A gift too special to pass up

It's funny sometimes the forms that gifts can come in.

We all know the obvious. You know, the ones with some shiny paper wrapped around them with maybe a nice big bow placed on top.

But some gifts simple arrive in the shape of an opportunity.

For 150-plus high school footballers Friday, they found themselves the beneficiaries of just such a gift at Bandys High.

We are all aware of the mantra. Education is the key that can open the doors to progress in our lives. So naturally, we want the finest teachers available.

With class in session on a muggy afternoon, the instruction offered came from a highly qualified group of professors.

Thanks to the diligence and deep desire to give back from whence he came, former Bandys and current Baltimore Raven receiver Justin Harper gave prospective players the chance to hone their skills under the tutelage of some of the finest instructors in the game.

Houston Texans linebacker Xavier Adibi, Kansas City Chiefs defensive back Brandon Flowers and recent Philadelphia Eagles draftee Victor Harris were all on hand to provide some valuable lessons on the field – as well as off it. Joining them were former All-ACC and New York Giants tailback Chris Douglas, Wake Forest linebacker Matt Woodlief, Virginia Tech quarterback Tyrod Taylor and former Hokies signal caller Cory Holt.

The message delivered: work hard, football can be an avenue for the next step in life, but the education earned away from the gridiron always makes for an effective Plan B.

"That's what we'll be trying to tell the kids," said Harper prior to the start of Friday's camp. "Hopefully this will get these kids to start thinking about school and their future.

"If they're gonna play football, play with a purpose. We have pro athletes here, so why not take advantage and take (football) seriously, and maybe give yourself a chance to go to college and maybe the (NFL).

"That's what happened to me."

To his credit, though, Harper knows the odds of drinking from football's Holy Grail, and he clued the attendees from Bandys, Maiden, Newton-Conover, North Henderson, North Lincoln and South Caldwell in on the fact that not of all of life's lessons come from the field. He knows he's one of the lucky ones.

He's aware that if he earns a Ravens roster spot this fall, he'll live the dream.

But if he doesn't, he's prepared. Football was the stepping-stone to a degree from Virginia Tech.

"That's what football allowed me to do," Harper preached to the group before beginning drills. "But Xavier Adibi and Brandon Flowers, they got the chance to go to college and they got their degrees too.
"Not everyone here is going to be a Division I athlete. But if you hit the books too, you can still maybe go to a Division II or Division III school and be successful in life."

But you know the kids these days. Did they buy in to Harper's words, or were the sounds more akin to those coming from Charlie Brown's teacher?

For at least one participant, the Kool-Aid offered from the former Trojans and Hokies wideout was refreshing.

"Oh, this has been great so far," said Nathan Diehl, a rising senior and receiver at South Caldwell, between the finish of individual drills and the start of seven-on-seven play. "He let us know that even if we can't do to (Division I), we can go to (Division II or III), get educated and still play football because we love it.

"But the help on the field has been really good too. Whenever we would run individual routes, they would tell you how to run routes, stick your plant (foot) and how to beat a (defensive back). That's been great.

"Just talking to them, they're really helpful and they're just down to earth."

And while some kids may still entertain dreams of future stardom, Harper has his about his neophyte camp. This seeds were planted this year, but in the not-so-distant future he hopes they'll be in full bloom.

"I want it to grow to where kids have the mindset that they can improve their skills, and that we have a hard time finding facility big enough to do this," said Harper, who added he will stick around Catawba County and continue working with any players who wish to before returning to Ravens training camp in July. "I have dreams of it getting big enough that all the area schools come out and hear our message."

It's a gift he hopes to offer for years to come.

Let's hope there are enough willing to take it.