It’s an intricate bit of football ballet.
The field goal or extra point kick is a play involving three players, during which tenths of a second can make the difference between success and failure.
And it all starts with the long-snapper — someone talented enough to snap the ball 7 yards, connecting with the outstretched hands of the holder.
The ball must get to exactly the right spot. That’s what long-snappers concentrate on.
But Ardrey Kell long-snapper Jack Mowrey has more than “the right spot” on his mind this season when he snaps for a field goal, touchdown conversion, or even a punt.
“I’m always thinking of David,” Mowrey says.
Mowrey, with the help of the Ardrey Kell community, is making sure each of those long snaps has a special meaning.
Teammates in Florida
Four years ago, Mowrey and David Kunz were 13-year-old teammates for the Sarasota Lightning, playing football in a youth league in southwest Florida.
“We were good friends,” Mowrey, now a senior, says. “He’d come over to the house. We really enjoyed hanging out together.”
As is the case now, Mowrey was a lineman. David Kunz Jr. was a quarterback and linebacker.
After a tough childhood, David Jr. was adopted by Nicole and David Kunz Sr.
“He’d been through a lot,” David Sr. says. “But he was finally being able to enjoy life, like other kids his age.”
His father says David Jr. was a gifted athlete. “Baseball, football, even golf,” David Sr. said. “I play golf, and he tried it out. He was going to be good.”
When there wasn’t football, Jack and David Jr. went fishing.
“That was his other love,” David Sr. says.
The Mowrey family moved back to their native Charlotte in 2019, but the two buddies stayed in close contact.
“We texted a lot,” Mowrey said. “We kept track of what each of us was doing.
“We talked about playing together in the NFL one day,” Mowrey added. “We had big dreams.”
Devastating diagnosis
In January 2020, David Jr. started feeling ill during his school basketball season. Doctors found a lump on his neck and tests at Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital in St. Petersburg, Florida, revealed the diagnosis: Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma.
“He was angry, but he was a trooper,” David Sr. said.
Mowrey recalled the shock he felt when he heard the news. “You just never expect something like that will happen to a friend,” he said.
David Jr. went through several months of radiation and chemotherapy, and appeared to beat the cancer.
“In May (2020), he rang the bell,” his dad says. “He was clear.”
But by the end of that summer, the cancer returned.
“The doctors were shocked,” David Sr. says. “They said they never expected that.”
So David Jr. started another round of treatments and found enough strength to play football that fall. “In fact, he was the starting quarterback,” David Sr. said.
Another relapse
The second round of radiation and chemotherapy ended in May 2021 — again, apparently successfully.
A month later, the family traveled to a relative’s wedding in Ashtabula, Ohio, stopping in their native Pittsburgh on the way, to visit other family members.
“David went fishing, but he had absolutely no energy,” his dad recalled.
By the time the family reached northeastern Ohio, David was very weak. He was taken to University Hospitals in Cleveland, suffering from breathing problems.
“The symptoms weren’t exactly like before, and the doctors were puzzled,” David Sr. said.
He was there for more than a month and suffered several strokes that damaged his brain and left him unable to breathe on his own. The family got David Jr. flown back to Florida, and he died in his home on Aug. 6, 2021.
“His family and a bunch of friends were with him when he passed,” his father said.
Mowrey couldn’t be there. He said he struggled making sense of it all.
Throughout the 2021 season, Mowrey kept his buddy’s memory alive with him on the football field.
“I had his named written on my wristband,” he says. “Every time I looked down at it, I’d think of him.”
Snap it with Jack
A few months ago, Mowrey, who is the fourth-ranked high school long-snapper in the country and has several FBS offers, decided he wanted to do something more.
He read about Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation, started in 2005 by the parents of cancer victim Alexandra (“Alex”) Scott. The foundation serves as a clearing house for various efforts to raise money for cancer research.
Mowrey got an idea — get pledges for every long snap he takes this season.
The result was Snap It With Jack For David Kunz.
People can pledge money for every snap Mowrey makes this season, or pledge a flat fee. Mowrey hoped to raise $1,500.
“After the first game, I already had $348,” he says. “I think I’ll beat the goal.”
Mowrey said he’s been heartened by the support of teammates.
“They’ve been great,” he said. “They’ve helped publicize it. This is a team where everyone has each other’s backs.”
Back in Florida, David Kunz Sr. marvels at what his late son’s friend is doing.
“They’re a great family,” he says. “I’m thrilled to see that Jack is excelling. And I’m happy that he has chosen to do something in memory of our son.”
Mowrey, whose father played football at East Mecklenburg High and whose grandfather is a former assistant police chief in Charlotte, says he wishes David had gotten the chance he himself has now.
“It’s so sad,” he says. “The best thing I can do is to play my best and honor him.”
Interest in pledging?
To make a pledge to Snap It With Jack For David Kunz, click here
This story was originally published August 28, 2022 6:30 AM.
