Youths Tackle Field Goals, Life Goals in League

Geared with oversized helmets and bulging shoulder pads, the diminutive gladiators take the field. They slam and tackle ball-carriers during practice just like their heroes of weekend TV.

A cross between the L.A. Raiders and the Little Rascals, they are the youths of the Baldwin Hills Football Assn. of the King Football Conference.

“There is nothing funnier than seeing some of the younger kids try and imitate their football heroes,” said Reggie Luck, assistant coach of the Baldwin Saxons. “Many of the youngsters do touchdown dances like the older kids. It can be a very humorous situation.”

End-zone celebrations aside, the members of the football association stress substance over style. The children will need more than fancy footwork to avoid life’s major obstacles.

Said Luck: “I think this league is important because it keeps the kids off the street by giving them something positive to do. Football keeps them disciplined and forces them to use their mind, because they have to concentrate and pay attention to what is going on around them.”

The Baldwin Hills association has been around since 1958. It is one of the eight associations--along with Culver City, Greater Compton, Los Angeles Sheriff’s, Long Beach, Lynwood, Mid-Wilshire and North Compton--that make up the King Football Conference, a Pop Warner-like football league for more than 1,000 youths.

One day, some may follow their predecessors in showcasing their football skills in sold-out stadiums.

“Sharmon Shah (UCLA), Lamant Warren (Colorado), Beno Bryant (Washington) and Warren Moon (Houston Oilers) are some of the college and professional players that came out of our program,” said Vera Ford, president of the Baldwin Hills Football Assn.

Moon believes playing in the Baldwin Hills program as a youth kept him off the streets and away from trouble.

“It was the most positive of all my experiences I had growing up,” Moon said. “I was able to play for coaches who cared about kids and who taught discipline and respect. There is no question that my experience in (Baldwin Hills) laid the groundwork for a lot of the success I’ve had since.”

And Danon Wirt, four-year coach of the Junior Bantam team, believes that the Baldwin Hills association has another future star in 11-year-old Johnny Bentley.

“You are looking at the next Emmitt Smith,” said Wirt, referring to the running back for the Dallas Cowboys. “Johnny has scored three touchdowns in all three games his team has played in. He has instinctual moves that you don’t normally see in a kid his age. Other kids can’t understand how Johnny could be so good, but he is a prime example of natural talent.”

Bentley, somewhat oblivious to the implications of such a comparison, just smiled. “I like to juke people, hit a hole, spin away and score touchdowns,” he said. “It’s fun to play and win.”

Wirt, a 23-year-old physical education major at Santa Monica College, hopes to be a high school or college coach someday.

“We all coach on a volunteer basis, so I figured I would start here,” he said. “This type of program gives these kids the courage to not only go out for their high school football teams but to possibly go to the next level.”

In the meantime, the youths are having fun. And so is Ford.

“I get so much out of watching these kids have fun and grow from boys into young men,” said Ford, who took over as president in 1991. “Not only do these kids learn to develop their skills, but they also learn sportsmanship and how to interact with one another.”

Most of the associations have a team in one of five divisions primarily based on age and weight: Tiny Mite (7 to 8 years old), Mighty Mite (9 to 11), Pee Wee (12), Midget (12 to 13) and Junior Bantam (13 to 15).

The teams, with a maximum of 33 players, compete in inter-divisional games. The Culver City Midget team, for example, plays the Greater Compton Midget team. There are about seven Saturday morning contests during the regular season and as many as three playoff games.

Each youth pays a $75 registration fee every year. Those who do not make a team can be refunded up to $60, while $15 of the registration fee, which goes toward administrative paperwork, is non-refundable.

Helmets, shoulder pads, jerseys and pants are provided by the league; mouthpieces, forearm pads, socks and cleats must be bought individually.

This season, the conference has welcomed a girl into the fray for the first time in its history.

Thirteen-year-old Nadelle Hamby, Nay-Nay to her peers, has been the topic of conversation and controversy since she joined the Baldwin Hills association in August.

“A lot of coaches didn’t think she was going to make it because she was a girl,” Luck said. “But I believed in her, because you can’t count these kids out when they put their mind to something.”

Hamby, who attends nearby Audubon Junior High, is a starting member of the offensive and defensive lines for the Baldwin Saxons (Midget) team.

Football and basketball are more common activities for Hamby than roller-skating or Double Dutch. “I grew up playing football and basketball at school and with my friends, so it’s second nature to me,” she said.

“What I like most about football is that everyone is needed to make the team win. I want to try and play wherever I can. If I can be the first female to play in college or the pros, then I will. Not to make a statement, but because I like it.”