- November 25, 2024
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To realize his love for the game of football at a tender age, Larry Foote got a lift from “The Bus.” As a youngster growing up in Detroit, Foote fondly remembers attending camps hosted by former Steelers running back Jerome Bettis.
“Awesome.” Foote recalled. “Those guys looked huge. I barely knew some of them at this age. But being able to go out there and shake hands and just listen to them and watch them demonstrate.”
Now a 13-year veteran linebacker and two-time NFL champion, Foote is eager to be that role model for the next generation of athletes. He was one of several volunteer coaches on hand Friday when NFL Play 60 held a camp at Ralph Carter Park in Palm Coast. About 134 kids ages 5 to 15 attended the free event, which used football as a vehicle to combat childhood obesity by urging kids to be active for 60 minutes a day.
Campers warmed up, then cycled through half a dozen stations teaching basic agility and football skills. Former Seabreeze standout and Oregon recruit Charles Nelson was one of the volunteers. He’s grateful for his pigskin roots as a member of the Daytona Beach Bucs and was glad to contribute to his home community one last time before heading off to Eugene.
“It’s a great opportunity to get out here before I go off to college and learn a lot more things,” Nelson said. “To just get out here and help the kids better themselves at something it seems like they like to do — it’s a great feeling for me.”
And if each kid took just one thing away from Friday’s camp?
“Work hard and never give up,” Nelson said. “You might not be the best, but that doesn’t mean you’re anything less than anybody else.”
Members of the Jacksonville Jaguars “ROAR” cheerleading squad were on hand, throwing passes at one of the stations. There was also a smattering of blue T-shirts comprising Matanzas football players, who came out in numbers to help out. Pirates coach Robert Ripley said he jumped at the chance to involve his program when approached by organizer Sam Sword.
“The biggest thing that we have to understand is that this is our community,” Ripley said. “These kids are going to be Bulldogs and Pirates some day, so we have to be able to represent our brand and show that we care about these guys.”
Sword is a Palm Coast resident and former University of Michigan standout and NFL journeyman. He organized a youth camp called “En Route to the Heisman,” three years ago; it drew just 25 participants. After exchanging emails with NFL headquarters in New York, New York and assuring the league he’d “protect the shield,” Sword decided to bring Play 60 to Palm Coast.
“It’s great to see these kids out here playing and participating,” Sword said. “The most important thing is, ‘it’s free.’ You see a lot of camps where kids have to pay 50 or 60 dollars; that can be a big strain on a family.”
He hopes to involve the parents in next year’s fitness campaign. In the meantime, Foote just hopes campers enjoy themselves. After taking part in monkey rolls — a drill in which players jump over one another and roll in tandem — he led by example.
“When you’re working out, have fun,” Foote said. “A lot of kids don’t like to do it because they’re not having fun or the coaches aren’t creating that atmosphere of having fun. You can have fun and get in shape for health reasons. (We) encourage them and set up drills where they can compete. If they can compete, it ain’t going to be like a chore.”
