Guard, NFL team up to develop future leaders, athletes Published May 18, 2010 By Sgt. Darron Salzer National Guard Bureau ARLINGTON, Va. (AFNS) -- The National Football League's High School Player Development program, sponsored by the National Guard, invited nearly 200 local high school football athletes to a one-week camp last week at a local Washington, D.C., high school. The HSPD program, now in its seventh year, provides high school sophomores through seniors the opportunity to develop their fundamental football skills, while also teaching them how to be successful in life through character development. "(This program) was a vision that the NFL had back in 2003," said Jerry Horowitz, the NFL director of high school player development. "We started with two sites in New York City with about 500 kids and 40 coaches. "The program has grown since then, and the biggest thing to happen to us is that the National Guard has come on as a sponsor and given us an opportunity to go nationwide," he said. About 125 sites will participate this year, spanning 16 states. "We are indebted to the National Guard for giving us the opportunity to share this (program) with 1.2 million high school kids throughout the country," Mr. Horowitz said. The HSPD program can now reach out to nearly all high school football coaches in the nation and provide them the tools through which to develop the character of their players, he said. "The NFL recognizes that not all of the program participants will someday play in the NFL," he said. "But they all will be entering society, and we hope that we are making them better citizens." NFL officials recognize the great success of the program and the wealth of unintentional opportunities and knowledge that it provides to young student athletes, he said. "We have ... coaches who come out, and many of the kids are afforded a network where these schools have offered them an opportunity to attend and further their football careers," Mr. Horowitz said. "Inadvertently, (the program) promotes sportsmanship, creating a mutual respect among participants who viewed each other as enemies before, and responsibility," he said. The National Guard-sponsored program is not only an opportunity for high school athletes to learn life-skills from the coaches, but it also gives them the chance to learn from Soldiers about teamwork and success. "HSPD is a great program that we have with the NFL that allows us to reach kids at a young age and tell them about the values and teamwork that (are) involved with achieving success," said Army Lt. Col. Bill Dones, the chief of the Army National Guard's advertising and marketing branch. "(The National Guard) is a small part of it, but I think that we're a positive part of it." The Guard participates in the program to interact with the students and answer any questions that they may have about the Guard, Colonel Dones said. He added that the Soldiers want to show the students that they are one of them. "It's a great partnership that I'm hoping to see morph into something bigger and better, and I think it can only go up from here," he said.