CONCORD, NH – Football season is underway, and the New Hampshire Lottery is kicking off the season with a special opportunity for Granite State high school football kickers to get a leg up alongside New England Patriots legend Stephen Gostkowski.

Three high school players will have a chance to win up to $2,500 for their school—not to mention bragging rights for showing their stuff alongside one of the NFL’s best ever—in a kick-off with Gostkowski at halftime of the Saint Anselm-Southern Connecticut game on Saturday, Sept. 28. Kickoff is at 1 pm at Grappone Stadium in Manchester. The special event will showcase the New Hampshire Lottery’s new $5 Patriots scratch ticket and the new e-Instant Patriots Expander game, both of which feature top prizes of $100,000.

To nominate a kicker, participants submitted a player’s name and high school in the comments section of the New Hampshire Lottery’s Facebook page. With nearly 420 nominations, three lucky winners—Mckenna Kelly of Goffstown High School; Brayden French of Keene High School; and Justus VonStrotha of John Stark Regional High School—were chosen at random to kick alongside Gostkowski during Saturday’s game and represent their schools.

“Not many people know more about winning than Stephen Gostkowski—he’s got three Super Bowl rings to prove it,” said Charlie McIntyre, executive director, New Hampshire Lottery. “The New Hampshire Lottery is all about winning, too, and that’s why our partnership with the Patriots is a great match: our loyal customers are devoted to the Patriots and they love playing the $5 Patriots scratch ticket and the new e-Instant game, Patriots Expander. All of us at the New Hampshire Lottery wish our Patriots good luck this season."

The $5 Patriots Scratch Ticket went on sale statewide on Tuesday, Aug. 26. Along with four $100,000 grand prizes, the game features the opportunity to enter a series of second-chance drawings to win Patriots game day ticket packages. Other cash prizes range from $5 to $1,000. The New Hampshire Lottery first offered a New England Patriots-themed scratch ticket in 2012.

New this season, the Patriots Expander e-instant game went on sale on August 21, 2024. The top prize in this game is $100,000.

Gostkowski is the Patriots’ all-time leading scorer, with 1,775 points on 374 field goals and 653 points after touchdowns over 14 seasons with the team. He retired in 2022, holding the NFL record for most consecutive points after touchdowns.