City’s new youth football league to host first camp

By Jeremy D. Smith (Contact) | Demopolis Times

Published Wednesday, July 23, 2008

DEMOPOLIS — The Demopolis Youth Football League will combine efforts with high school coaches and players Saturday to host the city’s first youth football camp. The event, designed to both hone the skills of young athletes and encourage hesitant potential players, is the first of many joint ventures between the programs that organizers believe will enrich the city’s gridiron culture.

“The league we used to be in was solely Demopolis. This league here, we’ll play as a Demopolis team,” Mark McVay of the Demopolis Youth Football League said of the change from Pop Warner to DYF. “We’ll be playing other teams in other areas.”

The move, which organizers expect will benefit the city’s football programs in multiple ways, is based on a concept that has led to great success in other areas.

“It wasn’t an original idea by us,” Causey said. “Back in the mid 80s, a guy named Nick Hyder in Valdosta, Ga. started that with his youth football teams. In Valdosta, they don’t have a trophy case, they’ve got a trophy wing.”

The new program’s anticipated rewards are multi-faceted. First, the players are expected to develop a greater sense of community at an earlier age.

“It establishes a little more pride in the community,” Causey said.

In addition to developing pride in their hometown, players are also expected to develop an otherwise unattainable familiarity with one another.

“You get to play together form the time you’re 7 until you’re 18,” Causey said.

Moreover, players may be granted the opportunity to become more specialized in their skill sets as the new league will make for deeper teams.

“One benefit is where we had to play a lot of kids both ways, we’ll be able to split them up and try to concentrate on one or the other,” McVay said.

According to McVay, youth league coaches will largely be using the same terminology and schemes as the middle and high school programs, providing players experience with the system before their arrival on the DMS and DHS campuses.

“When they get to the high school, it’s not having to learn it over or in a different way,” McVay said. “It’s just going to be repetition.”

“There’s no doubt it’s going to be huge for our football program,” Causey said.

The new league will be divided into three age groups, 7 and 8-year-olds, 9 and 10-year-olds and 11 and 12-year-olds. Each age group will have a one team to represent Demopolis. Each team is without roster limits and will have its own cheerleading squad.

Organizers also hope to make the preseason camp an annual tradition, beginning with Saturday’s event.

“I’m not sure how many (kids) we’re getting. We’d like to see well over 100,” McVay said.

“If they want to learn some football and have a good time, sign up for the camp,” Causey said.

The camp is scheduled to run from 8 a.m. to noon at Memorial Stadium. The cost is $15 for pre-registration and $20 for those registering at the gate. Pre-registration information is available at Omni Sports and Tools for Learning.