YORK, Pa. — Central York's Matthew Parker is now the record holder for a rule known as the "fair catch kick."
During this past weekend's game against York High, the junior nailed a 54-yard free kick thanks to the wits of head coach Gerry Yonchiuk. It's a play that is rarely used but one that now enters the record books.
"I always knew about it but didn’t really have the opportunity," said Yonchiuk. "This year we knew we had a shot at it."
With seconds left to go, Yonchiuk called on his superstar kicker to try it. Something he didn't even believe he got the chance to do.
"He called a kickoff on the 40-yard line with five seconds left," said Parker. "He told me to just kick it through the post with five seconds left and that’s what I did."
Parker now holds the record surpassing the previous longest successful attempt in 1964 by Paul Hornung of the Green Bay Packers and with it has come some national attention that hopes to continue.
"Only the schools that have talked to me have said something so far," said Parker. "Hopefully I can get some coming up,"
Yonchiuk hopes the exposure will follow as well.
"Matthew is an elite kicker at the highest level," said Yonchiuk. "I'm hoping schools say, 'Yep there is a kid in York, Pennsylvania we need to come after.'"
Parker adds to his already growing profile and hopes to show off his leg strength and accuracy for his final two seasons.