Saints new punter Lou Hedley is an oddball: Here's 5 things you may not know about him

Saints new punter Lou Hedley is an oddball: Here's 5 things you may not know about him
Punter from Australia Lou Hedley (39) participates in the New Orleans Saints Rookie Minicamp at the Saints Practice Facility in Metairie, Saturday, May 13, 2023.(Photo by Sophia Germer, NOLA.com, The Times-Picayune)
When the New Orleans Saints made their decision Tuesday to keep Lou Hedley on their 53-man active roster instead of incumbent starter Blake Gillikin, it did more than hand an important job to an undrafted rookie.
The Saints also put the spotlight on one of the NFL's most interesting men, whom they originally signed in April.
Here are five things you may not know about Lou Hedley, the tattooed Aussie who has come from around the world — figuratively and literally — to boot footballs in New Orleans.
1. He grew up in a town of 351 people in Western Australia.
To most Americans, the idea of Australia is remote enough. But Hedley comes from western Australia, thousands of miles away from the population centers of Sydney and Melbourne and even about three hours north from Perth, the major western Australian city. It's a town called Leeman, which wasn't even surveyed until 1961 and is sometimes just called Snag Island for the small piece of land just off the coast.
While he was still young, Hedley's father took a job in Perth, giving him an opportunity to play Aussie Rules Football.
2. His first professional job? A scaffolder.
Hedley told Bleacher Report in 2019 that with his academics slipping, he dropped out of high school and began work as a scaffolder, working on various structures high above the ground across Australia's western coast.
"I pretty much lived in a harness way off the ground for seven years of my life," Hedley said to Bleacher Report. "It was all good fun, and it allowed me to stay fit while I worked. Plus, it was great money and I didn't have time to spend any of it."
3. He once owned a tattoo shop in Bali, Indonesia, and his body is covered in art.
And it gets good reviews. According to that Bleacher Report profile, Hedley went in with a friend to buy Rosemarrie Tattoo Bali in Indonesia, but not so much as a way to strike it rich — he just wanted to be around body art.
That's obvious, of course, to anyone who has seen a photo of Hedley, who has nearly every inch of exposed skin covered by tattoos. Some are personal, some are visionary and some are just plain weird.
4. He's received multiple shout-outs from The Rock on social media.
Hedley's interest eventually turned to American football, a sport he'd been told to try after impressing as a fullback in the Aussie version. He eventually attended some camps and landed at City College of San Francisco, alma mater of Danny Glover and O.J. Simpson, among others.
He averaged just 38.6 yards per punt during the 2017 season at CCSF, but he caught the eye of recruiters and signed to play the 2019 season at Miami. He wore No. 94 in honor of Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, who was a defensive lineman with that number for the Hurricanes in the 1990s.
Thanks for rockin’ my #94 @LouHedleyy.
Look forward to that workout one day. In the meantime, welcome to the U, keep disrupting and always be the hardest worker in the (MF’n) room. #TheU #94 💪🏾👊🏾 https://t.co/X1Ky1X4eFU
— Dwayne Johnson (@TheRock) April 5, 2019
After he made the Saints roster Tuesday, The Rock gave a second shout-out on social media, saying he'd be rooting for Hedley in New Orleans.
Rooting for this guy to make it 👏🏾👏🏾
Love Lou Hedley’s story and his hunger. #theU #94 @NFL @Saints https://t.co/GbqmjJQ4XV
— Dwayne Johnson (@TheRock) August 30, 2023
5. He stands to be one of the oldest rookies in NFL history.
Only a few NFL players have been over 30 years old on their debut, starting with Eagles quarterback Otis Douglas, who was a 35-year-old rookie in 1946. More recently, another Australian punter, Ben Graham, debuted at age 31 in 2006 for the New York Jets (and later played one game for the Saints).
Hedley turned 30 on June 26, so he'd be on a short list of 30-somethings to make an NFL debut if he plays against the Tennessee Titans on Sept. 10.
The crazy part? Hedley could be making his debut even later in life. Because of the extra year of eligibility the NCAA granted every athlete who participated in the COVID-affected 2019-20 school year, Hedley actually left Miami early to try out for NFL teams this spring.