Tom Malone (American football)
Encyclopedia
Thomas Malone is an American football
punter for the Sacramento Mountain Lions. He was signed by the San Francisco 49ers
as an undrafted free agent in 2006. He played college football
at Southern California.
Malone has also been a member of the New England Patriots
, New York Sentinels
and Seattle Seahawks
.
. After beginning his football
career at wide receiver
he became a punter after discovering that he could kick the ball far better. After looking at USC, Stanford
and Washington
, he chose USC. He graduated a semester early and enrolled at USC in the spring of 2002.
punter in ten years, playing all 13 games and averaging 42.1 yards on his 62 punts. He made the All-Freshman Team in several publications. In the 2003 season, the sophomore again appeared in all 13 games, averaging 49.0 yards (breaking the previous USC record) on his 42 punts. Malone earned first-team All-American honors from ESPN
.com, SI.com
and Collegefootballnews.com, becoming USC's first-ever All-American punter. Malone was a lead contender for the national punting title, but because of USC's very efficient offense that year he was five punts shy of having the NCAA-required minimum 3.6 punts per game to be listed—his 49.0 average was 1.0 yards above the national leader.
Going into his junior season, Malone had become a fan favorite due to the novelty of having an All-American punter at a school that dominated offensively. Some fans began a humorous and well-meaning "Malone4Heisman" campaign that received attention from both his teammates (including that year's actual Heisman Trophy
winner Matt Leinart
) and major sports media outlets. It was this campaign that dubbed Malone "the Bomb".
During the 2004 season, Malone again appeared in all 13 games, he averaging 43.8 yards on 49 punts. He ranked ninth nationally in punting (43.8, first in Pac-10) and was a semifinalist for the 2004 Ray Guy Award
. His performance at the 2005 FedEx Orange Bowl
earned him a place on CBS Sportsline.com
's All-Bowl Team.
In the summer before his senior season, Malone injured his right hip during workouts which limited his ability to practice during the season. During his final season, the USC offense performed better than it had in his previous seasons: averaged 50 points a game and only allowing Malone 30 punts in 12 games, lower than any previous season. USC did not punt during his final home game, a 66-19 offensive explosion against rival-UCLA. Despite the step backwards, Malone took things well saying, "From a team standpoint, this could not have gone better. It's the most fun you could ever imagine. From a personal standpoint, it's been a little frustrating." He graduated from USC in 2006 with a degree in political science
.
as an undrafted free agent on May 5, 2006, but was waived by the team on July 9, 2006.
signed Malone to their practice squad on December 20, 2006. When former USC teammate Mario Danelo
died in January 2007, Patriots head coach Bill Belichick
gave him a week off and paid to send him to the funeral. He was re-signed to a future contract on January 23, 2007, but was waived on August 22, 2007. He was then signed to the Patriots' practice squad on September 10, 2008, waived from it on September 15, 2008, and re-signed to the team's practice squad on November 26, 2008. He was waived on May 5, 2009, but re-signed on June 1, 2009. He was waived again on August 1, 2009.
on February 13, 2010. He was waived on April 28, 2010.
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
punter for the Sacramento Mountain Lions. He was signed by the San Francisco 49ers
San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers are a professional American football team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team was founded in 1946 as a charter member of the All-America Football Conference and...
as an undrafted free agent in 2006. He played college football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
at Southern California.
Malone has also been a member of the New England Patriots
New England Patriots
The New England Patriots, commonly called the "Pats", are a professional football team based in the Greater Boston area, playing their home games in the town of Foxborough, Massachusetts at Gillette Stadium. The team is part of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National...
, New York Sentinels
New York Sentinels
The New York Sentinels and Hartford Colonials are a currently inactive professional American football team that played in the United Football League in its 2009 and 2010 seasons...
and Seattle Seahawks
Seattle Seahawks
The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle, Washington. They are currently members of the Western Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team joined the NFL in 1976 as an expansion team...
.
Early years
Malone went to Temescal Canyon High SchoolTemescal Canyon High School
Temescal Canyon High School is a public high school part of the Lake Elsinore Unified School District. Though it is located in Lake Elsinore, California, it also serves the areas of Canyon Lake and Horsethief Canyon...
. After beginning his football
High school football
High school football, in North America, refers to the game of football as it is played in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both of these nations....
career at wide receiver
Wide receiver
A wide receiver is an offensive position in American and Canadian football, and is the key player in most of the passing plays. Only players in the backfield or the ends on the line are eligible to catch a forward pass. The two players who begin play at the ends of the offensive line are eligible...
he became a punter after discovering that he could kick the ball far better. After looking at USC, Stanford
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
and Washington
University of Washington
University of Washington is a public research university, founded in 1861 in Seattle, Washington, United States. The UW is the largest university in the Northwest and the oldest public university on the West Coast. The university has three campuses, with its largest campus in the University...
, he chose USC. He graduated a semester early and enrolled at USC in the spring of 2002.
