Noel Prefontaine

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Noel Prefontaine bigraphy, stories - Player of American and Canadian football

Noel Prefontaine : biography

December 23, 1973 –

Noel Prefontaine (born December 23, 1973) is a professional Canadian football punter / kicker in the Canadian Football League with the Toronto Argonauts.

Early years

Prefontaine was born to a Canadian father and a Vietnamese mother at the Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton in California. His father was born and raised in Verdun, Quebec and Noel lived with his grandmother in Verdun as a child, which enables him to be considered a non-import for CFL purposes. He returned to the United States and attended El Camino High School in San Diego County, California.

Prefontaine played baseball, soccer, and played offensive tackle in American football as a child and continually trained himself to improve as an athlete and at high school, he played quarterback as well as punting and placekicking. He was named San Diego Tribune Athlete of the Year for North County as a senior and led El Camino High School to a 22–2 record and a CIF Championship as their starting quarterback.

Prefontaine hoped to play quarterback in college football but could only obtain a scholarship as a punter at California State University, Fullerton. His punting average his first year led the state but the football program folded at the end of the season. Prefontaine received offers to play for multiple college football teams including Michigan, Michigan State, Georgia, LSU, and Texas but chose to go to Arizona State University because it was close to his family and friends. He was unhappy there, however, and left to go to San Diego State University. After a required redshirt year because of his transfer, he was named All-Conference as a punter in his junior year and first-team All-American as a punter in his senior year.

Professional career

CFL

XFL

In 2001, Prefontaine also played in the XFL with the Los Angeles Xtreme as their punter. He was officially listed as the team’s third-string quarterback (behind Tommy Maddox and Scott Milanovich, the latter of whom would eventually become Prefontaine’s coach in Toronto) in order to collect a higher salary and because the XFL did not reserve separate roster spots for punters (on the other XFL teams, placekickers doubled as punters). He went on to play in the one and only XFL championship game on April 21, 2001 with the Xtreme, with his team ultimately winning the championship.