Punt, Pass, Kick

The fact that the National Football League (NFL) recently announced they had terminated ties to the Punt, Pass, and Kick (PPK) competition didn't slow the Malta Athletic Club or 84 children from Phillips County from participating in the event in Malta last Tuesday night.

"It is a great turnout and a beautiful evening," Dennis Oxarart said. "There is a lot of great competition and the parents are out cheering. The NFL pulled out of it, but we didn't want to give it up because we always have such a good turnout."

The PPK competition has been held nationwide since 1961 and has been conducted in Phillips County since at least 1967 as a story on the front page that year in the first week of October reported: "about 50 boys from through out the county" had registered for the event, then was held on Saturday morning.

Last Tuesday at Mustang field, boys and girls in four different age brackets competed in the event and although the NFL is no longer a part of the process, athletic abilities of these children will still be recognized.

"We will just do it locally and give out the awards at the next home football game," Oxarart said.

The NFL said that they are "seeking other avenues to reach youth football players" and their PPK website now redirects to an NFL flag football web page. Oxarart said that while flag football teams exist and thrive in Phillips County, the PPK competition allows for a fun, quick, competition.

"And they had fun," he said. "It doesn't matter if you are the best athlete or just here to compete and hang out with your buddies."

The event in Malta was a bit of a whirlwind and each child gets one attempt at each of the three football skills. About 30 volunteers were on hand on the night to measure throws and kicks, log scores, and maintain order (no easy task with nearly 100 children punching pigskins into various directions.) Lasting nearly an hour, the entire event was complete just as the sun went down on Malta, but not until after everyone had a chance to show their skills.

Samme Gibbs said that she practiced for the Tuesday night in her backyard with her brother, Spencer - QB for the Malta Middle School Colts, Samme proudly pointed out - several times prior to the PPK event. Samme, a sixth-grade student at Malta Elementary, said she took second place in the event last year (her twin sister, Sydney, took first) and though she competed in each of the three facets on the night, she said punting was most likely her strongest.

"It went straight and landed right there," Samme said, pointing about 20 yards away. "For next year I will work on kicking more."

Kaden Bishop, 13, felt his punting was the best of three football abilities on the night, but admitted that it was due to the process of elimination.

"Basically because I did badly at the other two," Bishop said.

Bishop said he has been taking part of the PPK since he was nine-years-old, taking third and fourth place in events on a few occasions. Like Gibbs, Bishop spent time practicing for the event in his backyard this summer and regardless of how he felt on Tuesday night, admitted that football is one of his favorite sports to play.

"I just wasn't clutch tonight," the seventh-grader said, "I will practice more next year and I will do better."

Shelbi LaBrie, 10-years-old, made the trip to Malta from Whitewater in order to partake in the PPK event. She said she did well in her kick off the tee and her pass, but said that she didn't hit her punt with her entire foot and it proceeded to not fly very far.

"But my kick went from here to the flags (about 25 feet) and my throw went from over there to about the flag (about 30 feet)," LaBrie said.

LaBrie, a fifth-grade student at Whitewater Elementary, said that of the three events, kicking is her favorite.

"I didn't think I liked it, but then I kicked it and it went pretty far and I was surprised," she said. "So now it is my favorite."

Results from the PPK event will be posted in the PCN as soon as possible, as well as a photo of the winners with their trophies.