College career
Malone entered the 2002 season as USC's first true freshman startingStarting lineup
A starting lineup in sports is an official list of the set of players who will actively participate in the event when the game begins. The players in the starting lineup are commonly referred to as starters, whereas the others are substitutes or bench players.The starters are commonly the best...
punter in ten years, playing all 13 games and averaging 42.1 yards on his 62 punts. He made the All-Freshman Team in several publications. In the 2003 season, the sophomore again appeared in all 13 games, averaging 49.0 yards (breaking the previous USC record) on his 42 punts. Malone earned first-team All-American honors from ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
.com, SI.com
Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...
and Collegefootballnews.com, becoming USC's first-ever All-American punter. Malone was a lead contender for the national punting title, but because of USC's very efficient offense that year he was five punts shy of having the NCAA-required minimum 3.6 punts per game to be listed—his 49.0 average was 1.0 yards above the national leader.
Going into his junior season, Malone had become a fan favorite due to the novelty of having an All-American punter at a school that dominated offensively. Some fans began a humorous and well-meaning "Malone4Heisman" campaign that received attention from both his teammates (including that year's actual Heisman Trophy
Heisman Trophy
The Heisman Memorial Trophy Award , is awarded annually to the player deemed the most outstanding player in collegiate football. It was created in 1935 as the Downtown Athletic Club trophy and renamed in 1936 following the death of the Club's athletic director, John Heisman The Heisman Memorial...
winner Matt Leinart
Matt Leinart
Matthew Stephen Leinart , is an American professional football quarterback for the Houston Texans of the National Football League...
) and major sports media outlets. It was this campaign that dubbed Malone "the Bomb".
During the 2004 season, Malone again appeared in all 13 games, he averaging 43.8 yards on 49 punts. He ranked ninth nationally in punting (43.8, first in Pac-10) and was a semifinalist for the 2004 Ray Guy Award
Ray Guy Award
The Ray Guy Award is presented annually to college football's top punter by the Greater Augusta Sports Council. The award is named after punter Ray Guy, a former All-American at Southern Mississippi and an all-pro player for the Oakland Raiders.-Criteria:...
. His performance at the 2005 FedEx Orange Bowl
BCS National Championship Game
The BCS National Championship Game, or BCS National Championship, is the final bowl game of the annual Bowl Championship Series and is intended by the organizers of the BCS to determine the U.S. national champion of the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision...
earned him a place on CBS Sportsline.com
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
's All-Bowl Team.
In the summer before his senior season, Malone injured his right hip during workouts which limited his ability to practice during the season. During his final season, the USC offense performed better than it had in his previous seasons: averaged 50 points a game and only allowing Malone 30 punts in 12 games, lower than any previous season. USC did not punt during his final home game, a 66-19 offensive explosion against rival-UCLA. Despite the step backwards, Malone took things well saying, "From a team standpoint, this could not have gone better. It's the most fun you could ever imagine. From a personal standpoint, it's been a little frustrating." He graduated from USC in 2006 with a degree in political science
Political science
Political Science is a social science discipline concerned with the study of the state, government and politics. Aristotle defined it as the study of the state. It deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics, and the analysis of political systems and political behavior...
.
San Francisco 49ers
Malone was signed by the San Francisco 49ersSan Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers are a professional American football team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team was founded in 1946 as a charter member of the All-America Football Conference and...
as an undrafted free agent on May 5, 2006, but was waived by the team on July 9, 2006.
New England Patriots
The New England PatriotsNew England Patriots
The New England Patriots, commonly called the "Pats", are a professional football team based in the Greater Boston area, playing their home games in the town of Foxborough, Massachusetts at Gillette Stadium. The team is part of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National...
signed Malone to their practice squad on December 20, 2006. When former USC teammate Mario Danelo
Mario Danelo
Mario Danelo was an American college football placekicker.-High school career:Danelo was an all–Los Angeles linebacker at San Pedro High School in San Pedro, California. Danelo was also a fullback and kicker at his high school...
died in January 2007, Patriots head coach Bill Belichick
Bill Belichick
William Stephen "Bill" Belichick is an American football head coach for the New England Patriots of the National Football League. After spending his first 15 seasons in the league as an assistant coach, Belichick got his first head coaching job with the Cleveland Browns in 1991...
gave him a week off and paid to send him to the funeral. He was re-signed to a future contract on January 23, 2007, but was waived on August 22, 2007. He was then signed to the Patriots' practice squad on September 10, 2008, waived from it on September 15, 2008, and re-signed to the team's practice squad on November 26, 2008. He was waived on May 5, 2009, but re-signed on June 1, 2009. He was waived again on August 1, 2009.
Seattle Seahawks
Malone was signed by the Seattle SeahawksSeattle Seahawks
The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle, Washington. They are currently members of the Western Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team joined the NFL in 1976 as an expansion team...
on February 13, 2010. He was waived on April 28, 2010.