By Justin Damasiewicz
A golden opportunity is just around the corner for young football players in Grays Harbor County. The third annual Grays Harbor Football Camp is scheduled for Sunday, June 29, and will take place at Olympic Stadium in Hoquiam.
Former players and coaches with a wealth of experience at the professional and collegiate levels will be brought in from all over the country to share their knowledge with the junior high and high school athletes in attendance.
The camp is being put on by the Grays Harbor Youth Athletic Foundation, which was founded by Dana LeDuc, a part time resident of Ocean Shores. LeDuc is a former strength and conditioning coach of the Saint Louis Rams and the Seattle Seahawks.
LeDuc and Jeremy McMillan have teamed up to provide this event to participants free of charge. McMillan is the offensive coordinator and assistant head coach of the Hoquiam High School football team and the president of Hoquiam Youth Football.
Instructors will include former Washington Huskies and Saint Louis Rams wide receiver Dane Looker, former top overall draft pick of the New England Patriots Kenneth Sims, former Aberdeen High School and NFL offensive lineman Guy Bingham, former Seattle Seahawks offensive lineman Art Kuehn, former Oakland Raiders Super Bowl winning defensive lineman Otis Sistrunk and former Seahawks linebacker Chalie McShane.
“These guys get paid good money to speak and share their knowledge, but everything at this camp is free,” LeDuc said. “Coaches from the local high schools are invited to come as well.”
One of the instructors, two time Super Bowl winning coach Jim Hanifan, even volunteered to meet with any local coaches who are interested on Friday evening before the camp to share his experience. Hanifan has over 30 years of coaching experience between the collegiate level and the NFL.
After checking in and being addressed by a few of the coaches, each player will be assigned to a group, and each group will rotate through six, nine-minute stations of general drills. Then players will break up by position and receive 30 minutes of instruction from a coach with expertise at that position.
However, the emphasis of the camp is not on teaching the players new techniques. The main focus will be encouraging young athletes and helping them learn from the experience of those that have been there before.
“We will do some general drills, but it’s not an X’s and O’s camp,” LeDuc said. “The whole idea is to get the kids exposed to all of these guys from around the country and hear their life stories. During the camp, every single coach will have a chance to address the players. Every coach. We want these kids to know that you can do whatever you want to do.”
“This is a great experience for the football players.” McMillan added. “It’s a great opportunity for the players to meet some experienced former coaches, trainers and pro players. What the kids will learn at the camp is beyond skills and drills, or just football for that matter. The coaches’ stories about their lives and how they got where they are today, hard work, doing the right thing, all the stuff that’s bigger than the game. That’s probably the most important thing kids participating in the camp will get.”
According to LeDuc, the camp is intended to have “as much local flare as possible.” Having coaches like Bingham, McMillan and Hoquiam High School head football coach Rick Moore will certainly help keep a local flavor. LeDuc has also enlisted former Hoquiam Grizzly football players, Ronnie Espedal and Paul Girts, to work as assistant coaches. Espedal and Girts attended the inaugural Grays Harbor Football camp in 2012 when they were entering their senior year at HHS.
Saturday, June 28 will be a full day of fundraising for the Grays Harbor Youth Athletic Foundation. A golf tournament is scheduled for the afternoon at the Ocean Shores Golf Course. Participants can sign up as a group or an individual. At 6 p.m., there will be a prime rib dinner and auction at the Quinault Beach Resort. The cost for the dinner is just $20, and $5 from each plate will go directly to the foundation. LeDuc is hoping that the dinner and auction will attract at least 200 people.
Auction items will include certified-authentic memorabilia autographed by Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson, members of the Seahawks’ Legion of Boom, New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees, former Denver Broncos quarterback John Elway, Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson, Saint Louis Rams quarterback Sam Bradford, Houston Texans top overall draft pick Jadeveon Clowney, Washington State University head football coach Mike Leach as well as other athletes and coaches.
For more information on the camp or fundraisers, email Jeremy McMillan at gh.football.camp@gmail.com or call him at 360-580-0682. More information on the golf tournament can also be obtained by calling the Ocean Shores Golf Course pro shop at 360-289-3357.
