NORTH TONAWANDA — There was a time when North Tonawanda kids didn’t need to be coaxed into playing football. The Lumberjacks routinely produced championship contenders and kids in the city couldn’t wait to put on the NT helmet when they got to high school.
But over the last decade, North Tonawanda has struggled to put together a winner, stringing together just two seasons with a record of .500 or better in the last nine years. It hasn’t qualified for the playoffs since 2016.
So if the kids won’t come to the Lumberjacks at the same rate anymore, new coach Chris Tideswell decided to go to them. Instead of waiting until kids reach high school, Tideswell decided to introduce them to North Tonawanda football early.
The Lumberjacks are hosting their inaugural Junior Jacks Camp from 6 to 8 p.m. July 16-17 at George J. Vetter Stadium. The free camp is open for all male and female students enrolled in the NT City School District with the July 16 session open for ages five to nine while the July 17 session is for ages 10 to 14.
“What I’m most looking forward to is hanging out with the kids,” senior Christian Earnst said. “I’m (working) at the (NT Youth Center) all the time and built relationships with the kids around. I know a lot of them and it will be nice telling them my skills and what to do and how to get better.”
Creating the Junior Jacks camp is Tideswell’s brainchild but he needed some help to get it off the ground. Tideswell pitched the idea of a youth camp to athletic director Matt Cook during the interview process in January and continued after he accepted the job as the program’s eighth coach in 13 years.
Cook spear-headed the camp by helping schedule the turf’s availability for the two days. Plus, Tideswell and Cook discussed how to best spread the information on the camp, including on social media.
The objective of the camp isn’t to learn strategy but rather the fundamentals of the game, as Tideswell explained. And while there weren’t specifically targeted age groups for the camp, Tideswell designed the camp to get kids interested in the sport and program as early as possible in a fun and educational way.
“I think it’s a good way to get kids excited about the program that might not know about it,” North Tonawanda football coach Chris Tideswell said. “I also think it’s a good way to expose the kids that are interested in football to the varsity culture we’re trying to build. I mean, growing up, the varsity players were always people I looked up to, so, I’m hoping that this camp helps do that for the future generations.”
Forty-one total kids in North Tonawanda have enrolled for the camp. With NT’s varsity coaching and players on-hand to coach, participants will learn a variety of skills at the camp.
Skills that will be taught to the participants include throwing, pass-blocking, run-blocking, catching and kicking a field goal. Aged specific punt, pass kick competitions will also take place during the camp.
Additionally, guest speakers, who will be revealed on the days of the camp, will talk to the participants about the sport, while Tideswell is arranging to have members of the North Tonawanda Hall of Fame on-hand to meet with families to provide more information.
Along with preparing for his first varsity football season in September, Tideswell is a physical education teacher in the district. Tideswell hopes the camp will help the young students provide a familiarity with not only him and his coaching style but also with the varsity players ahead of the season.
“I want these younger generations to look at our guys as role models,” Tideswell said. “And, I think the best way of being a role model is actions rather than words. So, if they’re in there being encouraging, leading the stations, really just kind of having fun with the kids, I think that’ll make the kids excited.”
For more information, email Tideswell at coachtides55@gmail.com. Interested students and families are encouraged to pre-register for the camp but walk-ups are welcomed.