Ka'imi Fairbairn

Early life

Fairbairn was born in Kailua, Hawaii, to John and Rochelle Fairbairn. Since he was a kid, he has gone by the name Ka'imi, forgoing John Christian. In Hawaiian culture, his name means seeker of knowledge. "The meaning of your name is your life," Fairbairn said. "Hawaiians have a long ancestry. It's really meaningful for me to go by my Hawaiian name."

As a youngster, he was a kicker in football, but preferred catching the ball instead. He attended high school at Punahou High, where he was a two-sport star in football and soccer. Playing central defender in soccer, he was a two-time first-team all-state player, and the team won two state championships.

Fairbairn did not initially play football at Punahou. He did not envision a future in the sport, and tried out for water polo instead. After almost drowning, he realized he was not a proficient swimmer and returned to football. As a sophomore, Fairbairn was named second-team all-state, and he earned first-team all-state as a junior and senior. He was teammates with DeForest Buckner. Fairbairn was ranked nationally as the No. 4 recruit at kicker coming out of high school.

College career

Fairbairn won the kicking job at UCLA as a true freshman in 2012, and he became the first Bruin to score at least 100 points in each of his four seasons. His career got off to an inauspicious start when his first two extra points were blocked against Rice. He became a dependable kicker from close range, but struggled from distance. In the Pac-12 Championship Game that year, he missed a 52-yard field goal with 30 seconds remaining in a 27–24 loss to Stanford. With a wet field and a poor snap by Kevin McDermott, UCLA coach Jim Mora said: "We put [Fairbairn] in a tough situation there." In his junior year in 2014, UCLA was trailing Utah 30–28 when Fairbairn missed a 55-yard attempt as time expired. However, the Utes were penalized for running into the kicker, providing him a chance at a 50-yard field goal, which missed just wide right.

Entering 2015, the senior Fairbairn was 11 for 22 on field-goal tries of 40 yards or more. On October 3 against Arizona State, he made a 53-yard field goal, the first successful 50-plus yarder of his career after missing his first five. The kick cut the Sun Devils lead to 15–10 at the half, but the Bruins lost the game 38–23. In a 40–24 win over California on October 22, Fairbairn had a 55-yard make called off because UCLA was penalized for a false start. With seconds left in the first half, Mora was initially going to have the offense try a Hail Mary pass. However, Fairbairn was given another opportunity, which he converted for a UCLA record 60-yard field goal. It was the first 60-yard field goal in the Football Bowl Subdivision since 2012. On November 14, Fairbairn made four field goals against Washington State to set the Pac-12 record for most career points, breaking former Bruins kicker John Lee's previous mark of 390 (1982–1985).

He finished the regular season having made 20 of 23 field goal attempts, including a perfect 16 of 16 from inside 40 yards and four from beyond 40. Fairbairn was awarded the Lou Groza Award, given annually to the nation's top college kicker. He was a near unanimous first-team All-American, earning first-team honors from all the official selectors except Sporting News, who named him to their second team. However, he was only named second-team All-Pac-12. In the Foster Farms Bowl, he missed a 46-yard field goal in a 37–29 loss to Nebraska. His career ended with three straight misses, including previous failed attempts of 49 yards at Utah and 47 at USC.

Professional career

After not being selected in the 2016 NFL draft, Fairbairn signed with the Houston Texans. On August 30, 2016, Fairbairn was placed on injured reserve.