The Arena Football League’s Philadelphia Soul are currently 10-0. They have had one bye week in their past 11 weeks of play. The playoffs will take place in just over a month.
It would be easy to think a player’s main focus would be on the back half of the season. However, for wide receiver Darius Reynolds, he has returned to Iowa and is back to work.
Focus Up, Darius Reynolds Host 3rd Annual Kids Camp
The former Iowa State great came out to the Story County Boys and Girls Club in Ames, IA on his week off to put on a youth football camp.
Plus, the camp had a catch: the whole thing was free.
“I love it,” Reynolds said. “When I’m [in Philadelphia] playing football, I’m kind of coaching up the receivers anyway. I don’t have to play football this week. I’d rather teach it.”
With the help of Focus Up, a non-profit organization, Reynolds and company hosted around 50 kids from the ages of 6-14 at the camp on Friday.
“Fully Focused sports and fitness is a family business,” Founder and CEO William Stokes said. “We pretty much just manage the athletes and interaction with the community.”
The organization represents a multitude of athletes, some of which played on the 2014 Iowa Barnstormers along with Reynolds.
Among the list are Ter’Ran Benton, Reshard Simmons, DeJay Leaster, and Julian Williams, who all were present to help with the camp.
“It’s a family business so we always appreciate our time together,” Stokes said. “We just took it to a whole different level as far as business goes.”
The company has put on the camp for three years now, but Reynolds wasn’t able to make it due to such a heavy AFL schedule.
My group is very strong,” Reynolds said. “They started this up and told me keep believing, it’s [going to get big].”
Reynolds is getting more involved in coaching as his football career lives on.
“I’m getting a little older I need to start thinking about life after football,” Reynolds said. “This is probably the thing I want to do after my career.”
However, Reynolds’ career isn’t slowing down any time soon. He currently leads the AFL with 28 touchdowns on the year.
“These kids will probably keep me playing,” Reynolds said. “I’m not going to put a timeline on it, as long as my body can play, I’m going to keep playing.”
Reynolds and the Soul will return to action on Saturday when they take on the Baltimore Brigade on the road.
