The Athens High School football team has relied on their hard work, perseverance and never-say-quit mindset to make it through the long and grueling journey each season brings.
On Monday, July 15, Golden Eagles players and coaches passed down those qualities to a few lucky members of the next generation at their annual youth football camp.
“This is the greatest game ever invented, and I know I may be biased,” Cody Gross, Athens High School head football coach, said. “We live in a soft world, and football ain’t soft. We need our men to grow up doing tough things, and football is one of those things.”
Like most nights at Athens Stadium, Gross was yet again the main signal caller, instructing each group of rowdy and rambunctious kids to their different stations for drills.
“It’s good to see them out here with as much energy as they have,” Gross said. “We want them smiling, having a good time. We are going to teach them how to play every position, so hopefully they want to play football for us when they grow up.”
The camp, which started at 5:30 p.m. lasted until 8 p.m., gave more than 30 kids — ranging from first through sixth grade — the opportunity to experience a night under the stars as they learned the basics of the sport.
Gross was joined at the camp by a few of his players from this year’s AHS football team, as well as a majority of his coaching staff. They all helped the kids through stretches, agility drills and speed drills to name a few from the night’s action.
“I’ve been very fortunate to hire good men who really care about people and the community, because they don’t get paid to do some of this stuff,” Gross said. “They are going to give these kids their best to make an impact on these kids’ lives. It’s really not about football, it’s about using this game to teach some valuable life lessons.”
Brogan Gross, the son of Coach Gross and the starting quarterback for the varsity football team, mentioned that this coaching staff has had a major impact on his athletic career and his life.
“We have the best coaches around, they help everybody from 5-year-olds to seniors like me,” Brogan said. “It means a lot to see the same coaches, who have helped me out on this same field, are now out here working with the future of Athens football.”
Brogan referenced his personal journey when he said the future of Athens football is going to be bright, all because of the work these coaches are putting in now.
“I remember doing these same drills when I was their age, so these kids are definitely the future of Athens if they can keep it up,” Brogan said. “We just want to make sure they enjoy their time out here, so that way they keep coming out here every year to get better. I see a lot of future Golden Eagles out here.”