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CONTENTS
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From Kent
State to the Dawg Pound
As the Browns returned to Cleveland, so did Former Flash Steve Zahursky
by
Phil Novak
photos by Mike Nash
 Zahursky looks to the crowd on game day as the Browns face the Cincinnati Bengals. |
After his first day of training camp with the Jacksonville Jaguars, Steve Zahursky knew he could play in the NFL.
"Once I got to Jacksonville and realized what I was up against, I said, 'Hey, I can play with these guys if I just work a little harder and get a little bigger,'" Zahursky says.
At 6 feet 6 inches and a solid 305 pounds, the former Kent State standout is certainly not small. But in the NFL his size is average for an offensive lineman. Even though he played well in camp and made it past several roster cuts, he ended up being the last one cut from the Jaguars at the end of the 1998 training camp.
"It was between me and another guy who was there the year before, and they were confident in the other guy," Zahursky says.
But he didn't give up. He went back home and hit the weights, knowing he would get another shot. In late December the Philadelphia Eagles called, though it was not the big break he was hoping to get.
"I got four weeks with the practice squad," Zahursky says. "At least it gave me some more experience."