With three weeks and change until the NFL season starts, players are currently honing their skills and preparing so they're fundamentally sound come Week 1.
On Sunday morning, Hopatcong's youth put their football fundamentals to the ultimate test.
The NFL's Punt, Pass, & Kick program returned to Hopatcong for a second year. The event ran for five hours at Hopatcong High School's football field.
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Punt, Pass & Kick is a program for boys and girls ages 6-15 to show off their football skills. Each child gets to perform one pass, one punt, and one kick. They were judged based on distance and accuracy for each event, and then all three scores were totaled at the end for the competitor's final score.
This year's event was run by Vincent Giordano, a coach for the Hopatcong Warriors football program. Many of Giordano's players were participating in the event.
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Even with the combination of overcast weather and the abundance of families that attend church on Sundays, Giordano expected 30-40 kids to participate throughout the day, especially since children from other towns are more than welcome to come and give it a try.
The kids were placed into five separate age groups: 6-7 years old, 8-9, 10-11,12-13 and 14-15. If a child places high enough in his age group for this local competition, he moves into the next round, which is called the sectional round. That will be held in a few months. Winners of that will move on to the team championships, where they will compete during halftime of a Giants or Jets game at the new Meadowlands Stadium.
While the actual competition took just a few minutes, many of the kids hung around long after their turn was over, taking part in small pick-up games, or even just sitting in the grass watching the other competitors and talking to their friends. The parents also took the opportunity to catch up with each other.
At one point, many of the kids were worried or unhappy with their scores. Giordano asked them, "Did you try hard? Did you have fun? Then alright, that's what it's all about."
Considering many of the children who participated are also members of the Hopatcong Warriors football club, the players that will place into the next round will receive ribbons sometime next week.
If you missed this "Punt, Pass & Kick", there are several more in the area throughout the month and into September. Visit nflyouthfootball.com for full listings of upcoming competitions.
