Zane Saxman graduated high school last month. He said goodbye to friends, teachers and teammates, but he’s hoping that he won’t have to say goodbye to his football-playing days.

The former Sedona Red Rock High School Scorpion will attempt to walk-on with the Northern Arizona University football team this August and earn a spot on the Lumberjacks’ special teams.

A walk-on is a player who, if accepted, becomes part of the team without being actively recruited or awarded an athletic scholarship. Furthermore, due to NCAA limitations on the number of scholarships a program can give, most teams do not offer scholarships to punters, long snappers and kickers until they become an integral part of the team.

Yet that’s not stopping Saxman from pursuing the chance to be a member of an NCAA Division I football team.

“I really love the game of football,” Saxman said. “It’ll be hard to go every August without playing football. It would be heartbreaking.”

Saxman had been named the top punter in Arizona Interscholastic Association Division V, Section I last fall. He was also named to the First Team All Arizona Division V, Section I team on both offense as a center and defense as a top linebacker.

He also placed third in the Division III Track and Field State Championships in both the shot put and discus.

For the full story, please see the Friday, June 14, issue of the Sedona Red Rock News.