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Video highlights from Del Rodgers’ tenure at KCRA 3

Published

1 month ago

December 2, 2025

Your Sports Nation

Video highlights from Del Rodgers’ tenure at KCRA 3 | Archives

See a selection of highlights over Del Rodgers’ career at KCRA 3 from our archives.

There’s Del Rogers with running room. Rogers turns it on 30. He’s been doing it for most of his life. Running to the next play. The next score All the way to *** Super Bowl win. Even then, Del Rogers was smooth on camera. You seem to be *** little more upbeat mood *** little happier. What’s the reason? I’m *** little more jeweler because, uh, my mother, father, and my wife, uh, just made it in this evening for the game Sunday. Del Rogers would in time bring his love of football. And sports to Sacramento and KCRA 3. Elk Grove comes down to the finals. It was *** merger that would bring so many special moments. Dell representing Sacramento as an Olympic torchbearer in 2002, and that is Dell there. And when he sprints so fast that the camera can’t even come up, keep up with him, you know it’s. Dell in *** race car, *** lot of banging and *** lot of action out here. It was quick, Dave. I don’t know you couldn’t tell inside, but I did *** lot of uh uh uh uh uh my neck. I’m glad I got *** fat neck because it was, it was getting *** workout today, brother. Dell down under behind us the building is the Sydney Superdome. I like to call it the sweet city of Sydney’s Superdome. Yeah, do it again real quick. I can’t do it. I’m messing up. It’s been more than just scores and highlights, it’s covering people and Sacramento sports history. Dell was there when *** minor league team called the River Cats came to town, even getting to throw out *** first pitch. Covering the Kings from Arco Arena to *** new owner and *** new venue and the Sacramento Republic FC kicking its way into town. The work noticed by many, including Selena’s high school, his alma mater, honoring one of its favorite sons receiving the golden football. But I wanna tell you why I am, I have *** friend just like you are. Also surprise recognition for raising money for first responders at the annual Pig Bowl. Every year we try to put in one community member who’s done *** lot for this game, and for the past 30 years, one thing has been constant on every sideline, and that’s my man Dale Rogers. Now Rogers in the Hall of Fame. There were full circle moments covering later Super Bowls from Fun in Phoenix. Now I know one of your favorite stories was work with me, right? All week she get to work with me, right? To Super Bowl 52 in Minneapolis, where it was impossible to stay warm. Upside is my room feels like Miami right now. It’s about *** balmy 77 degrees in there. Still, there was Del going live in subzero weather. I remember my last NFL play I got knocked out because it was the it was the kickoff that started to drive where Joe went down and hit John Taylor with the touchdown pass for us to win it. I started that drive. And the hallmark of Dell’s fall sports coverage, first airing in 2007. So on KCRA free. High school playbook KCRA 3 begins *** new era of covered high school sports as we look ahead to the prep football season, covering thousands of teams, cheerleaders, bands, putting communities big and small in the spotlight. On 3, who’s gonna win tonight? Let me hear it from everybody. OK 12123, who’s gonna win? He’s been an icon and *** staple for all of the uh high school sports, uh, Friday night lights and he’s been, I mean it’s gonna be *** real loss to our community because he’s been the guy that we all know and listen to his voice, so it’s his iconic voice. We can’t have everyone here at KCRA wish Dell well, but Here are *** few of his co-workers, some starting out as interns under Dell. No one taught me more about the industry back then, better than the way you did, and being able to work with you over these last year and *** half was such *** fun full circle moment for me, the one that I cherished deeply. We would be on tight deadlines trying to make live shots and. Anytime someone would call out his name, he would take the moment to talk to them, to give them, you know, his time and to be grateful for his opportunity to be there. Dell, congratulations on your retirement. It was an honor to work with you all those years at KCRA and now as you’re heading into retirement, I hope you get to enjoy it as much as I’m enjoying mine. Go. Well, hey popcorn, that’s what everyone calls you around these parts. Popcorn. Hey Dera, tell popcorn I said hello. Well, of course that’s what you’re called around here, but hey, what *** ride 28 years and I just wanna say I’m so thankful that I’ve gotten to to be part of at least *** decade of that. I hope you’re smiling and uh enjoying this next chapter that’s ahead and. Hey, just remember, you know, being *** great husband, father and now grandpa that’s that’s uh that’s all you can ask for and I hope you get to enjoy every moment of all of that. You can’t do it that long without loving it and the community loving you back. I mean he’s done it all from the big ones, the Olympics, the Super Bowls, the World Series all the way to all the local athletes he’s covered heck of *** rundell. You’re *** real gem to our community we’re gonna miss you. Congratulations. Take care, my friend. He might be calling it *** career, but we call it an amazing season. As for what’s next, we wish Dell nothing but touchdowns. Oh, what *** career. How, how are you doing? Fantastic. You know, during the, uh, last 28 years here at Kerry, I covered professional sports because I had to, but I also covered high school sports because I needed to. You see, high school sports is the backbone to our community teaches our future adults teamwork, bouncing back from failure. And I’d appreciate success with honor. It allows small towns to shut down so that their community can become fans in the stands. While also allowing those parents to unite because their sons and daughters play on one team. As I say goodbye. Is that you continue to support high school sports. That’s why teenagers transition to the real world. I was never the story you were the players, the families, the small communities tonight. Hang up my mic. I’ll never hang up on what you’ve given me. Thank you for letting me be *** part of your fields, your courts, and your kids’ lives. Northern California. I love you and good night. OK, you got us going too, but I have to mention also you had so much fun and you got so much fun to our set and to the coverage and to the community and. You were just never afraid to just be all in and make us all laugh, so it’s been all of it, the heart, the community, and also the joy. And also, you know, you’re always about we’re talking about in sports bringing in new prospects. Personally, I know you’ve got *** bunch of new young prospects talking about with your family. You got grandkids now, your family’s here, Dale, they want to come in and celebrate with you, my man. So here we go. We’ve got his wife Karen and his kids and extended family, and this is why Dell is retiring because this is where he’ll be spending his time and where his heart is now. It’s just beautiful to see and uh you know we’re so excited for Dell and his family. We welcome all you guys here. It’s just great to have the Rogers family in the house so I gotta say this is *** surprise. I did not know they are gonna be. Look who else is here we’re bringing in the Grant High School drum line, the Pacers, the band coming in here, and I know so much of what you do is like you said, bringing, uh, high school sports and uh to to to just our community and showing that that’s how people can still be part of the community. So, uh, it’s fantastic to have all of these beautiful young people here with us today and to have family here today to be part of our Caer family. There’s nobody replacing you at all. We love you, brother. Thank you. Thank you. And we want to tell you the Grant drumline, Grant High School drumline wanted to be here and we feel like they are just the perfect reflection of so much of your coverage about community, as you said, the high school level sports, the athletes you profiled, the families you cheered. Yeah, so you know what, uh, not crying, let’s have some fun. Thank you guys.

