Sports Today: Football league to mix athletics with academics

Organizers of a new youth tackle football league in Douglas County are hoping that the lessons their organization teach will extend far beyond the field and into everyday life.

"We want this to be like life," said Paul Johnston, a director of the new Excel Athletics Football League. "You have responsibilities in life. Kids that come to practice, turn in their homework, put forth the effort, they'll be guaranteed to play."

Excel will be different in may aspects, and yes, he did say homework, but for the most part the league will be looking to present life lessons through football.

"What we're going to try to do is create an equal balance between football and academics," Johnston said. "Every week, the coaches will assign the players homework, like writing a report on a favorite player or on the sport.

"That helps with their writing skills. The next week, they'd have to present the report to the rest of the team, which helps with public speaking. We'll have life skills sessions at every practice where a coach will present an idea like teamwork or honesty, or just doing the right thing to the team and then tell them how it plays out in football and how it plays out every day in real life.

"Everything we'll teach in practice will relate to life. The kids will have to come back every week and explain how what they've learned has helped them out in the last week."

The idea for the league came from a group of parents whose kids were involved in Carson City's Scholars and Champions football league.

"There was a growing group of players from Douglas County, but what we noticed was that it was too far to travel for practice several times a week," Johnston said.

"Since we live in Douglas County anyway, we thought we might be able to enhance the ideas of that league and be able to play against teams within the Valley."

What they will be aiming for this year is four teams each in an 8 to 10 age division and an 11 to 13 age division. The season would start in September and run through November with approximately a seven-game schedule.

"Another thing that will be different for us is that we're looking to play 8-man football," Johnston said. "That way we can have smaller teams of 15 or 16 kids and they will get more one-on-one time with the coach."

Teams would practice a maximum of three times a week with a game on Saturday or Sunday, tentatively scheduled at James Lee Park in Indian Hills.

The major difference between Excel Athletics and Pop Warner, Johnston said, would be the lack of a weight requirement and that the games would all be played within the Valley.

"We're not going to attempt to compete with Pop Warner," Johnston said. "We see both leagues ultimately as feeder programs for the high school," he said. "There won't be any weight restrictions, which will allow some of the bigger kids to stay with their friends.

"You get a situation like my son, who is 5-7, 170 pounds and is only 12 years old. If he played Pop Warner, he'd have to play against much older kids, which is very difficult, because although they may be the same size, the physical maturity and strength is simply not the same.

"Of course, another difference is the incorporated academic aspect. Ultimately, we'd be looking to apply the academic aspect to other sports down the road if this idea is well received."

Players would have to earn playing time, but not based on their ability to play the game.

"We feel that if you guarantee everyone playing time, then there aren't any consequences for a player who misses practice, or neglects the homework assignments," Johnston said. "For us, players who put in the effort and complete the assignments will be rewarded. This league won't be about winning, it will be about how you win. The most important things will be sportsmanship, honor and hard work. If you win without those things, you wouldn't be doing it right.

"When you do those things, you win no matter what the score is. Kids need to be taught to be accountable on and off the field. That's the type of thing we want to instill in our players."

Along with the fall season, Excel Athletics will be looking to run a spring league as well.

"There are kids out there who just love football," Johnston said. "They want to put in the time and get better all year. We want to give them that opportunity."

Johnston, league president Darrin Murray and directors Rick Keema and Jim Schmidt have been developing the principles of the league for several months.

A sign-up for the league will be Aug. 8 from 6 to 8 p.m. at James Lee Park inside the Indian Hills GID building.

Cost is $125 for the season, which includes equipment, referees for games and practice time.

The league is also looking for sponsors to help defray some of the costs and for volunteer coaches who are willing to commit to the academic element of the league.

For more information, call Johnston at (775) 315-4749.