The Herald-Zeitung

During his seven-year tenure as coach of Canyon, Les Davis has gone through loads of changes but one thing that hasn’t changed is his excitement as he walks on the field during the summer months watches the young kids enjoying themselves at the annual Cougar youth football camp.

“This really gets everyone excited about football,” said Davis. “This gets the coaching staff back on the field and out of the office as we plan for the upcoming season.”

The camp drew 270 kids from seventh through ninth grades to this long tradition at Canyon that Davis says is something he looks forward to year in and year out.

“I think I love the fact that the kids really enjoy themselves as they’re learning the game of football,” said the Canyon coach. “There is no pressure of a season upon you and we can enjoy the time we have with the kids to get to know them as a person.

“I love it.”

The goal of any youth football camp is to lay a foundation of the fundamentals.

But Davis says that this corp group of kids are introduced to what it is like to be a Cougar varsity player, as they learn the same schemes, plays and terminology that’ll that be exposed to during middle and high school football.

“The goal of the middle and high school programs is continuity,” said Davis. “The most important part is to get these kids acclimated to the way we do things and that’ll help them prepare to be players at the varsity level.”

The four-day camp has been a part of the fabric of the Canyon tradition for over a decade and Davis believes that it is a vital component to a successful football program.

“You have to have a way to expose kids to the game of football and get them enthused about playing,” said Davis. “The last thing we want is a kid turned off by a bad experience, so we gear this camp to give the kids a goal to strive for.

“It doesn’t matter if they become members of the Cougar varsity squad, but it is important for them to have a passion for life and this game. It is just a lot of fun for everyone.

With Cougar training camp beginning on Aug. 10, Davis and his staff had the opportunity to give the kids a head start on the upcoming season and also do a bit of scouting for future Canyon players.

“We don’t have much interaction with kids at the lower levels except with this camp,” Davis said. “So this gives us a great chance to see what kind of talent we have coming up through the ranks.

“You’re always looking for that diamond in the rough and this is where we’re able to identify players with a unique grasp of the game.”