Former Bay Rocket Dave Zastudil takes the field as Browns punter. (Photos by Larry Bennet)

Former SWC rivals match up at Browns Stadium
By Zachary Dzurick
Sports
Published Sept. 13, 2006

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New Orleans Saints long-snapper Kevin Houser is entering his eighth season in the NFL. He has played in 112 games. His job is one of the most pressure packed in football as any mistake costs his team points. But for the Westlake High School graduate, this particular game brought out the nerves more than any other.

“This was my first time playing in Cleveland,” Houser said. “I will be honest with you. I was nervous. It was my first time back and it is the most nervous I have been in a long time for a game. A lot of it was obviously friends and family being there, but Cleveland is my hometown. You always want to do good and play well in your hometown. It was emotional and just a great, great game. We had a lot of fun, and it is great to walk away with a win.”

Normally the long snapper is only noticed when a mistake is made, but Houser was literally the center of attention before and during the game.

“Every time I looked around someone was yelling my name,” Houser said. “People I haven’t seen since high school. It was really neat. On top of everyone that has season tickets for the Browns and everyone that found their own tickets, I had to get 44. So there were quite a few friends and family members in the stands.

The former Demon played a big part in the victory as he made solid snaps on all four Saints field goal attempts.

Top: Browns punter Dave Zastudil. Above: Saints longsnapper Kevin Hauser.

“To be honest, I had forgotten about this Cleveland wind. John (Carney) and Jamie (Martin) did a great job,“ Houser said. “But as tough as the wind was, it was sure nice to play in 70 degrees again. We are not afforded that opportunity that often. It was nice.”

Houser is also an Ohio State graduate. He skipped watching his Buckeyes defeat Texas on Saturday night because he had something more important on his agenda.

“I have not seen my wife or kids since before training camp,” Houser said. “I got the chance last night. I ran after my kids (Julie, 4, and Michael, 2) for two hours. We made meetings and I went to bed. I woke up this morning and read the paper that Ohio State won. Obviously it is great they won, but I needed to spend that time with my kids.”

Because Hurricane Katrina damaged the Superdome, Houser and his teammates are looking forward to their first game there in over a year on Sept. 25.
“It will be nice,” Houser said. “Obviously last year was a little different, but it was something that made us as a team more adapt to preserving and being able to win. It will be nice to get back in the dome against Atlanta on Monday night.”

Houser was not the only former Southwestern Conference player on the field. Former Bay Rocket Dave Zastudil made his regular season debut as the Browns punter.

“It was great to see Dave out there,” Houser said. “We had a nice talk before the game. He was the first one to welcome me home in pregame warm-ups, which was neat. He is a great pickup for Cleveland. I am glad he is here. I hope he has a great season.”

Zastudil was disappointed in the loss, but admitted being in a Browns uniform in front of the home crowd was an overwhelming feeling.

“It was awesome,” Zastudil said. “It was more than I anticipated. The crowd was unbelievable. It felt like a playoff game. I wish we could have won and I wish I could have done a couple of things better. But there are 16 games in season and with 15 to go, anything is possible.”

Zastudil and Houser were rivals in high school as Houser the linebacker chased the Zastudil the quarterback. Still opponents in the NFL, they are also now friends.

“We talked for a while before the game,” Zastudil said. “Kevin is doing well. He has a house in Westlake, so we are going to make sure we get together in the off-season