Garabed Sarkis "Garo" Yepremian is an Armenian-American former football placekicker in the National Football League for the Detroit Lions, Miami Dolphins, New Orleans Saints, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers during a career that spanned from 1966 to 1981. Yepremian was born in Larnaca, Cyprus to Armenian parents. On the island of Cyprus, his family did not have indoor plumbing and kept warm in winter by burning olive pits. Yepremian and his brother Krikor emigrated to the U.S. to set a foundation for their parents' arrival. At a loss for a viable life plan, Yepremian happened to watch a few minutes... of a football game on television. Yepremian told Krikor he knew the key to success in America: He believed he could kick field goals for a living. He began his pro career with the Michigan Arrows of the Continental Football League. After much practice in which Yepremian finally proved that he, indeed, might have the ability to kick, the brothers set off on a mission to convince NFL teams that Yepremian could be an American football star. The NFL didn't know what to make of the brothers and they were denied access to many practice facilities.
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