Video highlights from Del Rodgers’ tenure at KCRA 3 | Archives

See a selection of highlights over Del Rodgers’ career at KCRA 3 from our archives.

Updated: 7:54 PM PST Dec 1, 2025

Editorial Standards ⓘ

Sports Director Del Rodgers will retire from KCRA 3 on Dec. 1, 2025, after 28 years with the station.

Rodgers, a San Francisco 49ers Super Bowl champion, joined KCRA 3 in 1997 after working at four other TV stations, including KSBW in his hometown of Salinas.

His tenure while at KCRA 3 included reporting trips to Sydney for the Olympics and multiple Super Bowls. He was most passionate about covering high school sports, which he did with the “Blitz 3” show before it was renamed “High School Playbook.”

See below for more highlights from his career from our archives.

Del Rodgers and Deirdre Fitzpatrick report from the Sydney Olympics in 2000

Del Rodgers and Deirdre Fitzpatrick reported from the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia. Here’s a “midnight” update.

Del Rodgers connects with Northern Californians at the Sydney Olympics

Del Rodgers shares greetings for Sacramento in multiple languages while covering the Olympics at Olympic Park in Sydney in 2000. He also finds some fans with local roots.

Do Angelenos know about the Kings-Lakers playoff game in 2000?

Del Rodgers finds many Angelenos were unaware of a big playoff game between the Kings and Lakers in Los Angeles on April 27, 2000.

