Eagles fans gathered in the NovaCare Complex Field House and tried their luck at kicking field goals, in the hope of earning a chance to kick a field goal during halftime of Titans-Eagles in Week 12 ...
A relieved Kyle Werts, basking in his victory and enjoying the photo opportunities
The decorations in the NovaCare Field House during Saturday's field goal challenge
Contestants stretching before the competition begins
The competitors participated in some pre-game warm-up drills
More drills before the competition begins
The first practice kick of the afternoon
Participants practicing their trade before the first round Saturday
More practice kicks before the official competition
Fans and participants had a chance to meet former Eagles linebacker Ike Reese Saturday
Reese took pictures with over 40 fans Saturday
Fans and participants gathered for a group picture with Reese before the competition began
The competition began with participants kicking from the 5-yard line
Competitors who made their kick advanced to the next round, while those who missed did not
Each successive round moved the spot of the kick five yards back
Participants could set up their own kicks or ask for assistance with the kick holding
In the end it came down to three competitors, kicking from the 30-yard line for the win
Kyle Werts, right, celebrates with his girlfriend after winning the competition with a 37-yard field goal
The final three competitors
Werts, being congratulated by Ike Reese on his win
Werts and his girlfriend share a laugh after his triumphant win
Kyle Werts, a 22-year-old student at Saint Joseph's University, won the Santander Field Goal Challenge on Saturday afternoon at the NovaCare Complex Field House.
Werts converted a 40-yard field goal, the only one of 40-plus participants to connect from such a distance.
As the winner, Werts won four tickets to the Eagles' Week 12 home matchup with the Tennessee Titans, where he will attempt a 40-yard field goal at halftime for a chance to win $20,000.
Werts said he trained for two weeks leading up to Saturday's competition, and that he wasn't ready for how good his fellow competitors turned out to be.
"The competition was a lot stiffer than I thought it would be," Werts said. "I didn't know what was going to happen coming in, I didn't know how many people there were going to be, and it came down to the last three people."
Werts said he's sure the halftime kick will be even more nerve-wracking than kicking in the Field House was. But if he converts the kick, the college senior says he knows exactly what he's doing with the $20,000.
"I'm in my senior year at St. Joseph's," Werts explained, "and if I win, it's going to go into my last semester of tuition so I don't have any debt coming out."
