SHAWNEE, Kan. — Having one of the biggest events in sports right here in Kansas City, Missouri, can serve as tremendous inspiration for the young athletes in the area.
Two players on the Mill Valley Football Team say watching the athletes in the draft serve as motivation to work harder, and they hope to see themselves up there in the future.
“Most people I guess don’t understand the time and effort that is put in, that these athletes do on a daily basis," said Gus Hawkins, a junior offensive lineman. "And it amazes me how hard they work and the standards that they put on themselves."
From 6:30 a.m. weight lifts, to off-season conditioning, every rep is a step towards the big leagues.
Hawkins says the road to making football a career is repetition and taking it one day at a time.
“All the guys that I’m trying to be like are in the weight room lifting hard, they’re going heavy. They don’t care how they feel. Me knowing that just kind of reminds me that I gotta go,” Hawkins said. “I gotta go and be the best high school player I can be and then go be the best college player I can be, and then god-willing that day comes, you know maybe be the best professional player I can be.”
Hawkins had a taste of that success along with his Mill Valley High School football team when they won state last year.
“I play a more selfless position, so a lot of times whenever I succeed, you know, sometimes the play doesn’t always go great," Hawkins said. "But you know, celebrating with teammates at the end zone after we score is just an amazing feeling."
Also a part of the state-winning team was sophomore Jayden Woods, who says the NFL is a dream he wants to achieve not only for himself, but also for his father.
“Just to carry on what he started," Woods said. "He didn’t get to make it to the NFL."
Seeing the stage up in their backyard, that lofty dream does not seem so out of reach.
“We’ve had one young man in our program here that thought he was gonna get drafted last year and didn’t get drafted," said Coach Joel Applebee. "But, he signed as a free agent. So he was a great example for us to see. You know, I mean, he was an elite athlete. And it just shows how hard it is to make it at that level."
—
