By Spc. Anthony Ford
More than 150 military kids from Fort Stewart and Hunter Army Airfield attended a free football camp, July 10-11 hosted by NFL linebacker and former military child, Devin Lloyd. The two-day camp, sponsored by Army and Air Force Exchange and the Defense Commissary Agency, is just one in a series of NFL pro camps to be hosted on military installations across the country this summer.
Lloyd is in his second year with the Florida-based Jacksonville Jaguars, the closest NFL team to Fort Stewart.
As a child, both of Lloyd’s parents served in the Navy, making him familiar with the lifestyle of a military child.
“Growing up it was just a military household,” he said. “My dad would go on deployments at times. So I understand the difficulties of growing up in a military household.”
During the two-day camp, Lloyd and other volunteer coaches from the Fort Stewart area taught campers the basics of football. The campers had the opportunity to interact one-on-one with Lloyd while rotating through various stations and drills and participating in both individual and team competitions.
The camp concluded with an award ceremony where each camper was presented with certificates, medals, and autographed pictures.
This is the second time Lloyd has hosted his own camp and his first time hosting a camp on Fort Stewart.
“To be out here playing a sport that I love, with kids I can relate to growing up, I mean this is great,” he said.
Lloyd and the Jaguars will start training camp on July 25. The Jaguars closed out the 2022 NFL season as AFC South Champions, finishing with a 9-8 record that ended on a five-game winning streak.
