When a voice came across the Powell Middle School PA system late in the Dec. 16 school day, the announcement wasn’t about homework, attendance or an assembly.

It was a celebration, in honor of sixth-grader Kaleb Brown’s qualification for the national Punt, Pass & Kick competition, which will be held on Jan. 2 in Indianapolis.

Kaleb, 11, learned about his accomplishment at the same time as his classmates, which ended weeks of waiting and wondering.

“I was really happy. I told all my friends,” said Kaleb, who won the Denver Broncos’ team competition with a total distance of 288 feet, 8 inches on Nov. 2.

Kaleb’s father, Darold, found out about Kaleb’s qualification earlier in the day and called into the school so Kaleb would hear the news in a fashion more exciting than an email.

His final score in Denver was good, but it wasn’t known if it was good enough until Week 14 of the NFL season was in the books. The top four winners of the team competitions advance to the national competition, and waiting to see if he was in that top four was tough.

“I was really nervous, and I kept telling myself I could have done better,” Kaleb said.

Kaleb will get one last chance to improve on his performance in the new year, at the Indianapolis Colts’ practice facility.

Powell High School assistant football coach Chase Kistler, who played at Black Hills State University, helped Kaleb hone his skills.

“He helped with my punt and pass,” Brown said. “Just keep practicing my technique.”

The Punt, Pass & Kick competition measures not only raw distance, but also accuracy. A line down the middle of the field tracks the accuracy of the athletes’ throws and kicks. The distance between the line and the landing spot of the ball is subtracted from the distance the ball traveled from the athlete.

That’s why Kaleb thinks punting is a challenge, while his consistent kicking technique gives him an advantage.

“Every time I kick it, with the toe kick, I get it straight down the line,” Kaleb said. “The farthest I’ve been away from the line is about (2 feet).”

Punting with accuracy is tougher, Kaleb said, and he is hoping some pointers from Kistler will help.

“Hold (the ball) straight out in front of you, slightly turned, then point your toe after you drop it. Then follow through, come up off the ground when you’re kicking,” Kaleb said.

Proper technique came pretty quickly to Kaleb, who Darold called “a natural athlete.”

Powell’s winter weather has hindered Kaleb’s opportunities to practice outdoors in preparation for Indianapolis.

“I can’t really actually throw it or kick it or punt it, I just have to do the technique until we get a nice day,” Kaleb said.

Kaleb had the third best total distance among team competition winners. The top distance was 305 feet, 7 inches, came from the winner of the Dallas competition. The second-place mark was 297 feet, 2 inches from the Philadelphia winner. Just behind Kaleb, with a distance of 284 feet, 3 inches, came from the Chicago winner.

Kaleb will be part of the halftime show of the Jan. 3 game between the Indianapolis Colts and Tennessee Titans.