Football camp scores with youngsters

Campers race across the football field during drills which were part of the Eagles Youth Football Camp on June 11. The camp sought to teach youngsters the basics of football.

Jill Bock/Standard Democrat

NEW MADRID, Mo. - The heat hung heavy. The humidity left the grass on the football field wet with dew. Yet after three hours of running, passing the ball and pushing the pads, Kavonte Thatch was still all smiles.

The 12-year-old explained by taking part Friday in the New Madrid County Central Eagles Football Youth Camp he was doing what he loved.

“I love to play football. It is one of my favorite sports. I feel like I’m going to be great one day in it,” Kavonte said with a broad grin. He added he wants to be a wide receiver.

Back for its third year after missing last year due to concerns about the spread of COVID-19, the youth camp is designed to teach participants the basics of football, according to Tyler Fullhart, NMCC’s head football coach and the camp’s organizer. Opened to youngsters entering third through sixth grade, 18 were participating in the 2021 camp.

Fullhart and his assistant coaches Jake Kimball, Jonathan Hadden, Jarett Allen, Joe Moss and Matt Hartman divided the participants into groups, moving them around different stations on the high school’s football field. There was the offensive line station, a quarterback station, a running back station and Kavonte’s favorite, the wide receiver station. Later in the morning, the camp focused on defense, taking campers through tackling drills.

Fullhart said he wanted the youngsters to learn all facets of the game.

“A lot of guys will find they enjoy the game maybe more than they thought they did. Maybe they learn a skill they didn’t know previously. That opens doors to them to potentially doing it in the future,” he said. “When you start building a skill at a young age, it all about working that skill and continuously working that skill . . . so they can get better.”

But even more important than learning the basics during the half-day camp, Fullhart said his goal is for each camper to have fun.

“It is good for young kids to get out of the house and be challenged. It may be something they are not real good at but they can work at it and get better at it and that is what makes it fun,” Fullhart said.

Kavonte said he learned how to tackle properly and more about how to improve his catches and his running. He also said there were lessons about sportsmanship and fair play.

“I think that anyone who wants to play football should attend this camp because it is great experience and it will help you in your future,” he added.

William Henner, 8, who wants to play defense some day, agreed.

“It was really exciting and I made new friends and learned a lot about football. Everyone should do it,” William said.

The camp also gave Kavonte, William and the others a chance to meet many of the members of the Eagle football squad, who had joined their coaches at the camp. Fullhart said next fall when the camp participants come to one of the games, it makes those games more fun because they will know the players personally.

It benefits the high school players, too, he continued.

“I think that you can learn as much from teaching as from being taught,” he said. “I like for our guys to get out here and serve the community.”

Matt Riley, the Eagles’ starting quarterback, said he enjoyed teaching the campers about football. Also, he said, he sees it as a way to continue the school’s football traditions.

Riley was impressed by some of the camp’s participants.

“There were a couple who were really good. They knew a lot for their age,” he said.

Senior Ja’mian Golden, who plays on the offensive line and as a defensive tackle, was impressed by the campers as well.

“A lot of them were more athletic that I thought they would be,” he said. “I have loved football since I was little but I wasn’t like that when I was younger. It really did surprise me, them being athletic, fast and strong.”

For those who were still mastering their skills, Golden said he sought to encourage and reassure them.

Fullhart said all those involved worked hard to make the camp a positive experience and an annual event the community would be proud of.

“A lot of times football gets a bad rap but it is a fun game. It is a very fun game and a very challenging game that builds characteristics in young men that I don’t know if you can find in other places - the teamwork, the camaraderie, the challenge of it being hard and overcoming those challenges,” he said. “I want them to have a good time. I want them to have learned a good skill and I want them to look forward to football this fall.”