Jesús Gómez (American football)
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| No. 35 – Arizona State Sun Devils | |
|---|---|
| Position | Placekicker |
| Class |  |
| Personal information | |
| Born | 22 October 2003 Puebla, Puebla, Mexico |
| Listed height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) |
| Listed weight | 217 lb (98 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Prepa Tec Puebla (Puebla, Puebla, Mexico) |
| College | Eastern Michigan (2021–2024) Arizona State (2025) |
| CFL draft | 2026G: 1st round, 3rd overall pick |
| Awards and highlights | |
| Stats at ESPN | |
Jesús Salvador Gómez Juárez (born 22 October 2003) is a Mexican college football kicker for the Arizona State Sun Devils. He previously played for the Eastern Michigan Eagles.
Gómez was born on 22 October 2003 in Puebla, Puebla, Mexico,[1] to Jesús Gómez and Yesika Juárez.[2] He grew up in a football (soccer)-oriented family and played the sport for 13 years.[3] Gómez even spent time in the Club Puebla youth system.[1] However, he eventually grew bored of the sport and began playing informal games of American football with his friends in secondary school.[3] His parents permitted him to join a club team as a kicker, though Gómez played as a wide receiver and linebacker for two seasons before his father convinced him to switch positions.[3] He discovered his aptitude for kicking and decided to commit to the position fully.[3]
Gómez attended Prepa Tec Puebla, where he played high school football for the Borregos under head coach Ángel Carrillo.[2] He also had several good performances at kicking camps throughout the United States, which drew attention from NCAA Division I programs.[3] Gómez was rated as a five-star recruit and ranked as the 13th-best kicking prospect in the nation by Kohl's.[2][4] He committed to play college football at Eastern Michigan University (EMU).[3]
College career
Eastern Michigan
As a freshman in 2021, Gómez appeared in two games for the Eagles, recording an average of 64 yards in three kickoff attempts with two touchbacks and taking a redshirt.[2][5] He mostly served as a backup to starter Chad Ryland.[3] Following Ryland's departure, Gómez won the starting kicker role in 2022.[2][6] He earned Mid-American Conference (MAC) West Division Special Teams Player of the Week honors in mid-September after he went a perfect three-of-three on field goals and three-of-three on extra points in a 30–21 win over Arizona State.[7] On October 22, Gómez tied the program record by making a 55-yard field goal to end the first half in an eventual 20–16 win over Ball State.[8] He played in all 13 games that season and converted 14-of-17 field goal attempts, including two-of-three from beyond 50 yards, as well as a perfect 47-of-47 extra points.[2][9] Gómez was named the team's Special Teams MVP and earned second-team All-MAC accolades.[10][11] He was then named to the Lou Groza Award watchlist ahead of the 2023 season.[12] On September 30, Gómez tied his carer-high with a 55-yard field goal in a 26–23 loss to Central Michigan.[13] On November 14, he made a game-tying 32-yard field goal against Akron with 10 seconds left in regulation; EMU eventually won in double overtime by a score of 30–27.[14] Gómez finished 12-of-16 on field goal attempts and 21-of-24 on extra points.[2]
In 2024, Gómez had a breakout season for the Eagles. On September 7, he made all three of his field goal attempts, including a school-record 57-yard kick, in a 30–9 loss to Washington.[15] Gómez also became the first player in program history to convert multiple field goals of 50 or more yards in a single game, and earned MAC co-Special Teams Player of the Week honors for his performance.[16] The following week, he converted three-of-four field goals, including the game-winning 34-yard kick, and four-of-four extra points in a 37–34 double overtime victory over Jacksonville State, repeating as MAC co-Special Teams Player of the Week.[17][18] Gómez won the award for the third week in a row after he converted three-of-three field goals and three-of-four extra points in a 36–0 win over the Saint Francis Red Flash.[19][20] He captured the award for a fourth time after he made all three field goal attempts and all three extra points in a 38–34 Homecoming win over Central Michigan on October 19.[21] Gómez finished the year converting 20-of-25 field goal attempts and 27-of-29 extra points.[9] After the season, he entered the NCAA transfer portal.[22]
Arizona State
On December 15, 2024, Gómez announced he would be transferring to Arizona State University (ASU) to play for the Sun Devils.[23] He also received interest from programs such as Auburn, Ole Miss, South Carolina, and Washington.[24] Gómez spoke positively about the favorable kicking conditions in the area – saying weather was "perfect year-round" – as well as the sizable Hispanic community.[24][25] He also praised the coaching staff, saying: "From the first moment I met the coaches I felt how they care more about me as a person and not a football player. You can see how everyone in the building is bought in to the vision of Coach Dillingham and the future is bright for this program.[25] Conversely, ASU pursued Gómez due to their kicking problems the previous season,[26] with special teams coordinator Charlie Ragle calling him "the best option in the portal".[27] Gómez is left-footed, meaning Ragle had to flip his coaching mechanics, but "he was so good, it didn’t matter."[26]
Gómez entered the 2025 season as one of very few Mexican players at the Power Four level.[28] On September 20, he converted four-of-four field goals – including the game-winning 43-yard kick as time expired – in a 27–24 win over Baylor, earning Big 12 Conference Special Teams Player of the Week honors.[26][29] The following week, Gómez made a game-winning 23-yard field goal in a 27–24 upset victory over No. 24. TCU.[30] He repeated as the Big 12 Special Teams Player of the Week and became the first Big 12 kicker since 2015 to make game-winning field goals in consecutive games.[31] In mid-October, Gómez helped the Sun Devils pull off another upset, converting four-of-four field goals in a 26–22 win over No. 7 Texas Tech and earning Big 12 Special Teams Player of the Week recognition for the third time.[32] On November 15 against West Virginia, he recorded his first career pass attempt, taking a direct snap on an extra point in the second quarter and completing a pass to tight end Cameron Harpole for the two-point conversion.[33] Gómez went on to kick the game-winning 49-yard field goal to give Arizona State a 25–23 victory on Homecoming.[34] He was named the Big 12 Special Teams Player of the Week for the fourth time.[35]
In his final career game, Gómez converted a career-long 54-yard field goal in a 42–39 loss to Duke in the 2025 Sun Bowl. It tied for the third-longest field goal in program history.[36] Gómez finished the season converting 22-of-30 on field goal attempts and 33-of-33 on extra points.[9] He earned all-Big 12 honorable mention.[37]
Professional career
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | Wingspan | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 217 lb (98 kg) | 30 in (0.76 m) | 8+1⁄2 in (0.22 m) | 6 ft 0+3⁄4 in (1.85 m) | ||||||||
| All values from Pro Day[38] | ||||||||||||
On January 6, 2026, Gómez declared for the 2026 NFL draft.[39] He was one of 28 kickers invited to the fourth annual Canadian Football League (CFL) Kicking Showcase, held in San Diego in February,[40] and he was one of 20 Sun Devils who worked out on ASU's Pro Day in March.[41] He went undrafted in the 2026 NFL draft but was drafted in the first round (3rd overall) by the Edmonton Elks in the 2026 CFL global draft.[42]