*EDITOR’S NOTE- This story orginally ran in 2013 as a part of the Class of 2013 Troy Sports Hall of Fame Ceremony.* Tough, tenacious and leader are words that are commonly used to describe football players; however, they are not typically used to describe kickers. Lawrence Tynes is not your typical kicker.
He has made 82 percent of his field goals as a professional and has not missed an extra point in five seasons. Tynes is also well known for his charitable work in both New York and his hometown of Milton, Fla., where he, his wife Amanda live.
The son of a former Navy SEAL, Tynes has kicked game-winning field goals in a pair of NFC Championship Games in addition to leading Troy State to a pair of NCAA I-AA Playoff berths and two Southland Conference titles.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Since his induction, Tynes has kickstarted a career in podcasting, where he currently serves as the New York Post’s Blue Ruch Pod Cast host.
“He was a tough kid and had leadership skills that he wasn’t afraid to use,” Tynes’ head coach at Troy Larry Blakeney said. “There is no question that Lawrence is a hall of famer. He won games for us, he won games in the NFL and he has always done it with class. He will always be special in my mind.”
He and his wife Amanda also welcomed twin boys, Caleb and Jaden.
Tynes was recruited by current Troy defensive coordinator Wayne Bolt out of Milton, Fla., and came to Troy as a walk-on before earning a scholarship during his second year with the program. “His father, who was a police officer, negotiated hard with me to get Lawrence a scholarship,” Blakeney said. “I told him if he came here and won the starting job I would give him one and that’s just what he did.” The only Scottish-born player to win a Super Bowl ring, Tynes booted a 47-yard field goal in overtime to lift the New York Giants past the Green Bay Packers in the 2007 NFC Championship Game. The kick by Tynes, who had missed two kicks earlier in the game, was the longest field goal in postseason history at Lambeau Field. “I was speaking at a clinic in Nashville and saw him miss what would have been the game-winner right before I went up to speak,” Blakeney said. “As I was giving my speech, I brought up him missing the kick and someone in the crowd said, ‘Don’t worry coach, he just kicked one to win the game.’” Four years later Tynes struck again to send the Giants to the Super Bowl and once again it was in tough conditions. Tynes hit from 31 yards out to send the Giants, which included former Trojans Osi Umenyiora and Jerrel Jernigan, to the Super Bowl. “The weather was terrible, the balls were wet and the balls were full of grass,” Tynes said in the locker room following the victory. “It was tough sledding out there. The moisture, the footing was tough, the balls were really slick.” Both Super Bowls were against the New England Patriots and both were Giants victories. Tynes kicked a field goal and a pair of extra points in Super Bowl XLII and kicked two field goals and an extra point in Super Bowl XLVI. Tynes holds Troy’s career record after he connected on 98.2 percent (111-of-113) of his extra points and is second in career field goal percentage (77.2) while ranking third all-time in field goals made (44). “There is no question that I thought he had a chance to make it in the NFL,” Blakeney said. “Everyone wants to give kickers and punters a hard time, but Lawrence did not have your typical kicker personality. I knew that he would never back down from a challenge.”
Tynes remains as an active alumni in the Troy community, and his voice can be found in some of Troy Football’s game trailers.
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