Zoltan Mesko (American football)
Encyclopedia
Zoltán Meskó (ˈzoltaːn ˈmɛʃkoː, ˈzoʊltɑːn ˈmɛskoʊ; born March 16, 1986) is a Romania
n-born American football
punter for the New England Patriots
of the National Football League
(NFL). He was drafted by the Patriots in the fifth round of the 2010 NFL Draft
. He played college football
at Michigan
. A native of Romania
(of Hungarian origin), he emigrated with his family to the United States
and eventually settled in Ohio
. There he was discovered as a potential kicker for his school's football team and became one of the best high school football
kickers in the nation, excelling as both a punter and placekicker
. After earning top honors in his state, Mesko was recruited by several college football
teams. He selected Michigan over several schools including Indiana
and USC.
At Michigan, Mesko did not win the starting job as a punter right away. He redshirted
his freshman year and won a battle for the kicking duties on the field in 2006. Mesko has since gone on to excel on the field as a three-time Ray Guy Award
watchlist candidate and off the field as a four-time Academic All Conference selection. He has also been recognized for his character and community service by numerous organizations. As a redshirt junior in 2008, Mesko endured the dynamics of a coaching change, became Michigan's all-time leader in punts and punting yardage, and was named to 2008 All-Big Ten
first-team. As a fifth-year senior in 2009, he made a number of preseason All-American teams and achieved the highest punting average of his college career at 44.5 yards per punt. Mesko concluded his season as a 2009 All-Big Ten
first-team selection by both the coaches and the media. He was also selected as a first-team Academic All-American and as a second-team All-American
by several publications. He holds the career and single-season records for punts and punting yards at Michigan.
In the NFL, Mesko set an NFL rookie record for net punting yard average.
, where he lived with his family in 1989 during the revolutions leading to the fall of communism
in the former Eastern Bloc
and the overthrow
of dictator Nicolae Ceauşescu
in Romania. The family was so immersed in the middle of the crossfire that they often dodged bullets by getting on the floor in their apartment. Zoltan was just passing through toddler
hood at the time of the revolution so he does not remember much of the details, but the family stuffed windows with pillows during the conflict. Prior to the overthrow, the family dealt with the realities of communism
, such as having to wait seven years to buy a car even though they had the money.
As a child, Mesko had a strong interest in soccer. At the age of twelve, he immigrated with his family to Ohio
and Mesko was introduced to American football
when he was spotted as a potential kicker in seventh grade gym class when he knocked out a light during a kickball
game. Mesko is a left-footed kicker. Mesko, who could not distinguish a football
from a rugby
ball when he first arrived in the states, familiarized himself with the sport of American football via the television
.
In 2003, Mesko earned Northeast Ohio Inland All-District Division II football team honorable mention recognition from the media while performing as a punter and placekicker
for Twinsburg High School
. He was also selected as Western Reserve
North Division First-team by the coaches as well as the All-Summit County
Team kicker. The Plain Dealer listed him as their first team kicker. During the year, he was 10 for 14 on field goals, while only missing one point after touchdown attempt and averaging 36 yards per punt. He placed 80% of his kickoff
s in the end zone and maintained a 4.0 grade point average. During the season he made a 41-yard field goal and a game-winning 31-yard field goal. By the end of the season, he had started 31 consecutive games. Twinsburg qualified for the state playoffs for the first time in ten years thanks in part to a solid kicking game. During his junior year, he got his first recruiting feeler from Division III Mount Union College
.
After his junior season, he compiled tapes of his best punts, field goals, and kickoffs and sent them to 86 schools, hoping for ten responses. As a result of his tapes, he received 14 invitations for campus visits. He attended 16 kicking camps during his junior/senior summer. On June 6 he attended an Indiana University camp and received a full scholarship offer from the Hoosiers
. Subsequently, at the University of Michigan
camp, he averaged 48.5 yards per punt and a 4.6 second average hang time and was offered a scholarship. During the visit he impressed coaches when he saw fifth-year punter Adam Finley kicking balls on the roof of the Michigan indoor practice facility and joined in by kicking four in a row over the building. Although, he was an Ohio State Buckeyes football
fan, he was not sought after by the Buckeyes who had recruited a punter the prior year. He was also admitted to all of the Ivy League
schools.
Mesko had a successful high school career and was ranked second among kickers in the 2005 recruiting class
by Rivals.com
and fourth among punters by Scout.com
. He committed to Michigan on June 28, 2004, just before his senior year of high school. He committed to Michigan mainly as a punter. After committing to Michigan, he continued to be recruited by USC Trojans football. Over the course of his high school career, he evolved from a 155 lbs, 6 in 2 in (1.88 m) freshman into a 230 lbs, 6 in 4 in (1.93 m) senior.
As a senior, Mesko once punted a ball 70 yards in the air. As a senior punter and placekicker Mesko was a part of the focus of opposition game plans. He averaged 44 yards per punt as a senior and dropped 16 inside the 10-yard line according to The Plain Dealer and 15 inside the 15-yard line according to the Ann Arbor News
. He was selected to play in the January 15, 2005 U.S. Army All-American Bowl
as a punter. During the game he drew a roughing the kicker penalty and posted seven punts including kicks of 56, 48 and 47 yards and a pooch punt that he placed inside the 15-yard line. He was named an Associated Press
Division II All-Ohio first-team punter. He was also selected to numerous local area All-star teams as both a punter and a placekicker. He served as both punter and kicker for the Ohio team during the 2005 Big 33 Football Classic
in which he was 4 for 5 on PATs. He was recognized as the 2004 Northeast Inland All-District Division II first team punter by the media. He was selected as the All-Akron Beacon Journal
team placekicker and the all-Summit County punter. The Akron area coaches selected him as both the punter and kicker for the All-Western Reserve Conference, North Division first-team. He was selected to the combined Summit-Medina-Portage
Counties All-Area team as the first team punter by The Plain Dealer. He was the first team punter for The Plain Dealer All-area team. Although Mesko's high school required 40 hours of community service
, he performed over 300 hours.
would use three kickers: Garrett Rivas for field goals and extra points, Ross Ryan for kickoffs and Mesko for punting, but redshirt junior Ryan beat out Mesko and junior Mark Spencer for the punting duties. Mesko redshirted
as a freshman at Michigan in 2005, while Ryan ranked last in the Big Ten for the 2005 season with a 38.3 yard average.