Giants’ Dusty Baker brings joy to Sacramento Children’s Home in 2001

Del Rodgers reports on Sacramento native Dusty Baker’s appearance at the Sacramento Children’s Home in 2001.

Del Rodgers carries the Olympic torch

Del Rodgers ran in the 2002 Olympic torch relay in Sacramento.

Del Rodgers hosts “Blitz 3″ high school football show in 2006

Before High School Playbook, Del Rodgers’ high school football show was called “Blitz 3.” Here’s a video kicking off a season in 2006.

Del Rodgers goes inside a NASCAR car hauler in 2006

Del Rodgers reports from inside a NASCAR car hauler in 2006.

High School Playbook show debuts on Del Rodgers’ 10-year anniversary in 2007

KCRA 3 introduced a High School Playbook Kickoff Special in 2007 that featured a unique perspective from a staff of student reporters. There was even an corresponding website, Highschoolplaybook.com.

Del Rodgers gives Monterey Trail football players tips in 2007 | Archives

Del Rodgers gives high school students tips to block better.

Del Rodgers visits 49ers training camp in 2010

Former 49er Del Rodgers reports from the team’s training camp in 2010.

Del Rodgers throws out the first pitch at Raley Field

Del Rodgers throws out the first pitch at a River Cats game at what was then called Raley Field.

Del Rodgers reports from the Super Bowl in 2018

Del Rodgers reports on NFL players with Northern California ties at Super Bowl LII.

Del Rodgers discusses changes to football tackles

Del Rodgers demonstrates how football tackles have changed in youth sports since he played.

Meet the official blacksmith of the California State Fair

Del Rodgers reports from the California State Fair in 2015.

Super Bowl 50: Fans reactions outside Levi’s Stadium

Del Rodgers reports from Super Bowl 50 in the Bay Area in 2016.

Inside the lines

Del Rodgers introduces you to the unsung heroes on football field — — the offensive and defensive line.

Del Rodgers explores 49ers Super Bowl history from Las Vegas

Del Rodgers shared a video for our digital audiences from the Super Bowl in Las Vegas in 2024. He talked about his own experience playing in a Super Bowl.

Sacramento’s baseball history

Del Rodgers reports on the history of baseball in Sacramento.

A’s fans mark the end of an era in Oakland

Del Rodgers reports from the final A’s game in Oakland at the Coliseum in 2024.

Del Rodgers surprised with induction into Pig Bowl Hall of Fame

An emotional moment was captured live on air as Del Rodgers was surprised with his induction into the Pig Bowl Hall of Fame in January 2025.

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Fuel the Drive Expands Youth Sports Access, Sets 2026 Growth Target

Published

3 minutes ago

January 2, 2026

Your Sports Nation

“Participation in golf and tennis programs contributes to the development of transferable life skills, including self-discipline, teamwork and problem-solving.”

DENVER, CO, January 02, 2026 /24-7PressRelease/ — Fuel the Drive—the non-profit organization that expands access to golf and tennis for children from low-income families—seeks to substantially increase the number of kids it assists in the year ahead.

“We’ve made some ambitious New Year’s resolutions for our foundation,” states founder and president Terry Aikin. “Fuel the Drive has been able to help a lot of kids accelerate their personal growth and expand their opportunities, but we’re far from satisfied.

“This year,” Aikin continues, “we want to impact at least five times as many young people as we did in 2025.”

Giving kids access to more promising futures

Founded to remove financial barriers to youth sports participation, Fuel the Drive sponsors children’s introduction to golf and tennis by covering essential program costs.

Eligible participants receive funding for registration in local PGA Junior League and U.S. Tennis Association programs, along with training guidance and equipment.

“The kids’ involvement in these sports fuels their personal growth and helps them develop confidence, self-discipline and leadership,” says Aikin. “It’s so rewarding to watch these kids build their own personal strength and find out what it takes to succeed.

“As the kids develop their golf or tennis games and compete with other kids their age,” he adds, “they learn to lead, to believe in themselves and to create pathways to more successful futures.”

Equipping kids with the tools to succeed on and off the course and court

“Time and again,” notes Aikin, “we see that participation in golf and tennis programs contributes to the development of transferable life skills, including self-discipline, teamwork and problem-solving.

