As starting offensive guard for the Knights of the Orcutt Youth Football League, Zachary Burg enjoys absorbing a big hit.
The 12-year-old was a hit of a different sort at a recent Offense-Defense instructional football camp in San Diego. At an awards ceremony, camp organizers announced they’d selected Burg to participate in the annual Offense-Defense Youth All-American Bowl, held this year on New Year’s Day weekend in South Carolina. One player was picked for the game for each position, from thousands of athletes nationwide.
\“It felt pretty good,” Burg said about the recognition. “There’s a lot of kids out there. There’s tons of running backs on this field that could have got it, but it just happened to be me.”
Burg said voters probably selected him for the perseverance he showed on the field. Though young, he already has five years of youth football experience as an offensive lineman and enjoys playing in the trenches.
Knights’ head coach Anthony Cochiolo called Burg’s selection a “great honor.”
“He’s picking up the game very well and doing a good job in there, working hard,” he said. “He’s a good team player and has a good work ethic.”
The Offense-Defense bowl game is part of a weeklong series of events leading up to the nationally televised All-Star football game, which showcases 80 of the top high school seniors in the country.
Burg said he’d like to continue playing at the high school level as an offensive lineman, but isn’t sure where just yet.
This article appears in Sep 23-30, 2010.