MISSOURI CITY, Texas (KBTX) - There was always a smile on former Texas A&M wide receiver Ainias Smith’s face, paired with a playful bounce in his step, when the Aggie motored across Kyle Field in search of a reception.
Though football is now a business for Smith, who is a member of the Super Bowl-champion Philadelphia Eagles, he hasn’t lost that playful approach to the game.
Friday, his personality was on full display as he led a showcase camp for football athletes ages eight to 18 in his home town of Missouri City, a Houston suburb. At his side was a group of his former A&M teammates who relished the chance to reunite and impart wisdom on the next generation of athletes.
“It’s awesome, for sure,” Smith said. “It’s everything for me, just being able to come out and have fun with the kids and show them my personality — something that they really don’t see all the time — and just have community vibes. I had all my dogs out here with me, so it made it a lot easier for me to be a little bit more loose."
Former Aggie offensive lineman Layden Robinson, now with the New England Patriots, headlined the former Aggie teammates to help coach the camp. Quarterback Kellen Mond, running back Isaiah Spiller and defensive back Leon O’Neal also joined the coaching ranks Friday, as they work through the summer to find NFL homes this fall.
Though drills and one-on-one competition were the most anticipated portions of the day, Smith’s parents, Maurice and Samyra, wanted the experience to be more than just field work. Prior to taking the field, participants and their parents sat in on a panel discussion with experts in the fields of recruiting, name, image and likeness compensation and financial literacy. Former A&M offensive coordinator Darrell Dickey, who recruited Smith to A&M, was a feature member of the expert group and patrolled the fields later to offer advice and catch up with former players.
Smith recognized that getting into college football now is a very different game than when he went through recruitment.
“A lot of people nowadays, they just call it ‘aura farming’ or whatever and it’s not that easy,” Smith said. “A lot of people think that they can just post a few videos on Instagram or whatever and get looked at. Like, no. It’s a lot more that goes into it and I really needed everybody — the parents, the kids — to truly know what’s really going on, or at least have some type of insight."
However, there were plenty of picture-perfect moments throughout the day. Mond, who spent the summer playing with his hometown San Antonio Brahmas of the UFL, began the camp with some of the youngest participants. For every ball launched successfully into the air out of an undersized hand, he issued a smile and a high five.
“Ainias has been one of my real close friends. He came in back when I was at A&M and he was one of the hardest-working guys who, first day he came in... he came in locked in and he was trying to get on the field and to play,” Mond said. “So, for him to come out here and be abel to put on this camp and all the competition out there was truly amazing and really just shows he cares about the kids.”
Spiller frequently walked over to the running back group, giving secretive suggestions on how to beat linebackers during one-on-one passing drills. He was recently waived by the Los Angeles Chargers and is looking for his next professional destination.
The good times came back naturally once the former teammates were back on the field with the fun-loving Smith, he said.
“That’s how it usually is when we’re not on the field,” he said. “We are always laughing and giggling — some good vibes all the time. It was good watching these kids develop and compete and grow as football players.”
Friday, O’Neal operated on the opposite side of the line of scrimmage from Mond, Spiller and Smith, rushing out on the field to celebrate every deflected pass or interception. O’Neal earned All-UFL honors playing for the Houston Roughnecks this summer.
“It’s a blessing to be around a lot of these people, man,” O’Neal said. “They actually, genuinely care. People that just volunteer, no motives, just want to help the kids as much as possible.”
Off on a side field, Robinson gave near one-on-one attention to a small group of offensive linemen who soaked in information from the NFL starter.
“I just hope that they take away the love of football and what it could do for you when you put in the work and you actually are committed to it and what it could do for you in the long run,” Robinson said.
While this camp served as a celebration of the 25th anniversary of the Heavenbound Christian League, the training organization owned and operated by the Smiths, the youngest family member hopes the camp will continue and grow in the years to come.
“I was just thankful that [his former teammates] were able to come out. I know a lot of guys were coming in, traveling and, low key, had plans for the Fourth. It was a little different having the even on the Fourth. But, man, it was everything for them to just come out here and have fun with us and to be able to give their knowledge back to the kids and I know that the kids took it all in, for sure.”
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