Entering the 2006 season for Michigan
, head coach
Lloyd Carr
could not decide between Mesko and Ryan. In the team's opening game against Vanderbilt
, Mesko punted three times and Ryan once. The two shared the kicking duties for the first four games with Mesko recording 12 punts and Ryan recording 9. In the fifth game of the season, against the Minnesota Golden Gophers
for the Little Brown Jug
, Mesko handled all of the punting duties. Ryan punted only five more times the rest of the season. Mesko finished the season fourth in the Big Ten and 38th in the nation in punting average. Mesko earned Academic All-Big Ten Conference recognition for earning a letter while maintaining a 3.0 average during the fall.
Prior to the 2007 season
, Mesko adjusted his kicking technique to a straight motion instead of a cross-over like National Football League
punters. He was a preseason Ray Guy Award watchlist nominee. After Rivas graduated, the 2007 Michigan Wolverines football team
had a battle for the placekicking duties for the 2007 season between redshirt freshman Bryan Wright and two walk-ons. When the team had two fourth quarter field goal attempts blocked during their season-opening 34–32 loss
to the two-time defending FCS champion Appalachian State Mountaineers
, Mesko was an uninvolved third stringer but handled punting duties. Mesko finished the season fifth in the Big Ten in punting average, and was again Academic All-Conference.
arrived to replace the retired Carr prior to the 2008 season
, he announced the Wolverines
would be using a new punting formation along with the spread offense. Instead of using two gunner
s, the team switched to using six, and Mesko switched to rolling out and using directional kicks. The plan called for a mixture of employing traditional pocket punts and roll out for rugby style ones. Mesko said the changes to the team were so drastic under Rodriguez that he felt like he had transferred. On all seven of his punts in the opening game against Utah
, Mesko rolled out to his left before punting. The new punt scheme was part of the option offense
and could have resulted in a fake punt. In Michigan's third game against Notre Dame
on September 13, Mesko executed an option run
for 13 yards and a first down. Mesko also executed a seven-yard option run for a first down against Minnesota
on November 8 in the Little Brown Jug game. Mesko had a couple of punts blocked during the season, and one was returned for a touchdown during the Michigan – Ohio State game. During the season, Mesko served as K.C. Lopata's holder
on placekicks. Mesko repeated a Guy Award watchlist candidate in 2008. After the list was narrowed from fifty to ten, Mesko was a semifinalist for the award. Mesko led the Big Ten in punting average and finished twentieth in the nation. He was named to the Big Ten All Conference First-Team in 2008. He was recognized by Phil Steele
as a fourth team All-American for 2008. Mesko was Academic All-Conference for a third time. At the conclusion of the 2008–09 academic year, the inaugural class of Big Ten Distinguished Scholars was recognized for having attained a 3.7 GPA for the academic year while earning varsity letters, and Mesko was among the honorees.
As a senior, Mesko entered the 2009 NCAA Division I FBS football season
opener with the most career starts (38) on the 2009 Michigan Wolverines football team
. He served as the first special teams performer to be captain
in the 130-year history of Michigan football. In 2009, Mesko was again a Guy Award watchlist candidate for the Wolverines. He was also a pre-season Playboy
All-American and NationalChamps.net first-team All-American. On October 11, 2009, he was named Big Ten Conference special teams player of the week for averaging 53.8 yards on five punts at Iowa
. He was a 2009 Allstate
Good Works Team honoree for his outstanding civic contributions to the local community and a 2009 Lowe's
Senior Class Award Finalist for classroom, community, character and competition excellence. At the midpoint in the Wolverines' Big Ten schedule, Mesko ranked fifth in the nation and first in the Big Ten in punting average. In November, Mesko was named a one of 10 semifinalists for the Ray Guy Award and one of 12 finalists for the Wuerffel Trophy
. In eight conference games Mesko averaged 45.2 yards/punt, which was the first time a Michigan punter led the Big Ten in Conference game punting average since Paul Staroba
in 1970. Although the team played twelve games, Mesko only accumulated stats in eleven since the team did not punt a single time in its October 17, 63–6 victory against the . He was selected by both the coaches and the media to the first-team All-Big Ten Conference team. Mesko was named one of three finalists for the Ray Guy Award along with Drew Butler
and Chaz Henry. Mesko was honored as a fall term of the 2009-10 Academic All-Conference selection. He was also one of fifteen Football Bowl Subdivision athletes and six Big Ten athletes selected as a first-team Academic All-American. He was the second-team All-American punter selection by the Walter Camp Football Foundation
, the Associated Press
, Scout.com
, and Rivals.com
. He was an honorable mention All-American by Sports Illustrated
, Pro Football Weekly
, and College Football News
. He finished the season ranked eighth in the nation and first in the Big Ten in punting average. On December 31, 2009, he one of 22 players recognized as a member of the Allstate AFCA
Good Works Team, which rewards public service and volunteer work.
Mesko is Michigan's career leader in punts and punting yardage and is second only to Monte Robbins in punting average. He is also the Michigan single-season punts (80) and punting yards (3436) record holder. Mesko ranks ninth all-time in career punts and seventh in punting yardage in Big Ten Conference history. At the close of his collegiate career, Mesko was rated the number one punter prospect for the 2010 NFL draft by Scouts.com.
with 16 repetitions on the bench press
.
in the fifth round (150th overall) of the 2010 NFL Draft
. He was the first punter or placekicker
drafted and the second Wolverine drafted (Graham
was the first) in the 2010 draft. He signed a four-year contract on June 16, 2010.
In Week 6 of his rookie season, Mesko set a season-long with a 65-yard punt in overtime that gave the Baltimore Ravens
the ball at their own 19-yard line. The Ravens would not convert a first down, punting back to the Patriots who scored to win the game on the ensuing drive.
The 2010 Patriots were the seventh-highest scoring team in NFL history; as a result, Mesko punted just 58 times, 26th in the league. Of those punts, 19 were downed inside the 20, while 5 were touchbacks. Mesko finished his rookie season with a gross average of 43.2 yards, and net average of 38.4 yards, the highest net average for a rookie in NFL history. During the 2011 NFL Lockout
, Mesko, a finance and marketing major in college, interned as a private equity
analyst with Graham Partners in Philadelphia.
