Local College Football Player Hosts Youth Football Camp

Malik Elzy during a youth football camp at Simeon High School. Photo provided by O-Street Brand Management + Consulting.
Malik Elzy during a youth football camp at Simeon High School. Photo provided by O-Street Brand Management + Consulting.

Local College Football Player Hosts Youth Football Camp

By Tia Carol Jones

Malik Elzy, alum of Simeon Career Academy High School, recently hosted a youth football camp at the high school as a way of giving back to the community. Elzy, a wide receiver at the University of Illinois, partnered with Collective Uplift and sponsors Jewel Osco, Huntington Bank, Raising Cane’s, the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Chicago, and Primerica Investments for the event, where 75 children ages 6 years old to 14 years olds learned football fundamentals.

Elzy grew up playing football because of his older brother, who also attended Simeon. He had fond memories of playing on Simeon’s football field. He said he wanted to have the football camp there to show the young people that he is from the same environment they are from, and he made it. He said that while he faced challenges growing up there, it is possible to make it and be successful.

“I wanted to give them some hope, tell them my story and let them know it is possible for them to make it to D1 and that their dreams can come true, you just have to believe in yourself and work hard,” he said.

During the football camp, Elzy worked with the young people on drills that were broken into seven stations, speed and agility, contest drills, and one-on-ones, which he said was the most popular. He said it was a chance to see the young people’s talent. Pat Bryant, 3rd Round Draft Pick for the Denver Broncos, was also there to support Elzy. After the camp, Elzy received messages from the young people and even some parents with positive feedback about it. Elzy is entering his junior year and will be starting as a wide receiver. Fall camp starts for him in August. He said he is taking things day-by-day.

Elzy is represented by Collective Uplift, the sport agency based in River Forest, Ill. Aaron Garland, CEO of Collective Uplift, said that they were on board when Elzy said he wanted to do a football camp because the agency had done it before with another client. Garland said that Elzy is well-balanced.

“He loves his family, he loves football, he loves God and he’s just an all-around guy. He has focus with his faith, his family and his relationship with football,” Garland said.

Garland said that the football camp went well from his perspective. He said that Elzy, Bryant and the other volunteers came together to support the children. He said what made it special was having so many people with one common goal in one space. He said that with Elzy’s family there and the camp participants family in attendance, it was truly a family event, which is what football does, it has the ability to bring families together.

“I just think everyone coming together, from the athletes to the kids, to the sponsors to the families that were involved made it special,” he said.

For more information about Collective Uplift, visit www.cusports.biz.

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