Buccaneers Long Snapper Zach Triner Reveals What Reignited His Faith

Published: June 5, 2024

Buccaneers Long Snapper Zach Triner Reveals What Reignited His Faith

By Movieguide® Contributor

Tampa Bay Buccaneers long snapper Zach Triner joined Sports Spectrum’s podcast to talk about his faith and share how an unlikely encounter led him back to the Lord.

In 2015, Triner went undrafted in the NFL. Soon after, he made his way to California in an effort to join a team and pursue his dreams.

While in California, Triner was so busy with football that he fell away from the Lord. Until one day, one young kid changed that.

“You know what the best of this story is? And I tell it all the time. And some good people think it’s too good to be true,” Triner said on the podcast. “But it’s just such a strong testimony that after I call out, I go to In-N-Out the next day and grab a burger, and there’s this kid in front of me who, his card gets declined. And mind you, I’ve been in California. I’m going for this thing. Money’s going down quick. Everything’s running out for me. I’m coming to the end.”

“The kid in front of me gets his card declined, and I just step in there and pay for it and step aside,” the long snapper continued. “Whatever. I’ve been there before. It stinks. The kid is probably 18 or 17 years old.”

Triner added, “He was really emotional about it, but he came over, and he’s like, ‘Hey man, if you ever need a friend, Jesus loves you so much.’ And I was like, ‘Oh man, I’m listening now.’ I’m listening now because the kid who has nothing right there just reintroduced me to everything that I could ever need.”

“It was one of those times when you strip everything away and see what you have left,” he said of the moment, per Assumption University. “And I realized there’s that unconditional love from Jesus. If you slip and fall, make mistakes, it’s still there.”

For more inspiring sports stories, check out Sports Spectrum.

Through his faith in the Lord and perseverance, Triner would go on to secure a contract with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2019 and became a Super Bowl Champion in 2021.

After the big win, Triner shared 1 Corinthians 10:31 on his social media page. The verse reads, “So, whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.”