GLENDALE, Ariz. — A kick from just 27 yards away sailed through the uprights with the pressure of millions watching Sunday night -- a kick that propelled the Chiefs to their second Super Bowl title in the last four years.
With his roots planted deeply in Georgia, Harrison Butker made his home state proud when he redeemed himself in the biggest spot of his career -- not long after doinking a 42-yard field goal off the left upright in the first quarter.
"I mean that's what you dream of as a kicker, you know, getting to the Super Bowl and have a game-winning kick," Butker said when asked how it compares to kick the Super Bowl-winning field goal to what he dreamed of as a kid. "You know it's crazy to think that that's now happened, what, a walk-off game-winner?" he asked in disbelief.
Butker is from Decatur, Georgia, where he attended Westminster School from 2009 to 2013. While there, he lettered three years in football and basketball and four years of soccer -- impressive to say the least.
He had quick success with his powerful right leg, being named all-state kicker, named prokicker.com Athlete of the Year and first-team all-America pick in 2011 and 2012. He holds the record for the longest field goal in program history with a 53-yarder in high school.
His success with his leg set in motion one of the greatest kicking careers to ever be born out of the state of Georgia.
Butker announced his decision to attend Georgia Tech, where he would go on to have a legendary career and become the Yellow Jackets' all-time leading scorer. He converted 43 of 60 field goal attempts and was named a captain on the team during his senior season.
He even delivered a dagger to the heart of Dawgs fans with a 53-yard game tying field goal in 2014 to send the game to overtime, a game Georgia Tech eventually won.
Butker fulfilled his NFL dream by getting drafted by the Panthers in the seventh round of the 2017 NFL Draft, but things didn't work out and he signed a deal with the Kansas City Chiefs' practice squad in 2017 after their kicker went on injured reserve.
From there, Butker has cemented himself as the Chiefs kicker and one of the best in the NFL. He won Super Bowl LIV with KC in 2020 with a win over the 49ers. He converted a 31-yard field goal and all four extra-point attempts in the 31-20 win.
He made it back to the Super Bowl a year later, where he scored all 9 points for the Chiefs in the blowout loss to Tampa Bay.
Fast forward two more years, and Butker was right back out there on the biggest stage in sports, having to mentally battle back late in the game after a first quarter missed field goal.
"Obviously in the first quarter [I] missed that first field goal," Butker said. "Didn't really feel great in the warmup, but you know you gotta keep working on it, not think about the what-ifs -- 'what if you make one, what if you miss one' -- you just gotta go out and focus on what you can control."
Through that mindset, Butker was the hero for the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LVII, converting the go-ahead and eventual game-winning 27-yard field goal for the Chiefs' second Super Bowl title in four years.
"It's amazing now that all the dreams, all the visualizing that we're going to win came true," Butker said with a smile. "And now you can experience it and relax and enjoy the win."
Watch Butker's Super Bowl-winning kick below:
Butker has made the Peach State proud.
Here's what he had to say after the game: