former college professor and noted Puerto Rican envi ...

were the first ones). 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 club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divi ...

tried to sign him 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 1973, but the league did not allow the transaction. He became a part of the team, after the Cardinals made the unusual move of keeping 2 kickers on the roster, while also choosing him over fellow rookie and ex-soccer player Pat Leahy. He was a

kickoff Kickoff or kick-off may refer to * Kick-off (association football) * Kickoff (gridiron football) * ''Kick Off'' (series), a series of computer association football games * ''Kick Off'' (album), a 1985 album by Onyanko Club * ''Kick Off'' (mag ...

specialist and a backup to

Jim Bakken James LeRoy Bakken (born November 2, 1940) is an American former professional football player who was a punter and placekicker for the National Football League’s St. Louis Cardinals. He was a four-time Pro Bowl selection and was named to t ...

, until being waived on August 13, 1975. On August 13, 1975, he was claimed off waivers by the Chicago Bears, but was released 5 days later. On April 22, 1976, he was signed by the San Diego Chargers. During preseason, he participated in the first ever NFL game to be played outside of the United States and that was held in Japan. He was waived on September 6. On April 7, 1977, he was signed as 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 ...

by the

Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The cl ...

. He was cut on June 8. In June 1977, he signed with the New York Giants and was released on August 9.

Personal life

His brother Carlos Albert is a former professional soccer player for the Necaxa Club of the Mexican soccer league.

References

External links

Just Sports Stats
{{DEFAULTSORT:Albert, Sergio Living people 1951 births Sportspeople from Mexico City American football placekickers Mexican players of American football United States International Gulls football players St. Louis Cardinals (football) players Chicago Bears players San Diego Chargers players Tampa Bay Buccaneers players New York Giants players Mexican expatriate sportspeople in the United States Expatriate players of American football