![]() The Baker family took him to a local high school football scrimmage that same evening. The Bakers taught Andersen about the American way of life – Disney World, peanut butter, and Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade, among other things, per Lieber.Īndersen set foot on American soil on his seventeenth birthday – August 19, 1977. He lived with Dale and Jean Baker and their family in Indianapolis. The Youth for Understanding program assigned him to Ben Davis High School in Indiana. Little wonder Andersen told Sports Illustrated’s Stephen Thomas in December 1995 that he would have been a translator had he not become a football player.Īndersen traveled to the United States as a cultural exchange student after he graduated tenth grade in Denmark.Įxchange student from Denmark ➡️ All-time leading scorer for TWO divisional rival teams ➡️ □ His father Erik, who had never been outside of Denmark when he was younger, encouraged him to explore other cultures.Ĭonsequently, Morten Andersen excelled in various languages: he spoke English, French, German, Latin, Norwegian, and Swedish when he was still in his teens. According to Sports Illustrated’s Jill Lieber, Andersen regularly raced against the family Peugeot when he was growing up in Denmark.Īndersen tried his hand at track, gymnastics, and handball as he grew older.Īndersen became so good at handball that he was part of Denmark’s championship-winning national team when he was sixteen. He displayed his competitive drive at an early age. Morten became fascinated with soccer at the age of five. On the other hand, his mother Hanne was a Danish language and culture teacher and librarian. His father Erik was a psychologist and educational supervisor. He has a twin brother Jakob.Īccording to ’s Jeff Duncan, Andersen spent most of his childhood in the fishing village of Struer.īoth of Andersen’s parents worked in the education sector. ![]() Morten Andersen was born to parents Erik and Hanne in Copenhagen, Denmark on August 19, 1960. Little wonder “The Great Dane” became just the second kicker enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. When 47-year-old Morten Andersen hung up his cleats in 2007, he racked up 2,544 career points – the most in league history until the Indianapolis Colts’ Adam Vinatieri surpassed him in October 2018. Who could ever forget his record-breaking 63-yarder against the Ohio State Buckeyes in the fall of 1981?Īndersen’s game-winning field goal in the 1998 NFC title game propelled the Atlanta Falcons to Super Bowl XXXIII almost eighteen years later. The left-footed kicker nailed several historic field goals during his illustrious gridiron career. Who would’ve thought a 17-year-old from Denmark would embark on a historic 25-year run in the NFL?Īndersen, who earned the nickname “The Great Dane,” quickly made a name for himself in the United States. Morten Andersen was one of the greatest kickers in National Football League history.
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