Nate Kmic
American football player (born 1987)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Nate Kmic (born June 22, 1987) is an American former professional football running back. He played college football at Mount Union College after graduating from Delta High School in rural Delta, Ohio.
Delta, Ohio, U.S.
| No. 36, 1 | |
|---|---|
| Position | Running back |
| Personal information | |
| Born | June 22, 1987 Delta, Ohio, U.S. |
| Listed height | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) |
| Listed weight | 195 lb (88 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Delta |
| College | Mount Union (2005–2008) |
| NFL draft | 2011: undrafted |
| Career history | |
| |
| Awards and highlights | |
| |
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Men's American football | ||
Representing  United States | ||
| World Championship | ||
 | 2011 Austria | Team Competition |
In his college career, he set rushing records for both NCAA Division III as well as the NCAA all-division record. At Mount Union, Kmic won three NCAA Division III football championships and was a three-time All-American and three-time All-Ohio Athletic Conference running back.
After playing in the 2011 IFAF World Championship, representing Team USA, he signed a professional contract with the Lappeenranta Rajaritarit (Lapeenranta Border Knights) of the Finnish Maple League (Vaahteraliiga).
He later served as an assistant coach and running backs coach for the Mount Union Purple Raiders football team from 2009 to 2012.[1] Since September 2012, Kmic has worked at Alro Steel Corporation, a distributor of metals, plastic, and industrial supplies.
Early life
As a senior at Delta High School in Ohio, Kmic rushed for 1,681 yards and recorded 65 tackles and five interceptions on defense.[2]
College career
During the 2008 season, Kmic broke the Division III career record for rushing yards set in 2000 by R. J. Bowers of Grove City College.[3] That year, he rushed for 2,790 yards and 43 touchdowns while also recording 262 receiving yards and 1 touchdown, setting the NCAA all-division single-season record for touchdowns with 44 and points with 264.
On December 13, 2008, he rushed for 310 yards against Wheaton College, helping lead the Purple Raiders to a 45–24 victory, earning them a trip to Salem, Virginia for the 2008 Stagg Bowl where they defeated the UW-Whitewater Warhawks 31–26 in the fourth consecutive meeting of the two programs for the Division III Championship.
In the semifinal game, Kmic brought his career rushing total to 7,986, surpassing the previous record of 7,962 held by Danny Woodhead of NCAA Division II Chadron State. Kmic rushed for 88 yards in the Stagg Bowl, bringing his total to 8,074, the most of any player in NCAA history, and the first and only player to rush for over 8,000 yards.[4]
In April 2009, Kmic received the 2008 Melberger Award, granted annually to the outstanding Division III football player.
College statistics
| Rushing | Receiving | Kick Ret | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Team | GP | Att | Yards | Avg | TDs | Rec | Yards | Avg | TDs | Ret | Yds | Avg | TDs |
| 2005 | Mount Union | 11 | 202 | 1,219 | 6.0 | 18 | 16 | 197 | 12.3 | 1 | 12 | 283 | 23.6 | 0 |
| 2006 | Mount Union | 15 | 336 | 2,365 | 7.0 | 26 | 20 | 173 | 8.6 | 2 | 14 | 333 | 23.8 | 0 |
| 2007 | Mount Union | 15 | 274 | 1,700 | 6.2 | 38 | 14 | 117 | 8.4 | 1 | 6 | 146 | 24.3 | 0 |
| 2008 | Mount Union | 15 | 377 | 2,790 | 7.4 | 43 | 25 | 262 | 10.5 | 1 | 5 | 66 | 13.2 | 0 |
| College totals | 56 | 1,189 | 8,074 | 6.8 | 125 | 75 | 749 | 10.0 | 5 | 37 | 828 | 22.4 | 0 | |
Professional career
After the World Championship, and after an injury to former USC Trojans running back Mike Bolio, Kmic signed a professional contract with Finnish top league Vaahteraliiga team Lappeenranta Rajaritarit, with whom he played the rest of the 2011 season replacing Bolio. In the final two regular season games, Kmic rushed for 265 yards on 33 attempts and two touchdowns and also scored on a reception and kick return.[5] In his first professional game, he rushed for 135 yards and two touchdowns in addition to an 86-yard kickoff return touchdown.[6] Lappeenranta finished the regular season with a 7–3 record.
The team lost in the Vaahteraliiga league playoff semi final game 38–28 to the Seinäjoki Crocodiles. Kmic did not find the endzone in the game, but rushed for 98 yards on 16 carries and had five receptions for 48 yards.