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An arm and a leg

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BY KLINT LOWRY

THE SUNCOAST NEWS

Published: October 25, 2008

There's no telling at this point if the Tampa Bay Buccaneers will be able to clinch a trip to the NFL playoffs when they host the New Orleans Saints on Nov. 30 at Raymond James Stadium.

River Ridge Middle School eighth-grader Zach Greenhut could clinch one for himself, though.

For the second straight year Zach has won in the first two levels of the annual NFL Pepsi Punt, Pass and Kick competition, and he's waiting to see if he'll be able to repeat the thrill he experienced last year and show off his skills on the field at Raymond James Stadium before a packed house.

Not bad for a guy who doesn't even get into games as a member of his school football team. But then, football has only recently gotten his interest, two years ago when he saw an ad in the newspaper for the Punt, Pass and Kick competition. Even though he had only played sandlot football with friends up until that point, he decided to give it a go.

"I've been playing baseball since I was 5, so I got the throwing from that," Zach said. "And the punting and kicking, I got that from soccer."

Of the three skills, he's most confident in his throwing. It just took a little practice to adapt to the mechanics of throwing a football as opposed to a baseball.

"He's always had the arm," Zach's dad, Tom Greenhut, said. "He had it back in the Little League days. He's athletic; he hasn't quite caught up to his body yet, in terms of agility and things like that. He's always had a knack."

Zach proved that last year when, just by practicing with his dad and with his friends, he came within one step at a shot at the national finals in the 12- and 13-year-old division.

The Punt, Pass and Kick competition has been around since 1961. The competition is open for ages 8-15. Today, there are four age divisions each for boys and girls.

Participants compete in all three skills, and are scored on a combination of distance and accuracy. For instance, if a competitor throws a 100-foot pass that is 10 feet off to one side, 10 is subtracted from 100 for a score of 90. The scores from the punt, the pass and the kick are added together for competitors' total scores, which determine the winners.

Participants first compete at local-level competitions. The winners in each division move on to sectional level competitions. The scores of the winners at sectional competitions within a geographical area are compared. The five sectional champions in each division with the highest scores then go on to compete at what are called the team finals.

Team finals are held on each NFL team's home field as part of the pre-game festivities of a regular season game. The scores of the winners in each of the NFL's 32 teams will be compared. The competitors with the top four in each division nationwide will wear their team's home colors at the national finals, which are held at a divisional playoff game.

Zach made it to the team final last year in the boys' 12- and 13-year-old division. He has already won his sectional in that division this year and is waiting to see if his score will be enough to get him back on to the turf at Raymond James Stadium for another crack at the team title.

"It's kind of scary, having all those people watching me," he said.

Even more overwhelming was hearing that crowd all around him, reacting to his performance. The sound of the crowd is one of the most vivid memories of that day last year for Tom Greenhut, as well, combined with the look of Zach's mom, Sherri, "beaming" with pride

"It's a thrill, having 50,000 people applauding your son - you know what I'm saying?" Greenhut said.

If his sectional score holds up and he's in the team finals again, Zach thinks he'll have an advantage over some of the other competitors because he'll know what to expect when he takes the field.

Like most boys, Zach has dreamed of being a star athlete. His experience with NFL Punt, Pass & Kick has not only given him a tiny glimpse of the big time, it has already shown him that with work, he just might have the goods to make the dream a reality.

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