HawgBeat - Former Razorback kicker Jake Bates signing deal with Detroit Lions
A former Razorback kicker is signing a deal with the Detroit Lions.
arkansas.rivals.com
Former Arkansas kickoff specialist Jake Bates is signing a two-year deal with the Detroit Lions after spending the spring 2024 season with the UFL's Michigan Panthers, ESPN's Adam Schefter reported Saturday.
The move to the NFL comes after a standout season handling place-kicking duties for the Panthers, something he did not do during his lone season with the Razorbacks in 2022.
In Bates’ first game with the Panthers, he drilled a 64-yard game-winner against the St. Louis Battlehawks. That field goal was the longest in UFL history and is the second-longest in professional football history, just behind Baltimore Ravens kicker Justin Tucker's 66-yarder in 2021.
The ball Bates kicked is now on display at the Pro Football Hall of Fame as part of its "Pro Football Today" exhibit. The Panthers play their games at Ford Field, the home of the Detroit Lions. Coincidentally, Tucker's 2021 kick also came at Ford Field against the Lions and was also a game-winner.
Bates was 17-of-22 on field goals throughout the season, including two more 60-yard field goals. He was named to the All-UFL team on June 5.
The Tomball, Texas, native has had a non-traditional route to the NFL. He started out his college career playing soccer at Central Arkansas for two seasons before he transferred to Texas State to play football, where he only handled kickoffs in the 2020 and 2021 seasons.
He transferred to Arkansas in 2022 and once again only handled kickoff duties, mostly because the Razorbacks had Cam Little, who was drafted by the Jacksonville Jaguars in the seventh round of the 2024 NFL Draft.
"I thought I was ready to kick field goals (at Texas State and Arkansas), but I was behind two guys who were really good ... at Arkansas, I was behind Cam Little," Bates told the Pat McAfee Show earlier this year. "It was tough because I'd go to camps and kick with other guys, and I thought I deserved a chance, but it wasn't my moment. God had another plan for me."
While handling kickoff duties at Arkansas, Bates was the kicker who recovered an onside kick in the Razorbacks' comeback attempt against Alabama in the 2022 season.
Following the 2022 season, Bates was named First Team All-SEC. He joined the Houston Texans as an undrafted free agent, but was released on Aug. 12, prior to the start of the season.
Once he signs with the Lions (on June 18, per UFL rules), he'll be the third kicker on the roster, joining veteran Marvin Badgley and undrafted free agent James Turner.
The Lions will have three former Razorbacks on their roster, as Bates will join offensive linemen Frank Ragnow and Dan Skipper. Former Arkansas defensive back Jerry Jacobs was on the roster last season, but is currently an unrestricted free agent.
