South Cobb Ravens bring elite youth football to Austell New organization found success on and off the field in inaugural season.
By Benn Wineka | Email the author | January 1, 2011
Sponsored By
Parents always want what's best for their child.
A quality school. Healthy foods. A safe neighborhood. This basic instinct doesn't often trickle down to a child's athletic league though, let alone lead to the creation of an entirely new one.
Last year marked the beginning of a new era in South Cobb youth football culture. Having been pushed away from other Cobb County leagues and organizations due to differences in interest, parents and members of the community decided it was time for South Cobb to field another team on their own terms.
"I was a former president at Milford [Youth Organization] and after my final season with Milford, as far as priorities were concerned, the organization was moving in a different direction," said Shawn Moffett. "We didn't feel comfortable going that direction so we decided to create a program with Antonio Herron, Lawrence Shadd and Demetrius Dallas."
Moffett is now the vice president of the newly formed South Cobb Ravens Association, a youth football and cheerleading organization in Austell. This past fall marked the first chapter in what the organization hopes will become a rich history.
"We built the program to be an elite football program," said Herron, now the president of SCRA. "We want to put together an elite coaching staff and get them where they need to be."
And to compete with the Ravens' company they must be elite. Herron called the Metro Atlanta Youth Football League, a 15-team league of which the Ravens team is a member, the Southeastern Conference of youth football. But more importantly, Herron said too many children had been turned away from football at an early age due to unfortunate circumstances in various leagues.
"You walk around South Cobb High School and you'll see kids way bigger than the team's starters that have never played football," Herron said. "It's because when they were young they weren't given a chance for this reason or another. We want to make sure everybody has an opportunity to play."
The founding members of SCRA aren't the only people who felt this way. In its first season, SCRA fielded six teams over five age groups and had approximately 150 boys in uniform. The young ladies were not left behind either. By the end of the season 60 girls had joined the cheerleading program.
"The families and members of association have been around for years" said Tosca Wright, SRCA cheerleading coordinator and mother of Cochilla and C'Praya Wright, both cheerleaders with SRCA. "Our passion is for the kids. We want them to have a good time in a competitive environment and be mentored at the same time."
With children as young as 4 and up to 14, some of the children have never played the sports at all and others have been playing with the same group for years, albeit in another setting.
Even with SCRA being so new compared to its rivals, the teams have found success. While none of the football teams won championships in the ultra-challenging MAYFL season, the cheerleaders came out victorious. The 14-and-under competitive squad was named Grand Champion of its division at the MAYFL 6th Annual Cheerleading Competition.
Two of the football squads also continued to be victorious after the MAYFL season ended.
"None of the teams won a division in MAYFL this year," Herron said. "The 8-and-under "Black" team and 10-and-under team did participate and win some "Turkey" bowls though."
These "Turkey" bowls, named for the holiday they predominantly fall around, take place over a weekend and may be either single or double elimination format. Under the tutelage of Moffett, the 10-and-under squad was runner-up in what is referred to as the "Battle of Cobb County," or, more formally, the Turkey Day Classic. The classic's field consisted of teams from Alabama, Mississippi, Texas, Ohio, Missouri, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Kentucky, Tennessee, Louisiana, Michigan and New Jersey and was hosted in Marietta, where it has been since 1999. An all-star team from Dayton, Ohio won in the Ravens' division.
Meanwhile the 8-and-under "Black" team with head coach Demetrius Dallas entered four post-season tournaments and won three. One was the inaugural Mid-Florida Football and Cheerleading Association national championship, held in Atlanta. The team defeated a group from Avon Park, Tampa Bay, Fla.
While the accolades and winning are always nice, the organization also aims to provide its athletes with the support the need.
"The organization does offer scholarships for the children if they need them," Wright said. "We also check on the children's grades and make sure they are doing well in school. But we're still focused on providing what the kids want."
.