. The family supplemented its income selling homemade clothes in the market. His father was also a professional nine-pin
bowler
. On May 8, 1997, when Zoltan was 11, his family moved from his native Romania after Michael Mesko won a United States Permanent Resident Card
(green card) in the Diversity Immigrant Visa
lottery for the single child family to move to the United States. The Meskos now have jobs that pay well. The family spent the first year and half in New York City
before moving to Ohio for better jobs. Zoltan speaks Romanian
, Hungarian
, German
and English
and is conversant in Spanish
. He learned to speak English by watching television. He was schooled at a German school in Timişoara, which was then Romania's second-largest city. His parents taught him Hungarian and he spoke Romanian with his friends.
Mesko completed a Bachelor of Business Administration
in finance
and marketing
from the University of Michigan's Ross School of Business
in 2009. He completed a master's degree
in sports management from the University of Michigan School of Kinesiology
in April 2010.
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
n-born American football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
punter for the New England Patriots
New England Patriots
The New England Patriots, commonly called the "Pats", are a professional football team based in the Greater Boston area, playing their home games in the town of Foxborough, Massachusetts at Gillette Stadium. The team is part of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National...
of the National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
(NFL). He was drafted by the Patriots in the fifth round of the 2010 NFL Draft
2010 NFL Draft
The 2010 NFL Draft was the 75th annual meeting of National Football League franchises to select newly eligible football players. Unlike previous years, the 2010 draft took place over three days, at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, with the first round on Thursday, April 22, 2010, at 7:30 pm...
. He played college football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
at Michigan
Michigan Wolverines football
The Michigan Wolverines football program represents the University of Michigan in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level. Michigan has the most all-time wins and the highest winning percentage in college football history...
. A native of Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
(of Hungarian origin), he emigrated with his family to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and eventually settled in Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
. There he was discovered as a potential kicker for his school's football team and became one of the best high school football
High school football
High school football, in North America, refers to the game of football as it is played in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both of these nations....
kickers in the nation, excelling as both a punter and placekicker
Placekicker
Placekicker, or simply kicker , is the title of the player in American and Canadian football who is responsible for the kicking duties of field goals, extra points...
. After earning top honors in his state, Mesko was recruited by several college football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
teams. He selected Michigan over several schools including Indiana
Indiana Hoosiers football
The Indiana Hoosiers football program represents Indiana University Bloomington in NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision college football and in the Big Ten Conference.-Bowl games:...
and USC.
At Michigan, Mesko did not win the starting job as a punter right away. He redshirted
Redshirt (college sports)
Redshirt is a term used in American college athletics that refers to a delay or suspension of an athlete's participation in order to lengthen his or her period of eligibility...
his freshman year and won a battle for the kicking duties on the field in 2006. Mesko has since gone on to excel on the field as a three-time Ray Guy Award
Ray Guy Award
The Ray Guy Award is presented annually to college football's top punter by the Greater Augusta Sports Council. The award is named after punter Ray Guy, a former All-American at Southern Mississippi and an all-pro player for the Oakland Raiders.-Criteria:...
watchlist candidate and off the field as a four-time Academic All Conference selection. He has also been recognized for his character and community service by numerous organizations. As a redshirt junior in 2008, Mesko endured the dynamics of a coaching change, became Michigan's all-time leader in punts and punting yardage, and was named to 2008 All-Big Ten
2008 Big Ten Conference football season
The 2008 Big Ten Conference football season is the 113th season for the Big Ten.-Preseason:Ohio State was selected as the preseason favorite to win the conference with Wisconsin and Illinois second and third, respectively by the Media...
first-team. As a fifth-year senior in 2009, he made a number of preseason All-American teams and achieved the highest punting average of his college career at 44.5 yards per punt. Mesko concluded his season as a 2009 All-Big Ten
2009 Big Ten Conference football season
The 2009 Big Ten Conference football season was the 114th for the conference, and saw Ohio State conclude the regular season as Big Ten Conference champion for the 5th consecutive time, their 34th Big Ten title. This earned them the conference's automatic selection to a Bowl Championship Series...
first-team selection by both the coaches and the media. He was also selected as a first-team Academic All-American and as a second-team All-American
2009 College Football All-America Team
An All-American team is an honorary sports team for a specific season composed of the best amateur players at each position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply "All-Americans". Although the honorees generally do not...
by several publications. He holds the career and single-season records for punts and punting yards at Michigan.
In the NFL, Mesko set an NFL rookie record for net punting yard average.
Early years
Mesko was born in TimişoaraTimisoara
Timișoara is the capital city of Timiș County, in western Romania. One of the largest Romanian cities, with an estimated population of 311,586 inhabitants , and considered the informal capital city of the historical region of Banat, Timișoara is the main social, economic and cultural center in the...
, where he lived with his family in 1989 during the revolutions leading to the fall of communism
Revolutions of 1989
The Revolutions of 1989 were the revolutions which overthrew the communist regimes in various Central and Eastern European countries.The events began in Poland in 1989, and continued in Hungary, East Germany, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia and...
in the former Eastern Bloc
Eastern bloc
The term Eastern Bloc or Communist Bloc refers to the former communist states of Eastern and Central Europe, generally the Soviet Union and the countries of the Warsaw Pact...
and the overthrow
Romanian Revolution of 1989
The Romanian Revolution of 1989 was a series of riots and clashes in December 1989. These were part of the Revolutions of 1989 that occurred in several Warsaw Pact countries...
of dictator Nicolae Ceauşescu
Nicolae Ceausescu
Nicolae Ceaușescu was a Romanian Communist politician. He was General Secretary of the Romanian Communist Party from 1965 to 1989, and as such was the country's second and last Communist leader...
in Romania. The family was so immersed in the middle of the crossfire that they often dodged bullets by getting on the floor in their apartment. Zoltan was just passing through toddler
Toddler
A toddler is a young child, usually defined as being between the ages of one and three. Registered nurse, midwife and author, Robin Barker, states 'Any time from eight months onwards your baby will begin to realise he is a separate person from you...
hood at the time of the revolution so he does not remember much of the details, but the family stuffed windows with pillows during the conflict. Prior to the overthrow, the family dealt with the realities of communism
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
, such as having to wait seven years to buy a car even though they had the money.
