Enshrinement Week | Hall of Famers back in Canton to share wisdom with youth football players

CANTON — The game of football continues to be shared with the next generation. Enshrinement week brings one of the best opportunities to do so.

Nearly 400 children ages 10 to 14 gathered at the Pro Football Hall of Fame Village’s ForeverLawn Sports Complex for the eighth annual Play Football Skills Camp . Participants rotated through six stations that each included a returning Pro Football Hall of Famer.

“I like how I got to meet a bunch of Hall of Famers,” participant Luca Palomba said. “They tried to help us throw the football or do a route.”

The Hall of Famers shared their knowledge of the game with the kids and tried to teach valuable lessons. Wide receiver Isaac Bruce who was elected to the Hall in the Class of 2020 reflected on his personal experience.

“It’s fun to have an opportunity to pour into the next generation of football players, the next generation of citizens and the next generation of entrepreneurs,” Bruce said.

Another Hall of Famer lending a helping hand was John Randle from the Class of 2010 . He has a story of perseverance from being undrafted to becoming one of the best defensive tackles in history .

“I could have never imagined I would be in this position. I’m always excited to come back to Canton and just be around football. For me, football saved my life where I didn’t think I belonged,” Randle said.

Canton has become a second home for Randle, who regularly returns for enshrinement week. Many other past inductees are able to say the same.

Jacob Ray, youth education and leadership manager at the Hall, has realized how special Canton can be to inspire a new generation of football players.

“We have a lot of the same Hall of Famers come back every year, and we really like that. It’s a testament to not only the camp and how important it is to them, but how important the idea of coming out here and coaching these kids is,” Ray said.

High school football players from Shelby High School also gained valuable experience assisting the participants and interacting with the Hall of Famers.

Denny Lafon, a senior at Shelby, has valued his time at camp teaching the kids to be passionate about the sport. He remembers what it was like to watch the game while he was younger.

“When I was young, I started watching Ohio State football and then I would throw a football around,” Lafon said. “Being here tonight, it means a lot. It’s good to spend time with the kids and have a positive influence on them.”

Some of the children had a lot of previous experience playing the game while others were brand new to it. Emilia Rose James was one of the participants who got her first chance at actually playing football during the camp.

“I think it was really fun and I learned a lot about football since I’ve never actually played before,” James said.

James is in town from California to visit her grandma for the week. At the end of the night, she was one of the two recipients of the Hail Mary award for traveling the farthest to Canton. The Hall of Famers each signed an autographed football that she received.

Each participant was impacted in their unique way no matter if they came from near or far. Putting on a camp of this kind undoubtedly grew the game and inspired many.

This article originally appeared on The Repository: Enshrinement Week | Hall of Famers back in Canton to share wisdom with youth football players