By Benn Wineka | Email the author | January 1, 2011
Sponsored By
Parents always want what's best for their child.
A quality school. Healthy foods. A safe neighborhood. This basic instinct doesn't often trickle down to a child's athletic league though, let alone lead to the creation of an entirely new one.
Last year marked the beginning of a new era in South Cobb youth football culture. Having been pushed away from other Cobb County leagues and organizations due to differences in interest, parents and members of the community decided it was time for South Cobb to field another team on their own terms.
"I was a former president at Milford [Youth Organization] and after my final season with Milford, as far as priorities were concerned, the organization was moving in a different direction," said Shawn Moffett. "We didn't feel comfortable going that direction so we decided to create a program with Antonio Herron, Lawrence Shadd and Demetrius Dallas."
Moffett is now the vice president of the newly formed South Cobb Ravens Association, a youth football and cheerleading organization in Austell. This past fall marked the first chapter in what the organization hopes will become a rich history.
"We built the program to be an elite football program," said Herron, now the president of SCRA. "We want to put together an elite coaching staff and get them where they need to be."
And to compete with the Ravens' company they must be elite. Herron called the Metro Atlanta Youth Football League, a 15-team league of which the Ravens team is a member, the Southeastern Conference of youth football. But more importantly, Herron said too many children had been turned away from football at an early age due to unfortunate circumstances in various leagues.
"You walk around South Cobb High School and you'll see kids way bigger than the team's starters that have never played football," Herron said. "It's because when they were young they weren't given a chance for this reason or another. We want to make sure everybody has an opportunity to play."
The founding members of SCRA aren't the only people who felt this way. In its first season, SCRA fielded six teams over five age groups and had approximately 150 boys in uniform. The young ladies were not left behind either. By the end of the season 60 girls had joined the cheerleading program.
"The families and members of association have been around for years" said Tosca Wright, SRCA cheerleading coordinator and mother of Cochilla and C'Praya Wright, both cheerleaders with SRCA. "Our passion is for the kids. We want them to have a good time in a competitive environment and be mentored at the same time."
With children as young as 4 and up to 14, some of the children have never played the sports at all and others have been playing with the same group for years, albeit in another setting.
Even with SCRA being so new compared to its rivals, the teams have found success. While none of the football teams won championships in the ultra-challenging MAYFL season, the cheerleaders came out victorious. The 14-and-under competitive squad was named Grand Champion of its division at the MAYFL 6th Annual Cheerleading Competition.
Two of the football squads also continued to be victorious after the MAYFL season ended.
"None of the teams won a division in MAYFL this year," Herron said. "The 8-and-under "Black" team and 10-and-under team did participate and win some "Turkey" bowls though."
These "Turkey" bowls, named for the holiday they predominantly fall around, take place over a weekend and may be either single or double elimination format. Under the tutelage of Moffett, the 10-and-under squad was runner-up in what is referred to as the "Battle of Cobb County," or, more formally, the Turkey Day Classic. The classic's field consisted of teams from Alabama, Mississippi, Texas, Ohio, Missouri, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Kentucky, Tennessee, Louisiana, Michigan and New Jersey and was hosted in Marietta, where it has been since 1999. An all-star team from Dayton, Ohio won in the Ravens' division.
Meanwhile the 8-and-under "Black" team with head coach Demetrius Dallas entered four post-season tournaments and won three. One was the inaugural Mid-Florida Football and Cheerleading Association national championship, held in Atlanta. The team defeated a group from Avon Park, Tampa Bay, Fla.
While the accolades and winning are always nice, the organization also aims to provide its athletes with the support the need.
"The organization does offer scholarships for the children if they need them," Wright said. "We also check on the children's grades and make sure they are doing well in school. But we're still focused on providing what the kids want."
.
We're going WORLD WIDE!
Welcome to USC...
THE University of South Cobb Elite Youth Football Program
Welcome to USC...
THE University of South Cobb Elite Youth Football Program
