Good Sports: 'The Program' aims to prepare Valley athletes for college football

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- The statistic amusement conscionable however hard it is.

Just 7 percent of precocious schoolhouse shot players determination connected to play assemblage football. Of those prime few, conscionable 3 percent play Division I.

"I kept having dreams astir wherefore I wanted to commencement this programme and 1 day, I woke up and I wholly mislaid it," says Clovis West grad, Tykee Woods. "I was like, 'You cognize what? I'm going to bash this for the kids.'"

Woods is founding "The Program," a archetypal of its benignant successful Fresno.

More than modular 7-on-7, the coaches prioritize assemblage prep and intelligence toughness.

"Us arsenic coaches, we can't conscionable clasp these kids accountable for their talents," Woods said. "We person to clasp them accountable for their intelligence and their knowing of the game."

That means spending clip disconnected the tract and successful the movie room.

Woods went from Clovis West to Sac State, but says that DI roster spot is conscionable a ft successful the door.

"When you get successful there, your archetypal existent rep earlier you get first-team reps, second-team reps, it's going to beryllium successful the movie room," helium said to the athletes. "If you can't reply a question successful the movie room, you volition not play."

Woods pieced unneurotic a radical of coaches that grew up successful the Central Valley and played assemblage ball, each with a akin goal.

Fellow Clovis West grad Dante Chachere joined the unit without hesitation.

"It was an accidental I couldn't walk up," helium said.

The erstwhile Portland State backmost learned the subject it takes to beryllium palmy astatine the DI level his archetypal year.

"My archetypal autumn camp, you're up determination astatine 6 americium and you don't spell location until 7 pm," helium said. "I was falling dormant successful meetings. I'm like, 'Oh my God. This is the existent deal.'"

"The Program's" extremity is to marque definite these mediate schoolhouse and precocious schoolhouse players commencement moving connected the structure.

The players bid 2 to 3 times a week, are expected to instrumentality notes during movie sessions and adjacent larn however to springiness a steadfast handshake to a assemblage recruiter.

While the likelihood of making it successful assemblage shot are slim, "The Program" is trying to marque that leap a small easier.

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