As a child, Mesko had a strong interest in soccer. At the age of twelve, he immigrated with his family to Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
and Mesko was introduced to American football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
when he was spotted as a potential kicker in seventh grade gym class when he knocked out a light during a kickball
Kickball
Kickball is a playground game and competitive league game, similar to baseball, invented in the United States in the first half of the 20th Century. Kickball may also be known as kick baseball, base soccer, soccer-base, or soccer-baseball...
game. Mesko is a left-footed kicker. Mesko, who could not distinguish a football
Football (ball)
A football is an inflated ball used to play one of the various sports known as football.The first balls were made of natural materials, such as an inflated pig bladder, sometimes inside a leather cover...
from a rugby
Rugby football
Rugby football is a style of football named after Rugby School in the United Kingdom. It is seen most prominently in two current sports, rugby league and rugby union.-History:...
ball when he first arrived in the states, familiarized himself with the sport of American football via the television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
.
In 2003, Mesko earned Northeast Ohio Inland All-District Division II football team honorable mention recognition from the media while performing as a punter and placekicker
Placekicker
Placekicker, or simply kicker , is the title of the player in American and Canadian football who is responsible for the kicking duties of field goals, extra points...
for Twinsburg High School
Twinsburg High School
Twinsburg High School is a public high school in Twinsburg, Ohio. It is the only high school in the Twinsburg City Schools district, and serves most of the city and township along with some of Reminderville; the rest of Reminderville is served by Aurora, and some of Twinsburg is covered by the...
. He was also selected as Western Reserve
Connecticut Western Reserve
The Connecticut Western Reserve was land claimed by Connecticut from 1662 to 1800 in the Northwest Territory in what is now northeastern Ohio.-History:...
North Division First-team by the coaches as well as the All-Summit County
Summit County, Ohio
Summit County is an urban county located in the state of Ohio, United States. As of the 2000 census, the population was 542,899. In the 2010 Census the population was 541,781. Its county seat is Akron...
Team kicker. The Plain Dealer listed him as their first team kicker. During the year, he was 10 for 14 on field goals, while only missing one point after touchdown attempt and averaging 36 yards per punt. He placed 80% of his kickoff
Kickoff (American football)
A kickoff is a method of starting a drive in American football and Canadian football. Typically, a kickoff consists of one team – the "kicking team" – kicking the ball to the opposing team – the "receiving team"...
s in the end zone and maintained a 4.0 grade point average. During the season he made a 41-yard field goal and a game-winning 31-yard field goal. By the end of the season, he had started 31 consecutive games. Twinsburg qualified for the state playoffs for the first time in ten years thanks in part to a solid kicking game. During his junior year, he got his first recruiting feeler from Division III Mount Union College
Mount Union College
The University of Mount Union is a 4-year private, coeducational, liberal arts college in Alliance, Ohio.Mount Union enrolls 2200 undergraduates. Approximately 50 percent are women and 50 percent are men, representing more than 22 states and 13 countries. Mount Union has an active alumni base of...
.
After his junior season, he compiled tapes of his best punts, field goals, and kickoffs and sent them to 86 schools, hoping for ten responses. As a result of his tapes, he received 14 invitations for campus visits. He attended 16 kicking camps during his junior/senior summer. On June 6 he attended an Indiana University camp and received a full scholarship offer from the Hoosiers
Indiana Hoosiers football
The Indiana Hoosiers football program represents Indiana University Bloomington in NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision college football and in the Big Ten Conference.-Bowl games:...
. Subsequently, at the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
camp, he averaged 48.5 yards per punt and a 4.6 second average hang time and was offered a scholarship. During the visit he impressed coaches when he saw fifth-year punter Adam Finley kicking balls on the roof of the Michigan indoor practice facility and joined in by kicking four in a row over the building. Although, he was an Ohio State Buckeyes football
Ohio State Buckeyes football
The Ohio State Buckeyes football team is an intercollegiate varsity sports team of The Ohio State University. The team is a member of the Big Ten Conference of the NCAA, playing at the Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, formerly Division I-A, level. The team nickname is derived from the state...
fan, he was not sought after by the Buckeyes who had recruited a punter the prior year. He was also admitted to all of the Ivy League
Ivy League
The Ivy League is an athletic conference comprising eight private institutions of higher education in the Northeastern United States. The conference name is also commonly used to refer to those eight schools as a group...
schools.
Mesko had a successful high school career and was ranked second among kickers in the 2005 recruiting class
Recruiting (athletics)
In college athletics, recruiting is the term used for the process whereby college coaches add new players to their roster of student-athletes each off-season. In most instances, it involves a coach extending an athletic scholarship offer to a player who is about to graduate from high school or a...
by Rivals.com
Rivals.com
Rivals.com is a network of websites that focus mainly on college football and basketball recruiting. The network was started in 1996 and currently employs more than 300 personnel.-Schools:The individual collegiate sites can be found...
and fourth among punters by Scout.com
Scout.com
Scout.com is an integrated sports publishing company that produces both an Internet and print product. Scout has more than 2.1 million visitors...
. He committed to Michigan on June 28, 2004, just before his senior year of high school. He committed to Michigan mainly as a punter. After committing to Michigan, he continued to be recruited by USC Trojans football. Over the course of his high school career, he evolved from a 155 lbs, 6 in 2 in (1.88 m) freshman into a 230 lbs, 6 in 4 in (1.93 m) senior.
As a senior, Mesko once punted a ball 70 yards in the air. As a senior punter and placekicker Mesko was a part of the focus of opposition game plans. He averaged 44 yards per punt as a senior and dropped 16 inside the 10-yard line according to The Plain Dealer and 15 inside the 15-yard line according to the Ann Arbor News
Ann Arbor News
The Ann Arbor News was a newspaper serving Washtenaw and Livingston counties in Michigan. Published in Ann Arbor, under various names from 1835 to 2009, The News was part of Booth Newspapers, owned by Advance Publications Inc. The News was published in the afternoons Monday through Friday and in...
