Learning from the best: Football for Life camp
inspires area youth

KAYENTA

In hopes of inspiring the next generation of athletes, the Football for Life nonprofit organization conducting its camp at Monument Valley High School for the second consecutive year.

The event on Saturday registered 70-plus youth for its free football and softball camps under the direction of camp coordinator Joe Pina.

“We just want to give the kids the opportunity to go to a good quality camp like ours,” Pina said. “Where we’re from, you could go to one these camps every weekend, right? The kids just don’t have that here, so we want to make sure that these kids have that opportunity.”

Pina says the nonprofit has operated camps on reservations in South Dakota, California, Oklahoma, Arizona and New Mexico. These camps are being conducted by former collegiate players with most of them being Native Americans.

At the one-day camp in Kayenta, the Native coaches included Eriq Swiftwater, Christian Littlehead and Kansas Middletent.

“For me, it’s a blessing to be out here, you know, to be able to reach out to these kids through Football for Life,” said Littlehead, who is a member of the Yuchi Muscogee Creek Nation.

The Oklahoma native graduated in 2010 from Sequoyah High School, earning All-American honors, which led to a handful of offers from schools in power conferences.

“I ended up choosing Oklahoma State and played their 2010 to 2013,” Littlehead said. “I was an All-Big 12 Freshman and then I was part of the Fiesta Bowl Champion as well.”

Littlehead worked with 10 campers alongside former Cleveland Brown player Brandon Braxton as the two coaches shared their knowledge about what it takes to be successful linemen.

“I enjoyed being out with the kids, being able to give back,” Braxton said. “It’s a humbling experience. The kids are my passion, so I wouldn’t rather be doing anything else.”

The former Oklahoma Sooner standout says there were several factors that led to his success as a collegiate and pro player, and he shared that with his students.

“Making that extra effort in doing the little things makes a difference,” Braxton said. “That’s what we harped on with the kids, you know, the details. Making sure they are crossing the T’s and dotting the I’s. Just taking it personal, being very intentional about doing the little things the right way. And then, you just build good habits that way.”

Former Colorado State player Justin Sanchez headed the running back and linebacker corps and he too was shared his knowledge of what it takes to play at the next level.

“It takes perseverance and nothing but hard work,” Sanchez said. “It doesn’t matter how talent you are. There are so many people that are out there that are talented. What separates you is your work ethic and how much you’re willing to put in to get what you want.”

Sanchez says the kids he worked with were excited about what he was teaching them.

“They seemed really enthusiastic about it,” the southern Californian said of his pupils. “They love football. I think they love the fact that, you know, somebody like Eriq Swiftwater came down here, just showing what it’s about, and how far they can take it.”

Swiftwater, a member of the Oglala Lakota tribe, played collegiately at Black Hills State before earning a spot on the Duke City Gladiator semi-pro football team.

At Saturday’s camp, Swiftwater gave insights with a group of high school receivers. Two of those participants included MV Mustang players Roque Todecheene and Cordai Franklin.

“I think the one-on-one drills taught us more of the physical stuff because we got a lot of hands-on practice,” Todecheene said. “He (Swiftwater) showed us how we can use our hands. We also learned a lot about footwork and how we can use that as an advantage.”

“It was like a refresher course,” Franklin said while adding that the drills they went through got him to focus on what he needs to work on to have a successful junior campaign.

Longtime MV football coach Bryan Begay was very appreciative that Football for Life coordinator Joe Pina reached out to him in having the Kayenta high school host the camp.

“He heard about all of the offseason activities we were doing, and he reached out to me on Facebook,” Begay said. “That is how we connected and he’s a coach that support our Indigenous athletes. That is how the partnership started and a lot of great things came out of it.”

Begay says it’s a big plus to have the youth work with coaches who have gone to the next level.

“A lot of these guys are from reservation communities and they’re bringing back what they experienced to the youth,” Begay said. “It’s kind of neat to see a different perspective, of them giving back to the Indigenous youth, you know, them talking about their experience and them telling them about how they can make it and what avenues they need to take to overcome some of the misconception of Native athletes.”

As for his own athletes, “it’s an opportunity for them to work with someone else besides me,” Begay said. “They can at least learn some things.”

The softball segment was headed by Mia Stankiewicz, an Arizonan who played at several colleges.

“I went to straight to Phoenix College to play JUCO right out of high school,” Stankiewicz said. “I didn’t know where I wanted to go yet, and then Covid happened that first year, and so I didn’t play as much when I got there, and I went to a different JUCO.”

The Gilbert, Arizona native was then recruited to play for Cal State University where she earned her bachelor’s degree. Because of Covid, she had two years of eligibility left as she played for Colorado Christian University, a Division II school, as a graduate student.

This was Stankiewicz’s second time heading the softball group as she was assisted by 2024 MV graduate Arianna Black, who pitched for the Mustangs for two seasons.

“I have felt every single time the girls that have come out are very appreciative of this opportunity,” Stankiewicz said. “I feel like they’re kind of growing into themselves. I feel like the girls absorbed some valuable knowledge that they can benefit from.

“I mean, there’s so many opportunities you can have in softball,” she added. “You know, these girls can go to college on a softball scholarship, and I want to give them that opportunity.”

Camp participant Andrea Rivera was happy that there was local camp to help hone her skills.

“The coaches were really nice,” she said. “They helped us, and they encouraged us. They said it was OK if we messed up because we’re still learning.”

Stankiewicz says it’s important to know the fundamentals of the sport but having a positive mindset can go a long way.

“Once you know the foundation of softball, the next thing is gaining that confidence to play,” Stankiewicz said. “It’s just building up confidence and not giving up. You have to keep practicing, obviously, but like Kansas (Middletent) said, ‘practice doesn’t make perfect, it makes progress.’”

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