Russell Erxleben

Russell Erxleben (born January 13, 1957) is a former American football player and currency investor. He shares the record for the longest field goal in NCAA history, originally set in 1977 while playing for the University of Texas. Erxleben was a three-time All-America punter (1976, 1977, and 1978). He was drafted in the first round of the NFL Draft, an extremely rare occurrence for a kicker. After an NFL career lasting six years, he became a currency investor. Convicted of securities fraud in 1999, he was released from federal prison in 2005. He was again convicted of investment fraud in 2014 and sentenced to 90 months (seven and one-half years) in federal prison.

Early years

Erxleben was raised in the small city of Seguin, Texas, located about 35 miles east of San Antonio, Texas, where he was a stand-out as a high school kicker. He had a conventional straight-on kicking style, using a two-step approach. Highly recruited, he entered the University of Texas as a top prospect in 1975.