“Let me share just one of our many success stories,” he continues. “With Fuel the Drive’s assistance, Mavarro has played in the PGA Junior League program for the past three years. His father tells us that playing golf has helped Mavarro develop patience and confidence, and he’s earned an award for perseverance.

“What’s more,” adds Aikin, “Mavarro’s love for golf has translated into increased analytical skills that are helping him tackle challenges he faces in school and in life.”

Ambitious growth target aims to serve many more children

Fuel the Drive has introduced golf to more than 100 children during each of the past three years and has provided access to tennis programs for more than 500 children.

Building on this impact, the organization has set a goal to expand its golf programming to serve more than 500 young athletes in 2026.

“Cost remains one of the most significant barriers to participation in organized youth sports,” states Aikin. “By removing that obstacle, we enable children to engage in structured environments that promote self-confidence, perseverance and personal growth.”

Increasing outreach to enlist more donors

“Our donor base has been very generous, and their contributions have made our impact possible,” reports Aikin. “But we’re seeking to significantly grow that base in order to achieve our objectives for 2026. So we’ve just launched a new website and we’re expanding our digital outreach to engage partners and community stakeholders and bring more new donors into the fold.

“With the generous support of new and existing donors,” Aikin adds, “we can fuel the drive in a lot more kids so they can achieve a lot more.”

About Fuel the Drive

Fuel the Drive, headquartered in Denver, CO, was founded by Terry and Michelle Aikin as a way of paying forward the tremendous support and inspiration they received as they were growing up. The organization provides access to golf and tennis programs to children from underserved communities, using sport as a platform to build self-confidence, leadership and skills that support lifelong success. To learn more, visit Fuel the Drive.

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The internet is killing sports

Published

11 minutes ago

January 2, 2026

Your Sports Nation

Happy New Year! 2026 is finally here!

I have to say that on many levels, the year in politics felt like a nightmarish fever dream. Donald Trump deciding to illegally rename the Kennedy Center after himself is not the worst thing that any president has ever done — it’s not even close — but on a level of sheer batshit insanity, it’s off the charts.

In a halfway functioning political system, I don’t even know what would happen if a president did that — because it just wouldn’t happen! Members of the president’s party would not put up with pure Mad King behavior. It’s not consequential, of course, in the way that cutting tons of people off from Medicaid is consequential. But then he also started a little war with Venezuela and launched some kind of Christmas bombing campaign in Nigeria, while also being so committed to world peace that he’s decided to just take Vladimir Putin’s word for it on Russian war aims. Also, FIFA believes that the president is seven years old, so they made up a fake peace prize to bestow on him, and he proudly accepted it.

Something I worry about a lot is that as Trump wears his ridiculousness and egomania on his sleeve, he invites people to believe that he is shallow and easily manipulated when he’s actually been ruthlessly successful across multiple fields of endeavor.

JD Vance seems a lot more put-together in a lot of ways, but he was also placed on the ticket specifically because Trump was disappointed that Mike Pence wouldn’t violate the constitution to help him steal an election, and Trump apparently feels that Vance is more reliable in this regard.

I try to maintain an action-oriented posture rather than indulging in dooming and stress and anxiety. But we succeeded in getting non-politics questions this week, so I just wanted to open by assuring everyone that I actually feel pretty stressed about the political situation and will continue to feel stressed as long as Republicans remain odds-on favorites to hold the Senate.

Now, your questions.

John E: If you could take any older show and update it with AI to make it look better (graphics/CGI/etc.), but keep everything else the same, what would it be?

My initial thought was Babylon 5 or something like that, but curious if you have any ideas that jump out at you?

The original Star Trek. It’s not even so much that the visual effects look bad (I believe they actually made a version with upgraded CGI that was released on Blu-ray), it’s that the makeup and costume stuff for the aliens is so crude and absurd. The Klingons as guys with Trump’s spray tan and weird beards is hard to watch. The Gorn as depicted in “The Arena” is absurd.

Andy: I’ll repeat my question about what changes you’d make to the NFL in terms of structure, rules, etc.

If football isn’t your thing, then as an alternative, expand the question to your thoughts about the general state of pro sports, whether you think pro sports are in a good or bad place, and what changes you might make if you were Ultimate Overlord of pro sports.

