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If there’s one thing about it, Selma trains up their collegiate and professional athletes the right way.

Last week, Lachavious Simmons put on his camp for local student-athletes at Memorial Stadium to help teach them some skills that will be useful in the game of football. However, the more important lessons the campers received aren’t just skills that will make you a great football player, but it will make you a successful person in life. They learned about work ethic, effort, perseverance and many other soft skills that will help you in all parts of your life.

And perhaps the greatest thing they got was hope.

“And that’s all I want to do is inspire this next group, this next group of kids, and give ‘em motivation that they can make it from the city too,” Simmons told The Selma Times-Journal.

Simmons put the camp on, but he also had some help. He first got some help from a guy that inspired him, former Bengals defensive end Michael Johnson, who held a football camp when Simmons was growing up and inspired him to succeed in football.

Another one is Auburn offensive lineman Jeremiah Wright, who took time away from his summer workout schedule to come back home and assist Simmons with the camp.

All three of these guys are setting a great example for the next generation. There’s no doubt in our mind that many of those kids who were at the camp will be successful in their school and beyond. 

We applaud them for paying it back to the community by doing by passing on what they have learned to the next generation.