Efrén Herrera

Efrén Herrera is a Mexican-born former NFL placekicker who won Super Bowl XII with the Dallas Cowboys and earned All-Pro honours after discovering American football as a teenage immigrant to the United States.

Efrén Herrera earned first-team All-Pro and Pro Bowl honours in 1977 after tying for the NFL lead in field goal percentage and finishing as the league's second-leading scorer — making him one of the most decorated kickers of his era, at a time when his Mexican background and soccer origins were virtually unknown in American football.. A soccer player by background, he was discovered when his high school coach saw him kick a basketball into a soccer goal, and he went on to letter in football, baseball, wrestling, and track at La Puente High School. Herrera earned a football scholarship to UCLA, where he also played soccer as a forward and midfielder, turning down an opportunity to return to Mexico to play professional soccer in favour of his American college career. He was selected in the seventh round of the 1974 NFL Draft, and signed with the Dallas Cowboys as a free agent after an injury and poor form left the team's kicking position open. Herrera became a key contributor to the Cowboys through the mid-1970s, winning Super Bowl XII following the 1977 season, in which he tied for the NFL lead in field goal percentage and extra points, finished as the league's second-leading scorer, kicked a career-long 52-yard field goal, and earned first-team All-Pro and Pro Bowl honours. He also developed a reputation for effective 'pooch kicks' from field goal formation. Herrera went on to play for the Seattle Seahawks and Buffalo Bills before a brief stint in the USFL with the Oklahoma/Arizona Outlaws, finishing his NFL career with 116 field goals across 106 games.

Accurate placekicker known for a soccer-influenced kicking style and reliable performance under pressure

One of the earliest Mexican-born players to reach the top of American football, opening doors for later Hispanic players in the NFL

• Super Bowl champion (XII, Dallas Cowboys)
• First-team All-Pro (1977)
• Pro Bowl selection (1977)
• PFWA All-Rookie Team (1974)