The self-taught Tokyo kicker who learned his craft on YouTube now battles for a job with the Raiders.
Kansei Matsuzawa, nicknamed "The Tokyo Toe," became Hawai'i's first consensus All-American after a record-setting senior season, then signed with the Raiders as an undrafted free agent through the NFL's International Player Pathway. His path from a Tokyo steakhouse job to an NFL training camp is one of the more unusual stories on the roster.
Path to the league
Matsuzawa grew up in Chiba, Japan and originally chased a soccer career before failing the entrance exam for his target program. He taught himself to kick a football using YouTube videos, working for years at a Tokyo Morton's Steakhouse to fund his training before landing at Hocking College and then the University of Hawai'i. He went undrafted in the 2026 NFL Draft and signed with the Las Vegas Raiders.
Career highlights
At Hawai'i, Matsuzawa set the school record with 27 made field goals in a season and was named the first consensus All-American in program history. He also earned Mountain West Conference Special Teams Player of the Year honors and was a finalist for the Lou Groza Award, given to the nation's top collegiate kicker.
2025 season recap
In his senior year at Hawai'i, Matsuzawa made 27 of 29 field goal attempts (93.1 percent) and went a perfect 40-for-40 on extra points, scoring 121 points across 13 games. He opened the season by hitting a game-winning field goal as time expired against Stanford and later tied an FBS record with 25 consecutive field goals made.
Sources
- Wikipedia: Kansei Matsuzawa
- ESPN: Kansei Matsuzawa - Tokyo Toe kicker
Player Profile
Background
- Position
- Place Kicker
- Group
- specialTeam
- College
- Hawai'i
- Hometown
- Tokyo, Japan
- Age
- 27
- Status
- active
Team
