SOLON, Ohio — In Hunter Niswander's career, kicking is standard procedure. He was a standout at Woodridge High School, Northwestern, the Dallas Cowboys and now the United States Football League (USFL). But in his personal world, this pro kicker just had the punt of his life.
"Things started to progress pretty quickly once we realized, you know, the baby is coming," Hunter said.
"I was like, 'Okay, it kind of hurts now, but I'm gonna breathe through it and when I get to hospital it's gonna be all better. And then it got worse very quick," Hunter's wife, Corinne, said.
The couple jumped in the car and onto 422 West, headed for Hillcrest Hospital to deliver their second daughter. Then only 10 minutes into their 20-minute commute, it was clear they wouldn't make it.
"(Corinne) told me, she's like, 'You need to pull over now,'" Hunter said. "So it was pull over to the median and then I basically jumped out, sprinted around into the car and got to her and opened up the door."
Hunter dialed 911.
Dispatcher: "911, what's the location of your emergency?"
Hunter: "We're on the side of the highway ... my wife is having a baby!"
The situation then grows intense as Corinne experiences more pain.
"Help me! Help me!" Corinne said on the 911 call.
But Hunter knows how to be a good teammate. He can be heard encouraging his wife.
"You're doing amazing. I love you," Hunter said. "Push, push, push!"
Their baby girl is born, but there's a problem. They're not sure if she is breathing.
Dispatcher: "Is baby breathing?"
Corinne: "I don't know. I don't think so."
Hunter: "Breathe, baby, breathe!"
"Honestly in my head I was like, 'Please God, please God. Please let her be okay," Corinne said. "When she came out, I mean she came out blue, like completely blue. And then we realized that the cord was around her neck twice. So I quickly unwrapped it and Hunter was frantically searching for, luckily, our toddlers beanies and blankets."
Then, a great sign: The baby starts crying, and first responders from the Solon Fire Department show up to help.
Dispatcher: "I'm going to let you go, OK?"
Hunter: "OK."
Dispatcher: "Congratulations."
"So she and the baby ended up getting taken by EMS and they were amazing. They did an amazing job," Hunter said.
Now, Hunter, an Akron native, is the father of two healthy girls. Corinne doesn't take for granted the journey they took to get here.
"It's a miracle, but it's also like this dichotomy of like, wow. It could have been bad, but thank you, thank you, Jesus, that's it's not," Corinne said.
Their baby news was shared on social media by Sports Illustrated.
Hunter says everything happens for a reason.
"I think, in times of difficulty, or when you don't know what's gonna happen, I think for us it's leaning into our faith," he said.
He'll lean into his faith with his career, too. We asked him if he'd be rooting for the Browns Thursday night against the Jets.
"Yeah, of course. Yeah, of course. And also if the Browns wanted to bring me in, I mean, yeah. I'm 20 minutes away, so that'd be obviously ideal," Hunter said.
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