Alan Pringle

Alan Keith Pringle (born January 20, 1952) is a Venezuelan-born former American football placekicker who played one game in the National Football League (NFL) for the Detroit Lions. Born in Venezuela, he played college football for the Rice Owls and was also a member of the Houston Oilers and New England Patriots. Early and personal life Pringle was born on January 20, 1952, in Los Taques, Venezuela, and spent his early years in Caracas. His parents were from England. He later moved to England, where he attended Rugby High School. He grew up playing soccer and rugby. Pringle is, along with fellow placekicker Pat Ragusa, José Borregales, and Andrés Borregales, one of only four Venezuelan-born National Football League (NFL) players. Pringle married Ann Dillard in 1974.

College career Pringle later moved to the United States to attend Rice University. He was invited to tryout for the team and "was shown a football and told to kick it through the uprights." He recalled "That was on a Tuesday. On Thursday I kicked for some more coaches and on Friday I was playing against Wharton Junior College in a JV game."

Pringle made the varsity team for the 1971 season but was dismissed from the team early on for disciplinary reasons. By that point, he had made all five extra point attempts and tied the school record with a 48-yard field goal. He made two field goals in a preseason game against the New Orleans Saints and finished the preseason having made three of five field goal attempts. He was released by the Oilers prior to the regular season, on September 2, 1975. He then tried out with the Detroit Lions and was signed by them on September 11. The Lions signed him to be a kickoff specialist, as they already had Errol Mann for field goals and extra points. Pringle appeared for the Lions in the season opener, against the Green Bay Packers, but was unable to consistently kick to the end zone and was released following the game on September 22. Pringle later signed with the New England Patriots on April 12, 1976, but was released on July 30, ending his professional career.