Camps are an annual endeavor for the Columbus Falcons youth football organization.
But a few months ago, coaches in the league were having a meeting and brainstormed about new things they could do for the kids. When someone suggested trying to get professional football players to come to Columbus to give back to the younger players, it sounded like a great idea. The only trouble was finding the connections to set everything up.
It turns out the Columbus Falcons had that covered, too. Thanks to the friendships Columbus Falcons coaches Quinton McCrary and Mario Nash made during their playing days, youth football players in the Greater Golden Triangle area will get a chance to meet and learn from current and former NFL players.
On Saturday, Pittsburgh Steelers running back DeAngelo Williams, former NFL player Brandon McDonald, and former NFL and CFL player Tim Johnson will take part in the Future Stars Elite Skills Camp at Weyerhaeuser Field at the Downtown Soccer Complex in Columbus. The event, which will be from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., will be for players ages 6-14. The cost is $35 per camper. There is a team rate of $20 per player with a minimum of 20 players. Participants will get a camp T-shirt. Food also will be provided. Players are asked to bring cleats and shorts.
Shauncey Henderson, 35, who has coached for all six years the Columbus Falcons have been in existence, said the event is open to all players in the area. He said players don’t have to sign up to play with the Columbus Falcons to attend the camp. He said the goal is to make the camp with NFL players an annual event.
“We just decided to do something bigger and better than what we have been doing,” Henderson said. “We have had our own camp without NFL players for four years. This is the first year we have invited NFL players. When we asked them to come, they all agreed.”
Henderson said the professional players are participating in the camp for free. He said they only asked for a place to stay, but he said they also are interested in coming back next year to help the Falcons realize their goal of making it an annual event.
Williams and McDonald played football at the University of Memphis with McCrary, who played at Columbus High School and is now a defensive coordinator with the Falcons. Nash played football with Johnson at East Mississippi Community College in Scooba.
Williams played the first nine years of his NFL career with the Carolina Panthers. He is set to play for the Pittsburgh Steelers later this year. McDonald played six seasons in the NFL (2007-12) with the Cleveland Browns, Arizona Cardinals, Detroit Lions, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Johnson went on to play football at Youngstown State. He was a member of the Chicago Bears, the Oakland Raiders, and the CFL’s Calgary Stampeders.
Henderson, who played football at New Hope High, said the event will be held rain or shine. He said he is excited to bring in current and former professional players who are as passionate about the game as the players he coaches.
“My defensive coordinator (McCrary) is very passionate about helping these kids,” Henderson said. “McCrary and Nash have stayed in contact with these guys and they see the passion he has for helping kids. That is one of the reasons they wanted to come back and help. They appreciate what he is doing, so they wanted to come back and be a beacon of light. They don’t mind doing it.”
Follow Dispatch sports editor Adam Minichino on Twitter @ctsportseditor
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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