. He was selected to play in the January 15, 2005 U.S. Army All-American Bowl
U.S. Army All-American Bowl
The U.S. Army All-American Bowl is a high school football all-star game held in early January in San Antonio, Texas. Currently played in the Alamodome, the game brings 90 of the nation's top high school football players in an East versus West matchup. In addition to the Bowl game, there is the U.S...
as a punter. During the game he drew a roughing the kicker penalty and posted seven punts including kicks of 56, 48 and 47 yards and a pooch punt that he placed inside the 15-yard line. He was named an Associated Press
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
Division II All-Ohio first-team punter. He was also selected to numerous local area All-star teams as both a punter and a placekicker. He served as both punter and kicker for the Ohio team during the 2005 Big 33 Football Classic
Big 33 Football Classic
The Big 33 Football Classic is an all-star American football game featuring the top high-school football players in Pennsylvania. Played since 1957, the game is often described as the "Super Bowl of High School Football." The last 14 contests have pitted players from Pennsylvania against players...
in which he was 4 for 5 on PATs. He was recognized as the 2004 Northeast Inland All-District Division II first team punter by the media. He was selected as the All-Akron Beacon Journal
Akron Beacon Journal
The Akron Beacon Journal is a four-time Pulitzer Prize-winning morning newspaper in Akron, Ohio, United States, and published by Black Press Ltd.. It is the sole daily newspaper in Akron and is distributed throughout Northeast Ohio. The paper places a strong emphasis on local news and business...
team placekicker and the all-Summit County punter. The Akron area coaches selected him as both the punter and kicker for the All-Western Reserve Conference, North Division first-team. He was selected to the combined Summit-Medina-Portage
Portage County, Ohio
Portage County is a county located in the U.S. state of Ohio. The population was 152,061 at the 2000 Census and 161,419 at the 2010 Census. Its county seat is Ravenna. Portage County is named for the portage between the Cuyahoga and Tuscarawas Rivers...
Counties All-Area team as the first team punter by The Plain Dealer. He was the first team punter for The Plain Dealer All-area team. Although Mesko's high school required 40 hours of community service
Community service
Community service is donated service or activity that is performed by someone or a group of people for the benefit of the public or its institutions....
, he performed over 300 hours.
Lloyd Carr era
Prior to the 2005 season, it appeared that the Michigan Wolverines2005 Michigan Wolverines football team
The 2005 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 2005 college football season. The team's head coach was Lloyd Carr. The Wolverines played their home games at Michigan Stadium. That year Michigan Wolverines football competed in the Big Ten Conference in...
would use three kickers: Garrett Rivas for field goals and extra points, Ross Ryan for kickoffs and Mesko for punting, but redshirt junior Ryan beat out Mesko and junior Mark Spencer for the punting duties. Mesko redshirted
Redshirt (college sports)
Redshirt is a term used in American college athletics that refers to a delay or suspension of an athlete's participation in order to lengthen his or her period of eligibility...
as a freshman at Michigan in 2005, while Ryan ranked last in the Big Ten for the 2005 season with a 38.3 yard average.
Entering the 2006 season for Michigan
2006 Michigan Wolverines football team
The 2006 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 2006 college football season. The team's head football coach was Lloyd Carr. The Wolverines came into the season with lower expectations than many Michigan teams of the previous few seasons, ranked #14...
, head coach
Head coach
A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches...
Lloyd Carr
Lloyd Carr
Lloyd H. Carr is a former American football player and coach. He served as the head coach at the University of Michigan from 1995 through the 2007 season. Under Carr, the Wolverines compiled a record of 122–40 and won or shared five Big Ten Conference titles...
could not decide between Mesko and Ryan. In the team's opening game against Vanderbilt
2006 Vanderbilt Commodores football team
The 2006 Vanderbilt Commodores football team represented Vanderbilt University during the 2006 college football season. The team's head coach was Bobby Johnson, who served his fifth year as the Commodores' head coach. Members of the Southeastern Conference , the Commodores played their home games...
, Mesko punted three times and Ryan once. The two shared the kicking duties for the first four games with Mesko recording 12 punts and Ryan recording 9. In the fifth game of the season, against the Minnesota Golden Gophers
2006 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team
The 2006 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team represented the University of Minnesota in the college football season of 2006-2007. Coached by Glen Mason, the Gophers played their home games at the Metrodome in Minneapolis, Minnesota, as they had since Memorial Stadium closed after the 1981...
for the Little Brown Jug
Little Brown Jug (football)
The Little Brown Jug is an earthenware jug that serves as a trophy awarded to the winner of the American college football rivalry game played annually by the Minnesota Golden Gophers football team of the university of Minnesota and the Michigan Wolverines football team of the University of Michigan...
, Mesko handled all of the punting duties. Ryan punted only five more times the rest of the season. Mesko finished the season fourth in the Big Ten and 38th in the nation in punting average. Mesko earned Academic All-Big Ten Conference recognition for earning a letter while maintaining a 3.0 average during the fall.
Prior to the 2007 season
2007 NCAA Division I FBS football season
The 2007 NCAA Division I FBS football season, or the college football season, began on August 30, 2007, progressed through the regular season and bowl season, and concluded with the Bowl Championship Series National Championship Game in New Orleans, Louisiana on January 7, 2008, where the top...
, Mesko adjusted his kicking technique to a straight motion instead of a cross-over like National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
punters. He was a preseason Ray Guy Award watchlist nominee. After Rivas graduated, the 2007 Michigan Wolverines football team
2007 Michigan Wolverines football team
The 2007 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 2007 college football season. This was Lloyd Carr's final season as Michigan head coach. The 2007 season began with a stunning loss to Appalachian State, but the Wolverines won eight straight games after...
had a battle for the placekicking duties for the 2007 season between redshirt freshman Bryan Wright and two walk-ons. When the team had two fourth quarter field goal attempts blocked during their season-opening 34–32 loss
2007 Appalachian State vs. Michigan football game
The 2007 Appalachian State-Michigan game was a college football game held on September 1 at Michigan Stadium on the campus of the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan. It pitted the #5 ranked Michigan Wolverines against the two-time defending champions of the Division I FCS, the...
to the two-time defending FCS champion Appalachian State Mountaineers
2007 Appalachian State Mountaineers football team
The 2007 Appalachian State Mountaineers football team represented Appalachian State University in the college football season of 2007–2008. The team was coached by Jerry Moore and the Mountaineers played their home games at Kidd Brewer Stadium in Boone, North Carolina.The football team competes in...
, Mesko was an uninvolved third stringer but handled punting duties. Mesko finished the season fifth in the Big Ten in punting average, and was again Academic All-Conference.
Rich Rodriguez era
When Rich RodriguezRich Rodriguez
Richard A. "Rich" Rodriguez is an American football coach and former player. He is currently the head football coach at the University of Arizona. Rodriguez previously served as the head football coach at Salem University , Glenville State College , West Virginia University , and the University...
arrived to replace the retired Carr prior to the 2008 season
2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season
The 2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season, or the college football season, began on August 28, 2008, progressing through the regular season and bowl season, and concluded with the Bowl Championship Series National Championship Game in Miami Gardens, Florida on January 8, 2009, where the #2...
