Håvard Rugland (born October 7, 1984), nicknamed Kickalicious, is a Norwegian 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 ...

. His trick-shot videos gained him notoriety on

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

. He was signed by the Detroit Lions in 2013 and being released shortly thereafter.

Professional career

On September 16, 2012, Rugland posted a video titled ''Kickalicious™'' onto

, under the name "bighdeluxe". After the video went viral, Rugland traveled to

San Diego San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

to train with retired NFL kicker Michael Husted. In December 2012, the

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team p ...

hosted a tryout for Rugland. In March 2013, Rugland worked out for the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. The Browns compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team is named after ...

and the Lions, who later signed him in April. He competed with

David Akers David Roy Akers (; born December 9, 1974) is an American former professional football player who was a kicker in the National Football League (NFL) for 16 seasons, primarily with the Philadelphia Eagles. He began his career in 1998 with the Wa ...

for the starting spot. On August 9, 2013, Rugland made his NFL debut in a preseason game against the

, going 2-for-2 with a long field goal from 50 yards out. On August 24, 2013, Rugland was cut by the Lions in favor of Akers. He went 3-for-3 in preseason with field goals of 33, 49, and 50 yards. After Rugland cleared waivers, the Lions attempted to sign Rugland to their

practice squad In gridiron football, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. They serve as extra players during the team's practices, often as part of the scou ...

, but the league rejected the signing, claiming that the rule that the Lions had used to allow the signing was no longer valid. He then had a workout with the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They ar ...

, but was not added to the Packers' opening day roster. On January 28, 2015, Rugland and sponsor

Pepsi Max Pepsi Max (also known as Pepsi Black in some countries and Pepsi Zero in Poland and Portugal) is a low-calorie, sugar-free cola, marketed by PepsiCo as an alternative to Pepsi and Diet Pepsi, except for Norway, where it is the main Pepsi flavor. ...

Norway released a video titled ''Kickalicious™ part 2'' on the latter's

channel, in which Rugland showcases more trick-shot skills at famous natural landmarks throughout Norway. The video featured music by Norwegian punk rock band

Turbonegro Turbonegro (Turboneger in Norway) is a Norwegian rock band, active from 1989 to 1998 and from 2002 to the present. The band combines glam rock, punk rock, and hard rock into a self-described "deathpunk" musical style. History Early years (19 ...

References

1984 births Living people American football placekickers Detroit Lions players Norwegian players of American football Norwegian YouTubers People from Gjesdal Sportspeople from Rogaland {{Norway-sport-bio-stub