Sam Salz is an American football wide receiver for the Texas A&M Aggies. He is thought to be the only orthodox Jewish football player in NCAA Division I. Salz did not play organized football at any level prior to being added to the Texas A&M program as a walk-on. He was not invited to join the football team so he practiced by himself within sight of the football team and eventually earned a roster spot.
| Texas A&M Aggies – No. 39 | |
|---|---|
| Position | Wide receiver |
| Class | Senior |
| Major | Economics |
| Personal information | |
| Born: | c. 2003 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania U.S. |
| Height | 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m) |
| Weight | 155 lb (70 kg) |
| Career history | |
| High school | Kohelet Yeshiva High School |
| |
Early life
editSalz was born c. 2003 and is from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania He graduated from a Modern Orthodox college prep school: Kohelet Yeshiva High School. He is 5.6 ft (1.7 m) and weighs 160 lb (73 kg).[1] He did not play football in high school because his school did not have a football program. He also never played organized football in middle school: he never played organized football at any level.[2] As a young boy Salz never watched college football because it is played on the Shabbat and he is an observant orthodox Jew.[1] In 2022 he went to Texas A&M University to study economics.[3]
College football
editIn 2022, Sam Salz was a sophomore at Texas A&M University and he wanted to be on the football team, but he had no football experience.[4] The football team has a rule that only players with high school football experience could try out.[3] Salz did not meet the requirement so he was not part of the football team; instead he began training within sight of the A&M practice field. When the Texas A&M Aggies football team was practicing, Salz practiced by himself. He kept notes of the drills the football team did and tried to mimic their routines. He used items he could find to fashion makeshift cones and create a line of scrimmage for practice. He kept up his practice routine in sight of the team for 11 months, and the coaches began to notice him.[4] Salz described his daily practice routine: "About an hour and half to an hour doing field work.. catching.. doing footwork... working on taking hand-offs, and then I would spend about two and a half to three hours in the gym getting bigger.[5] He began attending the head coach’s Jimbo Fisher's radio show to show his determination and persistance.[3]
Salz is a walk-on football player and he practices with the Texas A&M Aggies football team.[2] He practices at the offensive position of wide receiver.[4] He is thought to be the only orthodox Jewish football player in NCAA Division I.[2][6] He wears a Chabad "A&M” kippah under his football helmet and he wears the jersey number 39. His jersey number is meant to symbolize (lamed tet melachot) the 39 tasks or items which Jews should avoid during the Jewish Sabbath.[2] He also wears his tzitzit under his helmet.[6] The Sabbath begins at sundown on Friday and lasts until sundown on Saturday so if Salz were to compete with the team in games, he could only play in Saturday night games.[5]
In 2023, Salz was a junior and had not appeared in any football games for the Aggies. Salz has said he hopes to be drafted into the NFL and become a motivational speaker. Mark Robinson (Texas A&M’s associate athletic director) said that Salz practices alongside several several Muslim football players that observe the fasting of Ramadan. The football team schedules practices to accommodate the Mulsim players.[6]
References
edit- ^ a b Wasserman, Ari (2 May 2024). "Why a 5-foot-6, 160-pound SEC walk-on who can't attend most games wouldn't stop until he made the team". The New York Times. Retrieved 20 June 2024.
- ^ a b c d Heller, Sasha (27 September 2023). "Salz Balances Judaism, Football for Texas A&M". Atlanta Jewish Times. Retrieved 20 June 2024.
- ^ a b c Lobell, Kylie Ora (23 August 2023). "For Sam Salz, Football is a Religious Experience". South Florida Sun Sentinel. pp. A26. Retrieved 21 June 2024.
- ^ a b c Prince, Cathryn J. "How Texas A&M Aggies's Sam Salz became college football's first known Orthodox player". Times of Israel. Retrieved 20 June 2024.
- ^ a b Griffith, Nicole (25 December 2022). "Meet Sam Salz, the Sabbath Observant Kippah wearing walk-on for Texas A&M". KBTX. A Gray Media Group, Inc. Retrieved 20 June 2024.
- ^ a b c Lerner, Danielle (22 September 2023). "How an Orthodox Jew earned a place on Texas A&M's football team". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved 20 June 2024.