The natural: Zach Hodskins was born without a left hand and forearm, but that hasn't dampened his basketball ambitions.

• Author: Tierney, Mike
• Position: SPORTS

A referee's whistle halts play during a recent game at Milton High School north of Atlanta. A foul has been called on Milton senior guard Zach Hodskins, leaving his coach mystified.

"What did he do?" asks Coach Matt Kramer. Hand-checking with both hands, the official says.

"Hey," Hodskins protests, "I don't even have two hands."

Born without a left hand and forearm, Hodskins was once thought even by his family to have a better chance of becoming president than playing basketball for a college powerhouse. Yet the University of Florida, which has won back-to-back national titles in the past decade, has guaranteed him a roster spot for next season.

When people watch Hodskins sink three-point shots and lunge for loose balls, what they notice as much as his missing hand is his drive. He's converted years of slights, perceived and real, into a continual source of energy that he uses to confound opponents. At nearly 6' 4", Hodskins is a strong passer with an amazing ability to sink shots from anywhere. "He doesn't have 3-point range," his coach says. "It's in-the-gym range."

Hodskins, who averaged 11 points a game last season, would be assured significant playing time, perhaps even a starting role, at a lower-level college. But his nature made him accept the Gators. "He has such an extreme desire to prove himself at the highest level he can," his father, Bob, says.

Bob and Stephanie Hodskins didn't know their son would be born without half a limb. They pledged not to treat him differently than his two older sisters. He started playing basketball at age 5 with his dad in the driveway. By third grade, he was hooked.

"I just had to come up with my own style," Hodskins says. "I could catch and pass and shoot all the same and dribbling was fine. It just took a lot of hard work."

In some ways, his disability became an advantage. "It made me want to work harder to overcompensate for things people said I couldn't do."

He never hid his ambition to play in college. To those who doubted him, he said, "Just watch." For every pickup-game captain who didn't choose him, Hodskins stockpiled motivation. Concern that he was pushing himself too hard tempered his parents' pride. "Dial it back," his father would tell him. "You don't have to prove yourself every day."

In middle school, he went out for cross-country, primarily as conditioning for basketball. He promptly placed second in a meet that left him so exhausted his parents feared for his health. Their son's...