, he announced the Wolverines
2008 Michigan Wolverines football team
The 2008 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 2008 college football season. The team's head football coach was Rich Rodriguez. The Wolverines played their home games at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor, Michigan...
would be using a new punting formation along with the spread offense. Instead of using two gunner
Gunner (American football)
In American football, a gunner, also known as a shooter or kamikaze, is a player on kickoffs and punts who specializes in running down the sideline very quickly in an attempt to tackle the kick returner or the punt returner...
s, the team switched to using six, and Mesko switched to rolling out and using directional kicks. The plan called for a mixture of employing traditional pocket punts and roll out for rugby style ones. Mesko said the changes to the team were so drastic under Rodriguez that he felt like he had transferred. On all seven of his punts in the opening game against Utah
2008 Utah Utes football team
The 2008 Utah Utes football team represented the University of Utah in the college football season of 2008–2009. The team, coached by 4th year head football coach Kyle Whittingham, plays its home games in Rice–Eccles Stadium...
, Mesko rolled out to his left before punting. The new punt scheme was part of the option offense
Option offense
The option offense is a generic term that is used to describe a wide variety of offensive systems in American football. Option offenses are characterized as such due to the predominance of option running plays employed in these schemes. Option offenses have traditionally relied heavily upon running...
and could have resulted in a fake punt. In Michigan's third game against Notre Dame
2008 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team
The 2008 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team represented the University of Notre Dame in the 2008 college football season. The team's head football coach is Charlie Weis. The Irish play their home games at Notre Dame Stadium in Notre Dame, Indiana...
on September 13, Mesko executed an option run
Option run
The option run or option is a designed play in American football and Canadian football. In the simplest version of this play, the quarterback receives the ball and runs either to the right or left, accompanied by an additional offensive player...
for 13 yards and a first down. Mesko also executed a seven-yard option run for a first down against Minnesota
2008 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team
The 2008 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team was the second under head coach Tim Brewster. They began play on August 30, 2008 at home against Northern Illinois from the Mid-American Conference, and finished the regular season against Iowa, on November 22. It was the Golden Gophers' final...
on November 8 in the Little Brown Jug game. Mesko had a couple of punts blocked during the season, and one was returned for a touchdown during the Michigan – Ohio State game. During the season, Mesko served as K.C. Lopata's holder
Holder (American football)
In American football the holder is the player who receives the snap during field goal and extra point attempts made by place kick. The holder is usually positioned between seven and eight yards behind the line of scrimmage. The holder kneels down and places the hand farthest from the line of...
on placekicks. Mesko repeated a Guy Award watchlist candidate in 2008. After the list was narrowed from fifty to ten, Mesko was a semifinalist for the award. Mesko led the Big Ten in punting average and finished twentieth in the nation. He was named to the Big Ten All Conference First-Team in 2008. He was recognized by Phil Steele
Phil Steele
Phil Steele is an American sportswriter and analyst who focuses exclusively on college and professional football. He currently writes a column for the Orlando Sentinel, and is considered a "highly respected prognosticator" within the sports media...
as a fourth team All-American for 2008. Mesko was Academic All-Conference for a third time. At the conclusion of the 2008–09 academic year, the inaugural class of Big Ten Distinguished Scholars was recognized for having attained a 3.7 GPA for the academic year while earning varsity letters, and Mesko was among the honorees.
As a senior, Mesko entered the 2009 NCAA Division I FBS football season
2009 NCAA Division I FBS football season
The 2009 NCAA Division I FBS football season, or the college football season, began on September 2, 2009, progressed through the regular season and bowl season, and concluded with the Bowl Championship Series National Championship Game in Pasadena, California on January 7, 2010, featuring the...
opener with the most career starts (38) on the 2009 Michigan Wolverines football team
2009 Michigan Wolverines football team
The 2009 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 2009 college football season. They played their home games at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor, Michigan and competed in the Big Ten Conference...
. He served as the first special teams performer to be captain
Captain (sports)
In team sports, a captain is a title given to a member of the team. The title is frequently honorary, but in some cases the captain may have significant responsibility for strategy and teamwork while the game is in progress on the field...
in the 130-year history of Michigan football. In 2009, Mesko was again a Guy Award watchlist candidate for the Wolverines. He was also a pre-season Playboy
Playboy
Playboy is an American men's magazine that features photographs of nude women as well as journalism and fiction. It was founded in Chicago in 1953 by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from Hefner's mother. The magazine has grown into Playboy Enterprises, Inc., with...
All-American and NationalChamps.net first-team All-American. On October 11, 2009, he was named Big Ten Conference special teams player of the week for averaging 53.8 yards on five punts at Iowa
2009 Iowa Hawkeyes football team
The 2009 Iowa Hawkeyes football team represented the University of Iowa and the Iowa Hawkeyes athletic program during the 2009 college football season. The team played its home games at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City, Iowa. 2009 marked Kirk Ferentz's 11th year as head coach of Iowa...
. He was a 2009 Allstate
Allstate
The Allstate Corporation is the second-largest personal lines insurer in the United States and the largest that is publicly held. The company also has personal lines insurance operations in Canada. Allstate was founded in 1931 as part of Sears, Roebuck and Co., and was spun off in 1993...
Good Works Team honoree for his outstanding civic contributions to the local community and a 2009 Lowe's
Lowe's
Lowe's Companies, Inc. is a U.S.-based chain of retail home improvement and appliance stores. Founded in 1946 in North Wilkesboro, North Carolina, the chain now serves more than 14 million customers a week in its 1,710 stores in the United States and 20 in Canada. Expansion into Canada began in...
Senior Class Award Finalist for classroom, community, character and competition excellence. At the midpoint in the Wolverines' Big Ten schedule, Mesko ranked fifth in the nation and first in the Big Ten in punting average. In November, Mesko was named a one of 10 semifinalists for the Ray Guy Award and one of 12 finalists for the Wuerffel Trophy
Wuerffel Trophy
The Wuerffel Trophy is an award given annually by the All Sports Association of Fort Walton Beach, Florida to the college football player "who best combines exemplary community service with athletic and academic achievement." It is named for Heisman Trophy winner Danny Wuerffel, a former football...
