South Dakota
How a ‘South Dakota kid’ became one of only three kickers to reach football immortality
Karen Guregian’s football analysis is sponsored by Jeffrey Glassman Injury Lawyers, a Leading Boston Personal Injury Firm.
SAN FRANCISCO – Adam Vinatieri, the man with ice water in his veins with the game on the line, the kicker who chased down All-American sprinter Hershel Walker, said he was a bit nervous heading onto the stage to join this exclusive club.
Hearing his name, learning that he was headed to the shrine that honors the NFL’s very best, brought Vinatieri, arguably the greatest kicker of All-Time, to tears.
After getting a disappointing call last year and learning he wasn’t getting his ticket to Canton, the Patriots legendary kicker wasn’t sure how to feel this time around when he was a finalist for the 2026 Pro Football Hall of Fame class.
“So this year my expectations, I try not to have any, you know, I really was sitting there going, well, maybe it happens, maybe it doesn’t,” Vinatieri said. “Just being nominated and being in the finals with these guys, I look at that list and I go, ‘My gosh, how do you cut that down to 4 or 5 guys because it’s it’s a pretty amazing list?’
“So when I got the knock on the door. I will be the first one to admit I got teary eyed, and choked ‘em back a little bit because, just because of what it means, you know?”
It hit Vinatieri, especially after hearing his name announced with fellow inductees Drew Brees, Larry Fitzgerald, Luke Kuechly, and Roger Craig. He said it was all incredibly “surreal” the wave of emotions he felt Thursday night during the NFL Honors ceremony.
“Even when the Hall of Famers came up and shook our hands and said congratulations, you know, joining the club, I mean, there’s just no feeling like that,” Vinatieri said after the Hall of Famers were announced.
The former Patriot, whose career spanned more than two decades, joins just two other full-time kickers, Morten Anderson and Jan Stenerud, in the football shrine.
It was Anderson who knocked at his door to inform him he had been voted in during his second try.
“It’s a tough position to get in, but, yeah, you know, I never really thought about it too much while I was playing,” Vinatieri said. “I just wanted to keep on stacking, stacking stats, and it was never really about me and what I was doing.
“It was always about trying to help the team win games and how can we get to the playoffs and how can we get to another championship and all that stuff and then I guess once you’re done then you turn around and you look back on it and go that’s pretty awesome.”
Vinatieri started his career with the Patriots as an undrafted rookie of Bill Parcells. He was with the team for 10 seasons (19956-2005), before moving on with the Indianapolis Colts.
He was part of three Super Bowl winning teams with the Patriots, and one with the Colts.
“You know, with these guys, just to say you did it a long time and you did a pretty good job and got to put a couple exclamations on a couple of games was a wonderful experience for me,” he said, “but, those 10 years in New England, there was nothing like it … we built a dynasty, winning a bunch of Super Bowls in a short amount of time. That was a great, great experience for me, and one that I will cherish the rest of my life.”
Vinatieri is the NFL’s all-time leading scorer (2,673 points with an NFL record 599 field goals). He made 29 game-winning kicks in 24 seasons before retiring at age 48.
He will always be remembered for his 48-yard field goal in a blizzard in Foxboro during their first Super Bowl run in 2001, considered the greatest kick of all-time.
He’s now immortalized for all of his clutch game-winning kicks for two organizations.
“I’m just a South Dakota kid, right? I never thought I’d play very long,” he said. “I never thought I’d get, you know, to whatever. So at this point right now, I just pinch myself just thinking that I’m sitting up here with some of the greatest men to ever put a put a football uniform on and to be in the same class, to be, to be bound to these guys for the rest of my life. It’s just, it’s really, really humbling for me.”
South Dakota
SD Lottery Mega Millions, Millionaire for Life winning numbers for March 10, 2026
The South Dakota Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at March 10, 2026, results for each game:
Winning Mega Millions numbers from March 10 drawing
16-21-30-35-65, Mega Ball: 07
Check Mega Millions payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from March 10 drawing
03-27-43-45-49, Bonus: 04
Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your prize
- Prizes of $100 or less: Can be claimed at any South Dakota Lottery retailer.
- Prizes of $101 or more: Must be claimed from the Lottery. By mail, send a claim form and a signed winning ticket to the Lottery at 711 E. Wells Avenue, Pierre, SD 57501.
- Any jackpot-winning ticket for Dakota Cash or Lotto America, top prize-winning ticket for Lucky for Life, or for the second prizes for Powerball and Mega Millions must be presented in person at a Lottery office. A jackpot-winning Powerball or Mega Millions ticket must be presented in person at the Lottery office in Pierre.
When are the South Dakota Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 9:59 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 10 p.m. CT on Tuesday and Friday.
- Lucky for Life: 9:38 p.m. CT daily.
- Lotto America: 9:15 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Dakota Cash: 9 p.m. CT on Wednesday and Saturday.
- Millionaire for Life: 10:15 p.m. CT daily.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a South Dakota editor. You can send feedback using this form.
