Orthodox college football player Sam Salz is on a mission

(JTA) - Before Nov. 16, Sam Salz had never played a snap of organized football. The 5-foot-6, 160-pound wide receiver grew up attending an Orthodox day school in Philadelphia that didn't have a football team.

But last Saturday night, Salz took the field for the first time with the Texas A&M Aggies, the No. 15-ranked team in Division I and a decorated program that plays in the elite Southeastern Conference.

Salz walked me through his first taste of football, and what it meant to hear his name called for a play as the Aggies routed New Mexico State 38-3.

"There's probably a Jewish kid, and maybe even especially an Orthodox kid, who wants to play football, or wants to play sports, and is sitting somewhere confused about what he should do, or who's told that he'll never be able to do it," Salz said. "Even getting to see me run down on that field, successful play or not, could have given him all the hope that he wanted."