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<p>KINGSTON &#8212; The instruction, they said, was eye-opening.</p><p>The methods employed, some claimed, were eye-catching.</p><p>But the finishing speech was head-turning.</p><p>It all made the second annual Charlie D. Wysocki Football Camp an invaluable experience for more than 60 school-aged athletes who attended the event Saturday at Wyoming Seminary&#8217;s Nesbitt Field.</p><p>&#8220;It was definitely worth it,&#8221; Meyers junior-to-be Ryan Judge said. &#8220;There are so many things they taught me. I&#8217;ve been playing football for 10 years. About three-quarters of the stuff they taught us is stuff I never even knew about. Or thought about.&#8221;</p><p>And just when they thought nothing could top the tutelage of respected high school head coaches from Northeastern Pennsylvania, along with past University of Maryland personnel &#8212; where Wysocki starred as a college player &#8212; an NFL veteran stepped to the stage.</p><p>And former Nanticoke standout Harry Hamilton &#8212; who won a national championship as a starting defensive back at Penn State before spending eight seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and New York Jets from 1984-91 &#8212; quickly commanded the whole camp&#8217;s attention.</p><p>By talking about things much more important than football.</p><p>&#8220;How do you turn down Charlie Wysocki?&#8221; Hamilton, who also played running back at Nanticoke in the late 1970s, asked his audience. &#8220;I was exposed to him in the 10th grade. I was scared of a reputation &#8212; of a mean man who hit like a Mack truck. So I took the ball, the hole opened, I ran through the hole. And there&#8217;s Charlie D, ready to unload. He hit me so hard, I saw stars.</p><p>&#8220;Then he picked me up,&#8221; continued Hamilton, now an attorney living in New Jersey, &#8220;tapped me and said, &#8216;Good run.&#8217; That&#8217;s what I remember about Charlie Wysocki. Not how hard he hit, but how he helped me up and said, &#8216;Good run.&#8217; That&#8217;s why this camp is here. That&#8217;s why you&#8217;re here, to be that kind of person.&#8221;</p><p>Hamilton expanded on his point during a speech that was succinct but rife with real-life application, urging campers to focus on schoolwork and show toughness through the toughest times.</p><p>&#8220;Where are the leaders?&#8221; Hamilton asked at one point. &#8220;Where are the kids who are going to step in and stop a bully situation? If you&#8217;re out on the field sucking wind, would it be OK to watch everybody walk by you? Or would you want somebody to stop and see if you&#8217;re all right? If the answer is yes, then be that person.</p><p>&#8220;You&#8217;ve got to step in and you&#8217;ve got to step up.&#8221;</p><p>Gerson Peralta felt as if he&#8217;d found a gold mine of football knowledge.</p><p>The GAR wide receiver and defensive back was impressed with the one-on-one attention and guidance he believes will make him a better high school player.</p><p>&#8220;Something that stood out was a defensive back drill I did,&#8221; Peralta said, &#8220;knowing how to get in your backpedal instead of crossing your feet over. I got a lot of technique work, how to get in the proper stances, how I want to release off the ball &#8212; just learning all the different things you need to make you better.&#8221;</p><p>The lessons didn&#8217;t always come easily, as GAR quarterback and defensive back Tashawn Qualls found out.</p><p>&#8220;In the beginning, I kind of messed up a little,&#8221; Qualls laughed, &#8220;but then I started to get it down.&#8221;</p><p>John Mendola saw the camp as the start of something big.</p><p>The former Coughlin football star, now a sports radio host for WILK, helped organize the event during its first two years and seemed pleased with the turnout &#8212; despite a switch from its originally scheduled May date and a conflict with other camps and SAT appointments at some schools.</p><p>&#8220;Good, positive day again,&#8221; Mendola said. &#8220;We&#8217;re looking to grow it.&#8221;</p><p>The idea of the camp, which is free of charge to athletes and includes volunteer instruction, grew from Wysocki&#8217;s desire to give back to the Wyoming Valley. Wysocki was a legendary running back at Meyers who went on to set dozens of ACC records playing in the backfield at the University of Maryland before battling bipolar disorder.</p><p>Health issues prevented Wysocki from attending Saturday&#8217;s camp, but his spirit spurred those who attended it.</p><p>&#8220;There weren&#8217;t a lot of camps around like this when I played that I can remember,&#8221; said Hamilton, who suffered concussion symptoms during his NFL playing days. &#8220;And if there were around, they certainly weren&#8217;t free.</p><p>&#8220;My feelings about the game of football have changed. But a camp such as this is important. This is incredible, in terms of teaching some of the fundamentals in a different setting.&#8221;</p><p>There was another advantage to campers, also.</p><p>&#8220;I met a bunch of kids from (Holy) Redeemer, Tunkhannock, North Pocono,&#8221; Judge said. &#8220;I made a lot of friends today, too. Being it&#8217;s free, I expected it to be a little downgraded. It&#8217;s amazing. It was fun.</p><p>&#8220;I would love to come back next year.&#8221;</p><style>
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<div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/web1_TTL060417Wysocki-camp3.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Dallas High School head football coach Rich Mannello gets animated as he offers tips to a group of athletes at the Charlie D. Wysocki Football Camp. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/web1_TTL060417Wysocki-camp3.jpg</photo0><caption0>Dallas High School head football coach Rich Mannello gets animated as he offers tips to a group of athletes at the Charlie D. Wysocki Football Camp. </caption0><photoCredit0>Aimee Dilger | Times Leader </photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/web1_TTL060417Wysocki-camp2.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">A sprint to the finish? Nah, athletes entering grades 7 through 12 in the fall were working on speed and conditioning Saturday during the Charlie D. Wysocki Football camp at Wyoming Seminary. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/web1_TTL060417Wysocki-camp2.jpg</photo1><caption1>A sprint to the finish? Nah, athletes entering grades 7 through 12 in the fall were working on speed and conditioning Saturday during the Charlie D. Wysocki Football camp at Wyoming Seminary. </caption1><photoCredit1>Aimee Dilger | Times Leader </photoCredit1></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/web1_TTL060417Wysocki-camp4.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Student football players work on lateral movement during a drills at the Charlie D. Wysocki Football Camp at Nesbitt Field. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo2>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/web1_TTL060417Wysocki-camp4.jpg</photo2><caption2>Student football players work on lateral movement during a drills at the Charlie D. Wysocki Football Camp at Nesbitt Field. </caption2><photoCredit2>Aimee Dilger | Times Leader </photoCredit2></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/web1_TTL060417Wysocki-camp1.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Student football players participate in drills to enhance balance during the second annual Charlie D. Wysocki Football Camp on Saturday morning at Wyoming Seminary&#8217;s Nesbitt Field. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo3>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/web1_TTL060417Wysocki-camp1.jpg</photo3><caption3>Student football players participate in drills to enhance balance during the second annual Charlie D. Wysocki Football Camp on Saturday morning at Wyoming Seminary&#8217;s Nesbitt Field. </caption3><photoCredit3>Aimee Dilger | Times Leader </photoCredit3></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><subheadMeta>High school athletes absorb lessons in football, and in life</subheadMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Paul Sokoloski</p><p>psokoloski@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Paul Sokoloski at 570-991-6392 or on Twitter @TLPaulSokoloski</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Wysocki Football Camp proves a learning experience for players