When Beaver High School football coach Jeff Beltz told recruiters that senior Josh Bucci was a svelte 6 feet 6 and 335 pounds he got some quizzical looks. After all, svelte and 335 pounds, even on an individual with a large frame, do not go together.

"But you look at Josh, he doesn't look like he weighs that much," Beltz said.

"You'd swear he's only about 280."

It's true and Bucci has proof.

"You know those guess-your-weight places they have at [amusement] parks? No one ever gets my weight right. They're always much lower," he said.

If there was a contest at Kennywood for fastest runner in the 40-yard dash who weighs more than 300 pound, Bucci would win that, too. And his size and speed are just two of the reasons he is headed to Villanova University to play football.

But before he joins the Wildcats, Bucci will play in the 52nd annual Big 33 Classic in Hershey, Pa. The game is at 7 p.m. Saturday and will again pit the Pennsylvania All-Stars against the Ohio All-Stars.

Bucci left Saturday for his weeklong stay in Chocolate Town. He is one of seven WPIAL players on the Pennsylvania team this season. The others are McKeesport defensive lineman Dana Brown, Thomas Jefferson tight end Brock DeCiccio, Bethel Park running back Lyle Marsh and wide receiver John Sharbaugh, Penn Hills linebacker Dan Mason and Central Catholic linebacker Sam Loughrey.

It originally was announced that Bucci would play for the West squad in the Pennsylvania Scholastic Football Coaches Association East-West Game at 6 tomorrow night at Mansion Park Stadium in Altoona. But he was always on the Big 33's list and was added to the Pennsylvania team when it was learned some players couldn't participate.

"Actually, he was picked for the Big 33, but everybody had to see who was going to be able to play," Beltz said. "It's a nice honor for Josh and one he deserves. He's come a long way when you consider he didn't start playing football until ninth grade."

He moved to Beaver with his family from New Jersey the summer before his freshman year. Bucci played several sports growing up, but the one he likes the best was soccer.

The reason he didn't play football sooner was that the sport isn't that popular in New Jersey.

"I'd played soccer for eight years," he said. "But when I moved here football was the big thing. I'd never played before, but everybody was playing so I decided to give it a try."

He enjoyed the contact. Beltz also was glad that Bucci didn't lose a lot of the quickness he developed while playing soccer as he got bigger.

"He started for two years for us on the defensive line and last season on the offensive line," Beltz said. "His ability to move well for a guy his size was the reason he started on defense first. But he's going to be a much better offensive player because of that ability."

There's a chance he could start as a freshman at Villanova.

Wildcats coach Andy Talley signed just 12 players in February because he has 16 starters returning from a team that went 10-3 and advanced to the NCAA Division I-AA quarterfinals. But Villanova doesn't have a right offensive tackle and Bucci and Neshaniny's Dan Shirley (6-2, 280) are the only two offensive linemen the Wildcats signed.

"There's an opportunity there, which is why I'm glad I'm in the Big 33 because being on a team with many of the top players in the state will help me get ready," said Bucci, who plans to major in engineering.

And the Bucci knows something about the Big 33 game. Rory Nicol, who recently graduated from Ohio State and played tight end of the Buckeyes, played for Pennsylvania in the game following his senior year at Beaver.

"I had heard of it because of Rory," he said. "I'm just looking forward to see how I measure up against the other top players in the state and in Ohio."

n What: 52nd Big 33 Classic.

n When: 7 p.m. Saturday.

n Where: Hersheypark Stadium, Hershey, Pa.

n Who: Pennsylvania All-Stars vs. Ohio All-Stars.

n The skinny: Pennsylvania has won the past three meetings and leads the series with Ohio, 10-7.