ECASD students spend summer training for football at youth camp

EAU CLAIRE — In the midst of summer, Sebastian Westerberg said they like to show area students how they do Old Abe football at Memorial High School.

Throughout the week, students up to eighth grade have been taking part in a summer camp, called Old Abe Football Youth Camp, that is teaching them all things football. Westerberg said they are running through all of the different aspects over a three day period, tackling offense, defense, special teams and a dance party at the end for fun.

“It’s to get them to love Old Abe football and have fun,” said Westerberg, a Memorial graduate of 2022. “You can say that you learn all the fundamentals and stuff, but really it is getting them to come out freshman year and play football.”

Alongside fellow alumni and high school coaches, Westerberg leads the summer camp as campers practice techniques and learn about the sport.

While the opportunity to combine a summer camp between North and Memorial High School was talked about, a decision was made this year to split the training between the schools. Students participating at this week’s events are on a potential path to go to Memorial, while North prepares a training week at their school.

For Westerberg, an event like this is an important part of building a team.

“They are not just our campers, but our players,” he said. “It is one of my favorite times of the year; it gets us prepared for high school football when we start practicing in a couple weeks. It is also a good leadership practice for our players here.”

Talking more about that sentiment and enthusiasm of a strong and fun youth program, Westerberg also said it is something that they want to build moving forward.

“That is something we have lacked in the past — not leadership but developing our youth. Because every great football program — like if you go to Menomonie or Chippewa Falls, they have youth programs all the way from kindergarten up,” he said. “So, it is good that we’re starting it here, and hopefully that’ll translate into numbers when they come in as high schoolers.”

Westerberg said that driving these sports to the younger kids is one of their goals, as the team has even adapted to social media on a number of platforms.

Furthermore, he said that it is also great to see parents cheering on their kids at these events as the kids get outside to have fun with their peers. Some of these kids may go on to participate in soccer, cross country or another sport, said Westerberg, so it is good to get them out and socialize in a setting like the training camp.