Taylor Mehlhaff
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| Position: | Kicker | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born: | August 25, 1985 Aberdeen, South Dakota | ||||||||
| Height: | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | ||||||||
| Weight: | 184 lb (83 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| College: | Wisconsin | ||||||||
| NFL draft: | 2008 / round: 6 / pick: 178 | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
| * Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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Taylor Mehlhaff (born August 25, 1985) is a former American football placekicker. He was drafted by the New Orleans Saints in the sixth round of the 2008 NFL Draft. He played college football at Wisconsin where he was a First Team All-American.
Mehlhaff has also been a member of the Minnesota Vikings and Hartford Colonials. Mehlhaff helped coach the Specialists at the University of Wisconsin before signing a contract with the Hartford Colonials.
Mehlhaff served at the University of Tennessee as Special Teams Quality Control. As of February 2015 he joined the coaching staff of his Alma Matar, Wisconsin as a Kicking Specialist. He also conducts private lessons and hosts Kicking & Punting camps around the country for aspiring college athletes.
High School career
Mehlhaff was a star 4-sport athlete at Aberdeen Central High School in Aberdeen, South Dakota. He was the 2003 South Dakota Gatorade High School player of the year as Quarterback & Kicker.
Other awards include: Riddell First-Team All-American & USA Today 2nd Team All-American, 2004 Rivals.com #1 Ranked Prep Kicker in the Nation.
College career
"Taylor Mehlhaff teamed with punter Ken DeBauche to form what many experts felt was the best kicking tandem in college football in recent years." -NFLDraftScout.com
Mehlhaff was a 2-time All-Big Ten performer & 2-time University of Wisconsin Special Teams player of the year.
Other awards include: Lou Groza Award Semi-finalist, 2007 First-Team AFCA All-American & SI All-American, 3rd All-Time UW scoring leader behind NCAA career scoring leader Montee Ball and former Heisman Trophy winner Ron Dayne.
Professional career
New Orleans Saints
Mehlhaff was a sixth round selection by the New Orleans Saints in the 2008 NFL Draft. The Saints released Mehlhaff during final cuts after he lost out to Martin Gramatica. Mehlhaff signed a 3-year contract worth $1.3 Million.
In October 2008, Gramatica's career ended as he was placed on injured reserve, and the Saints re-signed Mehlhaff. Mehlhaff was later released in the 2008 season: the Saints replaced him with Garrett Hartley, who at the time was a rookie free agent.
Minnesota Vikings
Mehlhaff was signed to a futures contract by the Minnesota Vikings on December 31, 2008, and was waived on September 1, 2009.
Hartford Colonials
Mehlhaff kicked for the Hartford Colonials of the United Football League in 2010 finishing 10-13 on field goal attempts.