South Dakota
Trading property tax for sales tax: Legislature moves forward with parts of homeowner relief package
PIERRE — Two pieces of a property tax reduction package prepared by South Dakota’s legislative leadership and the executive branch are moving forward, but one bill failed during votes on Monday as lawmakers began the final week of the annual legislative session.
The House of Representatives voted
42-27
in support of
Senate Bill 245
, which would pull future revenue from a scheduled sales tax increase from 4.2% to 4.5% next year into a relief fund for homeowner property taxes, and use nearly $56 million in one-time money to seed the fund before the sales tax increase.
The Senate supported
House Bill 1323
, which would reduce the number of petition signatures needed to force an election on a local government’s decision to levy property taxes beyond limits set by the state. The Senate passed the bill 19-15.
Both bills have to return to the opposite chamber for consideration of amendments.
The Senate rejected
House Bill 1253
, which would cap annual assessment growth for owner-occupied homes and commercial properties at 5% annually and reset assessments back to market value every five years. The bill failed with a 9-24 vote.
The bills are part of a broader,
five-bill legislative package
targeted at property tax relief.
Another bill
in the package, which would allow counties to implement a half-percent sales tax with proceeds going to homeowner property tax credits, is awaiting the governor’s signature after he proposed it and it received both chambers’ approval.
The legislative budget committee is scheduled to consider a fifth piece of legislation in the package on Tuesday.
The bill
would reduce maximum property tax levies for school districts.
Sales tax bill overcomes concerns about future budget needs
SB 245 would capture revenue from the impending sales tax increase to deposit into a “homeowner property tax reduction fund” meant to reduce property taxes levied by school districts. The Legislature and then-Gov. Kristi Noem reduced the state sales tax rate three years ago but scheduled the reduction to sunset in 2027.
House Speaker Jon Hansen, R-Dell Rapids, told lawmakers on Monday that the bill would be an “investment in the people,” because it’ll give South Dakota homeowners more money to spend as they choose. Hansen, the bill’s sponsor and a candidate for governor, said that would lead to more spending and, therefore, more sales tax revenue. The state relies on sales taxes, while counties and schools rely on property taxes, and cities receive revenue from property taxes and sales taxes.
Some opponents said the legislation would favor wealthier, property-owning South Dakotans rather than lower-income renters.
(Photo by Makenzie Huber/South Dakota Searchlight)
Rep. Mike Weisgram, R-Fort Pierre, worried that automatically diverting future state revenue to reduce homeowner property taxes would come at the cost of other priorities, such as annual funding increases for state employees, Medicaid providers and public schools — which are known as the “big three” budget priorities. Lawmakers often
aim
to increase funding for the groups by 3% or inflation, whichever is less. An inflationary increase this legislative session would be 2.5%, according to the state Department of Education.
“We are just clawing to get 1.4% for the big three,” Weisgram said. “I don’t think any of us are proud of that.”
Hansen said the decision “is not an either-or” situation.
“We can help the property taxpayers in the state who desperately, desperately need it,” Hansen said, “and then I trust fully that this state is going to continue to grow and that we are going to be able to meet the needs of our core obligations of this state.”
The bill was introduced as an amendment to placeholder legislation last week, and it will head to the Senate for approval. The Senate narrowly rejected a
similar proposal
earlier this legislative session.
Senate approves lower signature threshold to force election on excess taxes
The version of House Bill 1323 that passed the Senate would set the number of petition signatures needed to force an election on an excess tax levy (often called an “opt-out”) for a local government at 2,500 or 5% of registered voters within its jurisdiction, whichever is less. The current threshold to refer decisions by a local government is 5% of registered voters in the district, without a 2,500 signature cap.
The bill’s sponsor, Sen. Taffy Howard, R-Rapid City, said it will still be difficult to refer decisions by a local government to voters.
“You’re talking dozens and dozens of volunteers, weeks of organized effort,” Howard said. “There’s not a lot of people that have been through that and can even organize that kind of effort. So it’s not a trivial bar.”
Because the bill was amended since it last appeared in the House, it’ll now go to the House for approval.
HB 1253 intended to provide South Dakota homeowners and commercial property owners predictable increases in their property assessments, which factor into property taxes they pay, over five year periods.
But opponents said the change would shift the property tax burden onto farmers and ranchers and surprise homeowners every five years when assessments would be re-based on market value, which could lead to double-digit increases in assessments.
This story was originally published on
SouthDakotaSearchlight.com.
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South Dakota
Political Pulse: South Dakota Senate Majority Leader Jim Mehlhaff on data centers, property taxes and more
RAPID CITY, S.D. (KOTA) – State Senate Majority Leader Jim Mehlhaff joined Political Pulse over the weekend.
Mehlhaff weighed in on property tax proposals, data centers, and effort to repeal the death penalty and speculation that Kristi Noem could run for Senate.
The interviewed was taped on Saturday.
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