Vintage football camp great way to promote sport, build in-roads

In order for a chain to have any kind of length, the links must come together.

Though I no longer have a job that involves being in front of a computer, I check my phone every so often throughout the day for Facebook notifications and e-mails. I got the former from Vintage High football head coach Dylan Leach that traveled rapidly, as in me of all people were one of 37 tagged in said message. OK, so part of me is being humorously self-deprecating but I was honored that Leach tagged me in this message.

In case you have been vacationing in the North Pole or the Bahamas within the past year, Leach returned to his alma mater to be the Crushers head coach after five seasons as defensive coordinator at crosstown rival Napa. Leach was on the Vintage staff in various capacities from 2000-2009.

Relevant to Leach’s social media post, it pertained to a youth football camp he and the Crusher coaching staff is hosting from July 17-21 at Memorial Stadium. The camp runs from 8 a.m. to Noon from Monday to Thursday and 6 to 8 p.m. on Friday.

The purpose of the camp is for youngsters from ages 7-14 to get detailed instruction from the Crushers’ coaching staff. The camp will include but not be limited to the following: a) Position based instruction, b) Speed and agility development, c) Proper body mechanics both pertaining to the weight-room and field, and d) Nutrition information.

Both boys and girls are welcome to attend and previous playing experience is not required. Youngsters will be provided a healthy snack and ample hydration. As one who delivers bottled water for a living I offer this bit of unsolicited advice, hydration is vital and weather should have no influence. Plus, tap water is horrible. Drink the bottled stuff but I digress.

Youngsters are encouraged to bring both running shoes and cleats. Participation also involves a Vintage Crushers t-shirt. In the interest of safety, players will be split according to size and skill level.

What Leach, who is a 1992 Vintage High graduate, is doing carries even more importance for sports like football. That is not meant as a slight against other sports but achievements in football change the perception of the school more so than any other sport.

Vintage enters its final season in the Monticello Empire League and the CIF Sac Joaquin Section. Declining enrollment in the Napa Valley Unified School District at least partially based on the rise of real estate prices has played a role in families getting pushed out of Napa County and more so into Lake, Solano and Contra Costa Counties. Vintage, Napa and American Canyon will compete in the North Coast Section beginning in 2018. It’s just a matter of which league. That would fall into the “another story for another day” category.

The camp is significant for another reason because high school football games are like an event because they are held at a time (i.e. Friday night or Saturday afternoon) when they do not overlap with other events.

Some people might contend that the most talented program always wins. Well, having talent is necessary, but what truly makes a small town athletic program is the quality of coaching and the community connection. Napa is not a small town by population (75,000 plus or minus a few) but it still has a small town mentality, which can be good or bad. I’d say the former more so than the latter.

Since going 8-3 under Les Franco in 2000, Vintage has mostly been fair to midland among its MEL counterparts. The Crushers haven’t been good enough to be Napa or Vacaville but not bad enough to be Armijo or Rodriguez.

I don’t say this to be a homer but I believe the Crushers landed a very good choice when the job came open in March 2016. Because Leach can mention names like David Illsley, Steve Buccellato, Warren Bowers and Conrad Alvarez and other Vintage greats, his message carries even more credence.

How successful will the Crushers be under Leach? They were 5-5 last season but time will tell because 2017 has not kicked off yet. Vintage is talented but young. That’s another story for another day. Leach is a well-liked and well-respected Vintage alum, I’ve known him mostly in passing the last 17 years or so. He’s not only a very good coach but a person of high character.

This sentiment ties even further with the camp because kids from ages 7-14 are impressionable. The lessons they learn in this camp will stick with them. While it does not mean that every camper will become a Vintage Crusher when they reach high school, and nor is that the purpose, but establishing that community presence is vital.