Contact:
Andrew Fink
National Football League
(212)450-2079
THIRTY-TWO BOYS AND GIRLS TO COMPETE FOR
NATIONAL HONORS IN NFL GATORADE PUNT, PASS AND KICK NATIONAL FINALS
Four boys and four girls will be crowned
National Champions in respective age groups
New York, January 5 --Thirty-two boys and girls, ages 8 through 15, will compete for the title of NFL Gatorade Punt, Pass and Kick National Champions, at 9:30 A.M., Saturday, January 9, 1999 at Giants Stadium. The competition takes place the morning prior to the New York Jets-Jacksonville Jaguars AFC Divisional Playoff contest.
The competition will be taped and televised by CBS during the Jets-Jaguars game, and the competitors will be recognized at an awards ceremony between the third and fourth quarter of the game.
Each participant will perform one punt, one pass and one placekick, with scores based on distance minus accuracy. Boys and girls compete in separate age divisions (8-9, 10-11,12-13, 14-15) with the top score in each division crowned national champion. All 32 finalists began competing in August, winning local, sectional and Team Championships before advancing to the national finals.
A record 2.3 million kids -- including 750,000 girls -- participated in NFL Gatorade Punt, Pass and Kick this year. That broke the previous record of 600,000 participants in 1997. This year, the NFL Punt, Pass and Kick CD-ROM Interactive Playbook program brought Punt, Pass and Kick to 9,000 elementary and junior high school physical education classes throughout the United States and Canada. The CD-ROM program was part of a four-week gym class specifically designed for physical education teachers, that taught youngsters football fundamentals and allowed them to compete in the NFL Gatorade Punt, Pass and Kick program in their own school.
Current NFL stars who are alumni of Punt, Pass and Kick include Green Bay Packers QB Brett Favre, New York Jets QB Vinny Testaverde and New England Patriots QB Drew Bledsoe.
"The NFL Gatorade Punt, Pass and Kick program is the nation’s largest grassroots sports skills competition," said Sara Levinson, NFL Properties President. "Establishing a new participation record reinforces our belief that football is youngsters’ favorite sport to play."
"Gatorade is proud to be able to bring an exciting competition like PP&K to so many active kids across America," said Bill Schmidt, vice president, sports marketing for Gatorade Thirst Quencher. "We know that sports play a very important part in the development of healthy and successful kids and we're committed to helping make sports participation accessible to as many youths as possible."
Following are the 1998 qualifiers for the Punt, Pass and Kick National Finals:
| GIRLS | BOYS |
| 8-9 Year Olds | 8-9 Year Olds |
| Natalie Baumgardt, Wausau, WI (Packers) | Hunter Grantham, Jackson, MO (Rams) |
| Kristen Eible, Lansing, MI (Lions) | Trey Meyer, Davenport, IA (Bears) |
| Grace Sartori, Cascade, ID (Seahawks) | Mike Saenz, Harlingen, TX (Cowboys) |
| Alexandra Watson, Grapevine, TX (Cowboys) | Caleb Ladig, Wakarusa, IN (Colts) |
| 10-11 Year Olds | 10-11 Year Olds |
| Ashley McDonald, Gainesville, FL (Jaguars) | Ryan Musser, Mt. Joy, PA (Eagles) |
| Alexandra McGuire, Ft. Meade, MD (Ravens) | Bo Richter, Waukesha, WI (Packers) |
| Amanda Different, Hartern, MT (Vikings) | Jon Prybilla, Mound, MN (Vikings) |
| Amanda Shattuck, Providence, RI (Patriots) | Wesley Kellner, Ira, TX (Cowboys) |
| 12-13 Year Olds | 12-13 Year Olds |
| Tonya Callahan, Holden, MO (Rams) | Ryan Moore, Chattanooga, TN (Oilers) |
| Miranda Chandler, Flower Mound, TX (Cowboys) | Floyd Reddick, Ft. Lauderdale, FL (Dolphins) |
| Jenna Brown, Port Orange, FL (Jaguars) | Jeremiah Fulton, Lake City, FL (Jaguars) |
| Syndee Scribner, El Dorado, KS (Chiefs) | Andre Brown, Bloomington, IL (Bears) |
| 14-15 Year Olds | 14-15 Year Olds |
| Jessica Pruett, Whitesboro, TX (Cowboys) | Tom McIntire, Galva, IL (Bears) |
| Adrienne Alo, Carson, CA (Chargers) | Matt Kappleman, Jacksonville, FL (Jaguars) |
| Lea Blair, Paxton, IL (Bears) | Augie Friedrich, Boonville, MO (Rams) |
| April Roadhouse, Osborne, KS (Chiefs) | Luke Merrick, Homeworth, OH (Browns) |
The NFL Gatorade Punt, Pass and Kick program is part of the NFL’s "Play Football!" initiative that provides exciting ways for even more children to play, watch and experience the game of football. Additional "Play Football!" programs include NFL C.I.T.Y. (Challenge and Inspire Today’s Youth) Football; NFL Flag, presented by Nike; Kmart NFL Family Days; JCPenney/Starter Take a Player to School ; and NFL/Starter Play Football Craze.
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