. In eight conference games Mesko averaged 45.2 yards/punt, which was the first time a Michigan punter led the Big Ten in Conference game punting average since Paul Staroba
Paul Staroba
Paul Louis Staroba is a retired American football wide receiver and punter who played in the National Football League for the Green Bay Packers and the Cleveland Browns. He had previously played for the Michigan Wolverines football team. Paul attended St...
in 1970. Although the team played twelve games, Mesko only accumulated stats in eleven since the team did not punt a single time in its October 17, 63–6 victory against the . He was selected by both the coaches and the media to the first-team All-Big Ten Conference team. Mesko was named one of three finalists for the Ray Guy Award along with Drew Butler
Drew Butler
Drew Butler is an American football punter in his junior year for the 2011 Georgia Bulldogs. He is the son of Kevin Butler. Butler led the nation in punting average for the 2009 NCAA Division I FBS football season. He was a unanimous first team selection to the 2009 College Football All-America...
and Chaz Henry. Mesko was honored as a fall term of the 2009-10 Academic All-Conference selection. He was also one of fifteen Football Bowl Subdivision athletes and six Big Ten athletes selected as a first-team Academic All-American. He was the second-team All-American punter selection by the Walter Camp Football Foundation
Walter Camp Football Foundation
The Walter Camp Football Foundation is one of the organizations whose College Football All-America Team is recognized by the NCAA. The organization also presents various awards.-Awards:*Walter Camp Player of the Year*CT Player of the Year...
, the Associated Press
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
, Scout.com
Scout.com
Scout.com is an integrated sports publishing company that produces both an Internet and print product. Scout has more than 2.1 million visitors...
, and Rivals.com
Rivals.com
Rivals.com is a network of websites that focus mainly on college football and basketball recruiting. The network was started in 1996 and currently employs more than 300 personnel.-Schools:The individual collegiate sites can be found...
. He was an honorable mention All-American by Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...
, Pro Football Weekly
Pro Football Weekly
Pro Football Weekly is an American sports magazine, founded in 1967, that covers the National Football League...
, and College Football News
College Football News
College Football News is a magazine and website published by College Football News, Inc., headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. News coverage includes scores, statistics, rankings, and reports on college football games. Analysis includes comparisons between teams, predictions of game outcomes and...
. He finished the season ranked eighth in the nation and first in the Big Ten in punting average. On December 31, 2009, he one of 22 players recognized as a member of the Allstate AFCA
American Football Coaches Association
The American Football Coaches Association is an association of over 11,000 football coaches and staff on all levels. According to its constitution, some of the main goals of the American Football Coaches Association are to "maintain the highest possible standards in football and the profession of...
Good Works Team, which rewards public service and volunteer work.
Mesko is Michigan's career leader in punts and punting yardage and is second only to Monte Robbins in punting average. He is also the Michigan single-season punts (80) and punting yards (3436) record holder. Mesko ranks ninth all-time in career punts and seventh in punting yardage in Big Ten Conference history. At the close of his collegiate career, Mesko was rated the number one punter prospect for the 2010 NFL draft by Scouts.com.
Statistics
| Punting | ||||||
| Season | Team | GP | Punts | Avg | Long | Yds |
| 2006 | Michigan 2006 Michigan Wolverines football team The 2006 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 2006 college football season. The team's head football coach was Lloyd Carr. The Wolverines came into the season with lower expectations than many Michigan teams of the previous few seasons, ranked #14... |
13 | 50 | 41.6 | 64 | 2,079 |
| 2007 2007 NCAA Division I FBS football season The 2007 NCAA Division I FBS football season, or the college football season, began on August 30, 2007, progressed through the regular season and bowl season, and concluded with the Bowl Championship Series National Championship Game in New Orleans, Louisiana on January 7, 2008, where the top... |
Michigan 2007 Michigan Wolverines football team The 2007 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 2007 college football season. This was Lloyd Carr's final season as Michigan head coach. The 2007 season began with a stunning loss to Appalachian State, but the Wolverines won eight straight games after... |
13 | 70 | 41.1 | 68 | 2,876 |
| 2008 2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season The 2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season, or the college football season, began on August 28, 2008, progressing through the regular season and bowl season, and concluded with the Bowl Championship Series National Championship Game in Miami Gardens, Florida on January 8, 2009, where the #2... |
Michigan 2008 Michigan Wolverines football team The 2008 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 2008 college football season. The team's head football coach was Rich Rodriguez. The Wolverines played their home games at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor, Michigan... |
12 | 80 | 43.0 | 63 | 3,436 |
| 2009 2009 NCAA Division I FBS football season The 2009 NCAA Division I FBS football season, or the college football season, began on September 2, 2009, progressed through the regular season and bowl season, and concluded with the Bowl Championship Series National Championship Game in Pasadena, California on January 7, 2010, featuring the... |
Michigan 2009 Michigan Wolverines football team The 2009 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 2009 college football season. They played their home games at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor, Michigan and competed in the Big Ten Conference... |
12 | 52 | 44.5 | 66 | 2,312 |
| Career totals | 50 | 252 | 42.5 | 68 | 10,703 | |
Pre-draft
Mesko ranked second among all specialists at the NFL CombineNFL Combine
The National Invitational Camp or NFL Scouting Combine, as it is more widely known, is a week-long showcase, occurring every February in Indianapolis, Indiana's Lucas Oil Stadium , where college football players perform physical and mental tests in front of National Football League coaches, general...
with 16 repetitions on the bench press
Bench press
The bench press is an exercise of the upper body. For bodybuilding purposes, it is used to stimulate the pectorals, deltoids, and triceps. While on his or her back, the person performing the bench press lowers a weight to the level of the chest, then pushes it back up until the arm is straight...
.
2010 season
Mesko was drafted by the New England PatriotsNew England Patriots
The New England Patriots, commonly called the "Pats", are a professional football team based in the Greater Boston area, playing their home games in the town of Foxborough, Massachusetts at Gillette Stadium. The team is part of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National...
in the fifth round (150th overall) of the 2010 NFL Draft
2010 NFL Draft
The 2010 NFL Draft was the 75th annual meeting of National Football League franchises to select newly eligible football players. Unlike previous years, the 2010 draft took place over three days, at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, with the first round on Thursday, April 22, 2010, at 7:30 pm...
. He was the first punter or placekicker
Placekicker
Placekicker, or simply kicker , is the title of the player in American and Canadian football who is responsible for the kicking duties of field goals, extra points...
drafted and the second Wolverine drafted (Graham
Brandon Graham (American football)
Brandon Lee Graham is an American football defensive end for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League . He was drafted by the Eagles in the first round of the 2010 NFL Draft with the thirteenth selection in the draft and the first from the Big Ten Conference...
was the first) in the 2010 draft. He signed a four-year contract on June 16, 2010.
