TALLAPOOSA – When former Bulldog defensive lineman Brandon Wood decided to put on a football camp for local high school and middle school kids, he knew he was going to need a lot of help.
There would be staffers to assist with organization, support personnel in making sure the camp ran smoothly and, of course, finding some coaches to help teach and instruct the youngsters scheduled to attend.
Fortunately for Wood, he’s got some very good friends.
You might recognize the names – Jacksonville Jaguars defensive tackle Abry Jones, Cincinnati Bengals defensive tackle Geno Atkins, former NFL offensive guard Max Jean-Gillis and former Atlanta Falcons quarterback D.J. Shockley were among an impressive list of former Bulldogs who showed up to make Wood’s “Finish” Skills and Position Camp Saturday a big success.
“I can’t say enough about these guys. They sacrificed their time on a beautiful Saturday afternoon to come and help me, come help their fellow brother,” Wood said. “Max Jean-Gillis, I called him yesterday. Fernando (Velasco) just got hired by UGA and couldn’t come. Ken Shackleford hurt his hamstring, and I asked Max if he could come down, and he said, 'yeah.'
“I gave him directions and he was here in two hours. That really warmed my heart, man, and it just shows you the kind of bond that we have playing at UGA.”
Other names Bulldog fans will remember – Rennie Curran, Rod Battle, Richard Samuel and Darius Dewberry were also among those on hand, along with former Navy quarterback Ricky Dobbs and former Auburn defensive back Blake Poole for the event held at Haralson County High School.
“We’re old teammates; he asked me to come help him out in this community event,” Atkins said. “We’re Bulldogs, we’re teammates, plus it’s a good thing he’s doing for Haralson County.”
Like Atkins, Jones said he never thought twice.
“Brandon always looked out for me when I first got to Georgia and we’ve always stayed in touch,” Jones said. “I had nothing else going on, so why not help out a friend.”
An opportunity to work with some kids helped make Battle’s decision to help easy.
“It was important for the kids, being involved, doing some active things. I live in West Georgia, the westside of Cobb, and it was a chance to get back out and give back, but also an opportunity to help him out, get involved and see some old faces,” Battle said. “For me, it was a two-fold opportunity to have a good time.”
Giving back to his community was exactly what Wood hoped to do.
“I can’t even really explain it. It really feels so good to be able to be in this position to give back, not only to my school, but to my area of West Georgia,” he said. “That was my goal coming into this thing, just to be able to give back to my entire area. I wanted everybody to benefit from this.”
It appeared that they did.
Wood’s inaugural camp just wasn’t all about football. It was also an opportunity to mentor and hopefully help shape young minds.
Former Bulldog and seven-year NFL veteran Jarius Wynn said his message to kids was to never be afraid to dream.
“I’ve been able to live out my dream,” Wynn said. “People say it’s a small chance, and it is, but I just want everyone to know that if you want something bad enough, all you’ve got to do is work for it.”
Wood could not have been more pleased.
"I was so nervous, just the whole week, just trying to get everything together,” he said. “I knew we had it, but just trying to coordinate with guys, making sure they were in the right spot, making sure we had a tentative schedule and trying to stick to it. But I had a great staff, man, they helped me so much. For the first camp, it went amazing."
