| James Turner | |
| Position: | Kicker |
| Birth Date: | 22 November 2000 |
| Birth Place: | Saline, Michigan, U.S. |
| Height Ft: | 6 |
| Height In: | 0 |
| Weight Lb: | 196 |
| High School: | Saline (Saline, Michigan) |
| College: | Louisville (2019–2022) Michigan (2023) |
| Undraftedyear: | 2024 |
| Pastteams: | |
| Highlights: |
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James Turner (born November 22, 2000) is an American football placekicker who is a free agent. He played college football for the Michigan Wolverines and the Louisville Cardinals. He was an all-conference selection in both the ACC and Big Ten, winning a national championship with Michigan in 2023.
Turner grew up in Saline, Michigan and attended Saline High School. As a senior, he went 12 for 12 on field goal attempts and 45 for 46 on extra point attempts. He also handled kickoffs, having 36 touchbacks on the year. Turner was named a first team all-state selection by The Detroit News.[1] He committed to play college football for the Louisville Cardinals as a preferred walk on.[2] [3]
Turner played four years at Louisville. In his freshman year he played in the final five games as the Cardinals' kickoff specialist and recorded four touchbacks.[1] Turner also played a role in Louisville's 2019 Music City Bowl, in which he recovered a fumble at the opposing 33 yard line.[4] In Turner's sophomore year, he played in 11 games, going 40 for 40 on extra point attempts and 13 for 15 on field goals. For his efforts he was named an All-Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) honorable mention.[5] [6] He was also named one of the 20 semifinalists for the 2020 Lou Groza Award.[7] In the 2021 season Turner started the year on the Lou Groza award watch list.[8] [9] Turner played in 12 games during the season, going 43 for 44 on his extra point attempts and 13 for 20 on field goals.[10] After the 2021 season he was awarded a scholarship.[11] Turner had his best season in 2022 in which he went 38 for 39 on extra points and 20 for 22 on field goal attempts. For his performance on the year he was named third-team All-ACC.[12] [13] In that some year on November 21, Turner was named the ACC Co-Specialist of the Week after tying a school record making four field goals in a 25–10 win over NC State[14] [15]
During his time at Louisville, Turner set multiple school records, finishing with the fourth most made field goals, the fifth most points, the fifth best field goal percentage, and the fifth most made extra points in Louisville history.[16]
On April 28, 2023, Turner announced via his Twitter that he transferred to the University of Michigan.[17] [18] [19] In his first season with the Wolverines, Turner was voted second-team All-Big Ten on the way to winning a national championship in 2023. He hit 18 out of 21 field goals for the season, including three that were 50 yards. Turner also set a Michigan single-season record with 65 converted point-after attempts (PATs).[20]
On April 28, Turner signed with the Detroit Lions as an undrafted free agent following the 2024 NFL draft.[21] [22] He was waived on June 18, 2024.[23]
On June 24, 2024, Turner was claimed off waivers by the Green Bay Packers.[24] On July 30, 2024, he was released.[25]