It all started with a bet, and 22 years later, Tom Martinez is still cash when it comes to kicking a football.

As a freshman in high school in western Kansas, Martinez bet classmate Phil Biel he could kick a football farther.

Not thinking he would be outdone, Biel told him to try, and Martinez took Biel's job as the place kicker on the varsity team.

As a middle schooler, Martinez wasn't interested in playing running back, receiver or quarterback like most.

He wasn't interested in carrying, catching or throwing the football, and though undersized, he asked to play guard on the offensive line.

It didn't work out, and in high school Martinez quickly found his calling in kicking the football.

He still kicks today - between 150 and 200 times per day - and is a member of the Kosciusko County Mustangs semi-pro football team.

"Somebody at the YMCA saw me kicking and said there was a team starting up and to call Sid (Phillips, offensive coordinator)," said Martinez, who moved to Warsaw a year ago. "Sid said, 'If you can kick as good as you say you can, the job's yours.' And I got the job."

Martinez says his limit is around 54 yards, and Tuesday evening at the K.C. Mustangs' practice, he was successfully kicking field goals from 53 yards out, working on shorter kicks and punting.

One of three 37-year-old players on a Mustangs team that features a number of 20-somethings, Martinez certainly has a handful of stories to tell his younger teammates.

His career story starts with the forementioned bet in 1982 and includes a trip to Garden City Junior College, a semester on the team at Kansas State University and a plethora of appearances at National Football League camps and tryouts.

"I've been to camps in Los Angeles with the best of the best place kickers," said Martinez, who said one of his favorite NFL kickers is Nick Lowery of the Kansas City Chiefs. "I can still go today, if you can kick 50-plus yards you're always invited, it's just tough to make an NFL team."

Through it all, the ups and downs of attending junior college to get his grades up to not making it to the NFL as he hoped he would, his talent hasn't escaped him.

Saturday, Martinez, who in 1987 got a personal invitation to try out for the Dallas Cowboys and who in 2003 attended minicamp for the San Diego Chargers, and his Mustangs teammates will travel to Fort Recovery, Ohio, to take on the Mercer County Cougars.

Opening their inaugural season, the Cougars hosted the Hendricks County Generals Saturday at Fisher Field and were 27-8 victors.

The Mustangs' offense, loaded with talented former Warsaw Community High School players, marched its way down the field time and time again, and Martinez didn't get to attempt a field goal in the season opener.

He did convert three of four extra-point attempts to go along with his kickoff duties.

One extra-point attempts was blocked by the Hendricks County Generals special teams.

At the NFL camps, where Martinez said it's common to have 700 kickers from around the world, participants get six attempts - two from 30 yards out, two from 40 yards out and two from 50 yards out.

Martinez, who wears the throwback one-bar facemask on his helmet like the kickers of old, said the worst he's done at one of the camps was miss one out of the six attempts.

"I don't get nervous," said Martinez. "Maybe I do, I just don't feel it. I just go out and kick."

Saturday, the Mustangs hope they kick something other than a football.

Saturday's game against the Mercer County Cougars starts at 5 p.m. Ohio time. The Mustangs' next home game at Fisher Field is Aug. 7 at 4:30 p.m. against the Darke County Warriors. [[In-content Ad]]