The cold weather Thursday did not faze the experience for area youth football players, participating in a free clinic at the University of West Florida, arranged by the Reese’s Senior Bowl.
A dozen future NFL players, all of whom are training for the upcoming Reese’s Senior Bowl week at the EXOS training facility at the Andrews Institute in Gulf Breeze, traveled to UWF’s Pen-Air Field to participate in clinic.
They were joined by UWF football players, including star quarterback Austin Reed, and UWF head coach Pete Shinnick. During the two-hour session, there were specialty drills, followed by autographs and photos with the kids and parents.
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“Even though it was cold, windy and damp, it did not take away from the kids’ enthusiasm and the players’ enthusiasm,” said David Wilson, director of the NFL Flag Pensacola, youth flag football program, who organized the drills and got the aspiring youth players involved.
“(Senior Bowl players) got so involved. And it was so neat and encouraging to watch them work with those kids. It came from the heart. And it just goes to show how special those guys are. We had over 125 kids there.”
The players included several offensive and defensive linemen, like Boston College guard Zion Johnson, rated among the top at their position for the NFL draft.
Michigan State running back/tight end prospect Connor Heyward, younger brother of Pittsburgh Steelers All-Pro defensive tackle Cameron Heyward, was instructing the youngest group of kids, ages kindergarten to second grade.
“I think what really shocked the college players was just how good some of these young kids are,” Wilson said. “They were saying how these really kids were making moves, catching the ball, able to do the drills. They were saying, ‘Hey we are not just baby sitting here. We are teaching stuff.’ So that meant a lot.
“And there were guys on the UWF team, some of those guys who have helped us before with things, that are I know can become excellent coaches. I thought that was amazing.”
Jim Nagy, executive director of the Reese’s Senior Bowl, traveled Thursday to UWF with a couple staff members to help with the event. Nagy remembered his own youth days, growing up in the Detroit area, when he was lucky one day to get a Lions’ player autograph at a mall event.
“I’ll never forget that and I want kids in Pensacola to have a connection with our game,” he said. “This is so nice to be able to do.”
It was the third time in past years the Senior Bowl had a youth clinic in Pensacola. The previous two times, the event was at Blue Wahoos Stadium. This year, with the stadium field under construction for conversion to a synthetic playing surface, the event moved to UWF.
The 73rd annual Reese’s Senior Bowl game is Feb. 5 in Mobile at the new Hancock-Whitney Stadium, home of the University of South Alabama Jaguars.
Wilson said he will look to move the start time for the clinic later in future years, after realizing so many kids in elementary and middle school did not get out of school until after 4 p.m.
His NFL Flag Pensacola youth flag football program has been sponsored since inception years ago by Pensacola native Derrick Brooks, who rose from youth and high school football at Booker T. Washington, then college stardom at Florida State, into becoming a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Bill Vilona is a retired Pensacola News Journal sports columnist and now senior writer for Pensacola Blue Wahoos. He can be reached at bvilona@bluewahoos.com
WANT TO GO?
WHAT: 73rd annual Reese’s Senior Bowl
WHO: Top NFL prospects from colleges across nation
WHEN: Feb. 5, 1:30 p.m.
WHERE: Hancock-Whitney Stadium, University of South Alabama campus in Mobile.
TV: NFL Network
TICKET INFORMATION:www.seniorbowl.com/tickets
Travis Burnett
A pioneer in the flag football community, Travis helped co-found the Flag Football World Championship Tour, FlagSpin and USA Flag. Featuring 15+ years of content creation for the sport of flag football, creating and managing the largest flag football tournaments on the planet, coaching experience at the youth and adult level as well as an active player with National and World Championship level experience.
