[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 9 (Thursday, February 7, 2002)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E110]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       RECOGNIZING ADAM VINATIERI

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. JOHN R. THUNE

                            of south dakota

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, February 7, 2002

  Mr. THUNE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Adam Vinatieri, 
kicker for the World Champion New England Patriots, and his clutch 
performance in Super Bowl XXXVI.
  Adam's rise to fame began in my home state of South Dakota, where at 
Rapid City Central High School, he lettered in soccer, track, wrestling 
and football, earning first team all-state honors in 1991. From there, 
he attended South Dakota State University in Brookings, where he was a 
four-year letterman, earning first-team all-conference honors in three 
of those seasons. He finished his collegiate career as the school's 
all-time scoring leader with 185 career points, having converted 104 of 
114 PATs (.912) in 1992 and kicked a 51-yard field goal twice.
  In 1995, Adam took his game international, playing for the Amsterdam 
Admirals of the World Football League. There he converted 9 of 10 field 
goals and was perfect on four extra point attempts for a team-leading 
31 total points, while finishing ninth in the league in scoring.
  Adam signed with the New England Patriots as a free agent on June 28, 
1996, where he set a rookie franchise record with 120 points. He also 
kicked 25 consecutive field goals without a miss over a span of two 
years to finish just six kicks shy of the NFL record. Adam became the 
third Patriot to amass 500 points during his career. Amazingly, he has 
totaled 575 points in his first five seasons in the NFL. This is the 
third most proficient start to an NFL career in the history of the 
game.
  Mr. Speaker, until Sunday, these accomplishments had gone virtually 
unnoticed. However, by kicking the first game-winning field goal in 
Super Bowl history as time expired, Adam catapulted himself into the 
annuls of sports. Adam is just one of the many South Dakotans who have 
made their hometowns proud by excelling as professional athletes. I 
applaud the commitment and character of Adam Vinatieri and all of the 
athletes from South Dakota, both past and present.

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