In Week 6 of his rookie season, Mesko set a season-long with a 65-yard punt in overtime that gave the Baltimore Ravens
Baltimore Ravens
The Baltimore Ravens are a professional football franchise based in Baltimore, Maryland.The Baltimore Ravens are officially a quasi-expansion franchise, having originated in 1995 with the Cleveland Browns relocation controversy after Art Modell, then owner of the Cleveland Browns, announced his...
the ball at their own 19-yard line. The Ravens would not convert a first down, punting back to the Patriots who scored to win the game on the ensuing drive.
The 2010 Patriots were the seventh-highest scoring team in NFL history; as a result, Mesko punted just 58 times, 26th in the league. Of those punts, 19 were downed inside the 20, while 5 were touchbacks. Mesko finished his rookie season with a gross average of 43.2 yards, and net average of 38.4 yards, the highest net average for a rookie in NFL history. During the 2011 NFL Lockout
2011 NFL lockout
The 2011 National Football League lockout was a lockout that lasted from March 11 to July 25. It occurred primarily during the offseason for 18 weeks and 4 days...
, Mesko, a finance and marketing major in college, interned as a private equity
Private equity
Private equity, in finance, is an asset class consisting of equity securities in operating companies that are not publicly traded on a stock exchange....
analyst with Graham Partners in Philadelphia.
Personal
In the mid-1990s, his parents, Michael and Elisabeth Mesko, were highly educated engineers in RomaniaRomania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
. The family supplemented its income selling homemade clothes in the market. His father was also a professional nine-pin
Nine-pin bowling
Nine-pin bowling is a bowling game played primarily in Europe. European championships are held each year. Over 90,000 members are on teams in Germany, often playing in officially registered Bundeskegelbahnen to be found in almost every sizable town...
bowler
Bowling
Bowling Bowling Bowling (1375–1425; late Middle English bowle, variant of boule Bowling (1375–1425; late Middle English bowle, variant of boule...
. On May 8, 1997, when Zoltan was 11, his family moved from his native Romania after Michael Mesko won a United States Permanent Resident Card
United States Permanent Resident Card
United States lawful permanent residency refers to a person's immigration status: the person is authorized to live and work in the United States of America on a permanent basis....
(green card) in the Diversity Immigrant Visa
Diversity Immigrant Visa
The Diversity Immigrant Visa program is a United States congressionally mandated lottery program for receiving a United States Permanent Resident Card. It is also known as the Green Card Lottery. The lottery is administered on an annual basis by the Department of State and conducted under the terms...
lottery for the single child family to move to the United States. The Meskos now have jobs that pay well. The family spent the first year and half in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
before moving to Ohio for better jobs. Zoltan speaks Romanian
Romanian language
Romanian Romanian Romanian (or Daco-Romanian; obsolete spellings Rumanian, Roumanian; self-designation: română, limba română ("the Romanian language") or românește (lit. "in Romanian") is a Romance language spoken by around 24 to 28 million people, primarily in Romania and Moldova...
, Hungarian
Hungarian language
Hungarian is a Uralic language, part of the Ugric group. With some 14 million speakers, it is one of the most widely spoken non-Indo-European languages in Europe....
, German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
and English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
and is conversant in Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
. He learned to speak English by watching television. He was schooled at a German school in Timişoara, which was then Romania's second-largest city. His parents taught him Hungarian and he spoke Romanian with his friends.
Mesko completed a Bachelor of Business Administration
Bachelor of Business Administration
The Bachelor of Business Administration is a bachelor's degree in Commerce and business administration. In most universities, the degree is conferred upon a student after four years of full-time study in one or more areas of business concentrations; see below...
in finance
Finance
"Finance" is often defined simply as the management of money or “funds” management Modern finance, however, is a family of business activity that includes the origination, marketing, and management of cash and money surrogates through a variety of capital accounts, instruments, and markets created...
and marketing
Marketing
Marketing is the process used to determine what products or services may be of interest to customers, and the strategy to use in sales, communications and business development. It generates the strategy that underlies sales techniques, business communication, and business developments...
from the University of Michigan's Ross School of Business
Ross School of Business
The Stephen M. Ross School of Business is the business school of the University of Michigan. Numerous publications have ranked the Ross School of Business' Bachelor of Business Administration , Master of Business Administration and Executive Education programs among the top in the country and the...
in 2009. He completed a master's degree
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
in sports management from the University of Michigan School of Kinesiology
University of Michigan School of Kinesiology
The University of Michigan School of Kinesiology commonly referred to as just Kinesiology or Kines is the University of Michigan Ann Arbor's School of Kinesiology, offering undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral degrees. In December 2008 it officially became a school, previously being a division...
in April 2010.
External links
- Profile (NFL) at ESPN.comESPN.comESPN.com is the official website of ESPN and a division of ESPN Inc. Since launching in 1995 as ESPNet.SportsZone.com, the website has developed numerous sections including: Page 2, SportsNation, ESPN 3.com, ESPN Motion, My ESPN, ESPN Sports Travel, ESPN Video Games, ESPN Insider, ESPN.com's...
- Michigan Wolverines bio
- New England Patriots bio
- Profile (college) at ESPN.comESPN.comESPN.com is the official website of ESPN and a division of ESPN Inc. Since launching in 1995 as ESPNet.SportsZone.com, the website has developed numerous sections including: Page 2, SportsNation, ESPN 3.com, ESPN Motion, My ESPN, ESPN Sports Travel, ESPN Video Games, ESPN Insider, ESPN.com's...
- Profile at CBS SportsCBS SportsCBS Sports is a division of CBS Broadcasting which airs sporting events on the American television network. Its headquarters are in the CBS Building on West 52nd Street in midtown Manhattan, New York City, with programs produced out of Studio 43 at the CBS Broadcast Center on West 57th Street.CBS...
- Profile at Rivals.comRivals.comRivals.com is a network of websites that focus mainly on college football and basketball recruiting. The network was started in 1996 and currently employs more than 300 personnel.-Schools:The individual collegiate sites can be found...
- Stats at NCAA.orgNational Collegiate Athletic AssociationThe National Collegiate Athletic Association is a semi-voluntary association of 1,281 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletic programs of many colleges and universities in the United States...
- Candidate profile for Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award
- Mesko archive at AnnArbor.comAnnArbor.comAnnArbor.com is an online newspaper that covers local news of Ann Arbor, Michigan and the surrounding Washtenaw County, Michigan.- Overview :...