In 1971, Mike Flynt lost his place on his college football team. He was “kicked off” for an undisclosed behavior. It was a heartbreaking loss for him … he was his team’s captain.

Fast forward 36 years. Flynt was attending a reunion with some old football buddies when one of them joked that he was probably NCAA eligible for one more year. They checked. He was.

So Flynt, a fitness expert who previously worked as strength coach for the football programs at Nebraska, Oregon, and Texas A&M, enrolled in Sul Ross State University in Alpine, Texas. It’s n NCAA Division III school. He tried out for the football team. And he made it.

Despite being an AARP member and only six years from Medicare, he’s still in good enough shape to butt heads with kids one-third his age — about as old as his youngest daughter — because he’s spent his life in the fitness business. In recent years he’s sold a piece of workout equipment he invented, even training the military.

This 59-year-old senior (and grandfather, to boot) is not the oldest NCAA football player ever. There was a 60-year-old in Ohio in 1997 who was in a late-game blowout for one snap. But he is the oldest player (most believe) who ever actually played and took a meaningful part in a game. And did I forget to mention that he’s eight years older than his own coach?

He played this past weekend … left end on kicking plays. And this 59-year-old grandfather held his own all night, most importantly during the field goal that gave Sul Ross State a 45-42 victory over Texas Lutheran in three overtimes Saturday night. Flynt got in for nine snaps, including one waived off by penalty. He stood up his rusher several times and got in a nice chip block once. With his wife, three kids, grandson and a legion of new fans watching, Flynt kept his defender from getting into the backfield when it mattered most (on the final play), then turned, jumped and pumped his fist. He wound up lost in a teamwide pile celebrating their second straight win in extra periods.

Flynt was quite a player back in the day, helping Odessa Permian (of “Friday Night Lights” fame) win its first state title in 1965. He wound up at Sul Ross in 1969 and in ‘70 he led the team in tackles. That is … before he lost his spot on the team.

Getting one of those tackles is the next step on his comeback trail. With four games left in his college football career, he intends to play linebacker once more before he’s done.

What an incredible, awesome story.

Indeed, it’s never too late to accomplish that which you set your heart and mind to do.

Wouldn’t it be great if all of God’s people were filled with such drive and passion for the Gospel?