The students and coaches pose after the session of the 2nd Annual Copper Country Youth Football Camp on Wednesday, July 9, at Agassiz Field in Calumet. (Provided photo)

CALUMET — Last Tuesday and Wednesday, Agassiz Field in Calumet was host to the 2nd Annual Copper Country Youth Football Camp. A spiritual successor to an older football camp, the Copper Country Camp was well-attended for the second straight year, and Copper Kings football coach Josh Frantti continues to be happy with how well the camp has been received by the larger community.

“We had 100 kids this year,” he said. “Last year, we were about the same between 100-110, and we say it’s the second year, but really this is like Year 20. I kind of took over (from) Andy Crouch (who) used to do this for many years, and he, obviously, retired from that and is doing some different things. It kind of went away for a little bit, maybe two years there wasn’t one.

“There had been some people asking, we tried it all last year, and it’s turned out great.”

In the local area, football is not as popular a sport as it has been in years past, but Frantti, who played for the Copper Kings himself and now has had the chance to coach his children, still believes the sport has crucial life lessons tucked within it.

“Football is one of those sports that teaches so many life lessons, and getting these kids out here at the young age, getting them interested early, and kind of keeping them (interested).

“Obviously, in the U.P., football is starting to start to lose some numbers here and there, but this is kind of promising. We have kids from Houghton, Hancock, Jeffers. I think there’s a kid from Ironwood this year. We have a kid from North Carolina that showed up that was in the area, (and he) heard about it.”

In order to keep that interest, Frantti knows half of the battle is having the right mix of coaches, including his assistants from Calumet, Jeff Hauswirth, the head coach at Hancock, and others, who are interested in building up young players.

“That really says a lot about keeping this game alive,” he said. “In that, you need coaches. We have 10 coaches here today. We have coaches from Houghton, Hancock, Lake Linden. So, that alone is nice to see. 
”It’s hard to find people to put in the time, especially in July when everyone wants to kind of be at the beach. To see this many kids out in July is awesome.”

Having the kids working from station to station for two and a half hours a day can make a huge difference in helping kids improve, or even just learn the game, quickly.

“You even see it from Day One to Day Two, just kind of that learning curve and the kids talking, they enjoy it,” Frantti said. “They get to do everything. They get to be a quarterback. They get to be a lineman, They get to be a kicker. They get to do everything.

“So, no matter what kind of skill level a kid might have, there’s something for them to do that they enjoy, and they like doing it.”

Kids work on their lineman form during the 2nd Annual Copper Country Youth Football Camp on Wednesday, July 9, at Agassiz Field in Calumet. (Daver Karnosky/Daily Mining Gazette)