Young Eagles test their wings

Learning offensively — Local youth spend time at a West Valley Football camp, learning offensive tactics.

Future Eagles learn to fly at West Valley Football Camp. Over one hundred local youth spent July 20, 21, 22 and 23 at West Valley High School in Cottonwood learning about the sport of football and bettering their skills in the sport coached by Greg Grandell. Grandell, his coaches from the West Valley football program and fourteen varsity players donated their time teaching the campers more about passing, throwing, hand-offs, footwork, and other drills that will help them to become better players in the future.

"The Pop Warner coaches are the real coaches and have taught the kids a lot through their seasons. I really admire them for what they have done and have a great deal of respect for them. They make my job a lot easier. I just wish I had more time to spend working with the kids," said West Valley Coach Greg Grandell. "I have had kids in the Freshman and Junior Varsity Programs that have come from the Pop Warner Football Program and that have participated in the West Valley Camps that have a lot of potential."

The varsity players that help with the football camp are committed enough to be at the field two hours early to do their own work out and then spend the next three hours teaching our local youth about football. The camp has been held for free for the past five years and is great way for the West Valley Football Program to give back to the community. It also helps to bring in future players at all levels in to the sport, while helping the economy. A football camp has been held at West Valley each year for the past 20 years.

"The community is really supportive of the camp and all that we are teaching. At the end of the camp we will have part of our time spent with a barbecue, swimming and each child will be given a "Future Eagles T-shirt," stated Grandell. "All of the kids that participated in the camp worked really hard."

The West Valley Football Camp is held each year in mid-July, right before the Pop Warner Football Season begins.