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At youth camp, former Bears’ lessons go beyond game
Joe Stevenson
June 28, 2007
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CRYSTAL LAKE – Former Bears linebacker Ron Cox loves talking to young aspiring football players, sharing his knowledge of how to play the game and trying to put smiles on their faces.
And when the subject turns to something less desirable, Cox is adept enough to make the proper adjustment.
“The first question I got a kid asked me about Tank Johnson,” said Cox, who along with former teammate Glen Kozlowski, attended the Chicago Bears Youth Football Camp on Wednesday at the YMCA of McHenry County. “Unfortunately, there can always be a bad apple, but it doesn’t spoil the whole bunch. You just throw it out. It’s sad you have to talk about it. It throws a dark cloud over everybody.”
Johnson was cut by the Bears on Monday after a series of off-field incidents that left Bears management with what it felt was no other choice. Cox was able to use the topic to make a point.
“I spent a lot of time talking about team and being a responsible teammate,” Cox said. “Football’s the greatest game in the world. I had a wonderful time at the camp. Anytime you can give kids a pat on the back, it’s great.”
Cox, who played with the Bears for parts of seven seasons beginning in 1990, lives with his family in McHenry. Kozlowski, in his sixth season as head football coach at Wauconda High School, played wide receiver for the Bears from 1987-92.
Each day, players from ages 6-14 receive instruction from camp coaches, then spend time with “heroes,” former Bears players who impart some wisdom from their experiences.
This is the fifth year the camps have been run in northern Illinois. There are 15 heroes on the current camp roster who take turns visiting the camps each day.
“There may be kids trying football for the first time, and they can sample the game and get some quality coaching,” said Tom Finks, the executive director of Pro Sports Experience, an organization that helps set up the camps. There are 26 camps scheduled throughout the summer.
Michael Ricks, 10, of Lake in the Hills, enjoyed the experience last year so much he returned this week.
“They show you great drills that really get you in shape,” said Ricks, who will be a fifth-grader at Lake in the Hills Elementary School. “I like to see lots of the old Bears players.”
Josh Amos, 14, will be a freshman at McHenry’s West campus and picked up on the former players’ important messages.
“They teach you about being healthy and getting good grades,” Amos said. “And they teach you about good character and being good role models for kids. It’s kind of cool to hear the Bears telling us their stories about when they started to play.”
Kozlowski was on board with Finks when the program started five years ago.
“As head coach at Wauconda, I don’t have as much time to give, but I’ve always liked working with kids,” said Kozlowski, who has three of his high school assistant coaches working the camp. “I’ve always been a big believer that, as professional athletes or former athletes, we have a responsibility to try to be role models. Hopefully we can tell them things so they don’t make mistakes some young athletes are making today.”
There will be another Bears camp at the YMCA of McHenry County from July 9-13. Sessions are $355 and run from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday. Information is available online at BearsCamps.com.
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