The NFL seems like they’re doing great, objectively, and don’t really need my advice. The main question facing the league is how aggressively to expand and whether to try really ambitious strategies like setting up a four-team division in Europe. From my personal standpoint, it was really exciting to watch the Commanders on their run last year and really disheartening to see things turn to shit this year — and it’s especially disheartening because the trajectory matches the RGIII boom and bust so closely.

Beyond football, though, my main observation about sports is that they are all being buffeted by the internet and the ubiquity of content in interesting ways.

When I first moved to DC, I made a clear choice to adopt the Wizards as my favorite basketball team. The Knicks were bad at the time and the Wizards, while not great, were decent and fun in the Gilbert Arenas Era. But beyond that, I just really liked basketball. A very large share of the games that were available to watch on television were Wizards games, so I watched a lot of Wizards games, and it’s more fun to watch a game if you have a rooting interest in it, so it’s fun to adopt your hometown team. Now, if we’d somehow had a Wizards-Knicks Eastern Conference Finals, would my loyalties have reverted? Maybe, but it didn’t come up.

Flash forward to 2025 and the Wizards are awful, the Knicks are good, and it’s also incredibly easy to watch Knicks games on streaming. So I’m following the Knicks very closely, which is great. And my son is also watching some Knicks games with me these past two seasons, which is delightful and a ton of fun. But this is a pattern that I see repeating in a lot of local families — dads maintaining their hometown sports allegiances and passing them on to their sons because it’s so easy to watch out of town games.

And this delocalization seems like a bit of a threat to the long-term model of sports.

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Wheeling Elks Announce 2025-26 Scholarship Winners | News, Sports, Jobs

Published

2 hours ago

January 2, 2026

Your Sports Nation

WHEELING — Grace Tamburin and Owen Dobrzynski Hines, both seniors at Wheeling Park High School, have won the Wheeling Elks Scholarships for 2025-26.

Each will receive $1,000 from Wheeling Lodge No. 28, according to Elks Youth Activities Chairman Joe Marchlenski. Both are eligible for further state and national Elks’ scholarships.

“We believe it is important to recognize outstanding leadership and scholarship qualities in the youth of our area,” said Elks Exalted Ruler Ruby Haynes. “We are proud that more than $4 million in scholarships is awarded nationally by the Elks each year.”

Tamburin currently carries a GPA of 4.32. She is the captain and four-year member of both the girls’ volleyball and softball teams, and was recently named to the OVAC All-Star Volleyball team for West Virginia.

She is a member of both the National Honor Society and the National Spanish Honor Society. In her spare time, she volunteers with A Night to Shine, assisting adults with special needs. She plans to attend Shepherd University in Shepherdstown.

Dobrzynski Hines currently carries a GPA of 4.1. He is a captain and four-year member of both the football and track and field teams.

He volunteers dozens of hours each year with multiple Ohio Valley agencies, and describes his most influential community service project as volunteering with the flood relief efforts following the devastating flooding that occurred in this area in June.

He is a member of the Drug Free Club of America, the Freshmen Mentor Program, and the National Honor Society. He plans to attend Saint Vincent College in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, and major in social work and social services.

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Third annual Dignity Drive | News, Sports, Jobs

Published

2 hours ago

January 2, 2026

Your Sports Nation

News file photo Representatives from area schools and the Foster Closet are seen picking up hygiene items for youth that were collected during the 2nd Annual Dignity Drive in 2025.

Laurel Nowak invites the community to participate in the third annual Dignity Drive from Monday to March 6.

Donations can be dropped off at Star Staffing located in Alpena from Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The Dignity Drive asks community members to donate personal hygiene products for the youth in Northeast Michigan. Nowak said last year, the drive collected $10,000 worth of hygiene products which were provided to the School Success Program at Thunder Bay Jr. High School and Alpena High School. Products were also donated to the Foster Care Closet of Northern Michigan.

Nowak said that all partners were “grateful for the commitment of our community to children in need.”

“We were also able to provide a box to all of the area elementary schools,” she added.

“Personal hygiene is a basic human need,” Nowak said. “Many homeless and low-income children do not have the hygiene products they need for self-care. This causes many problems such as social rejection, illnesses and missed days of school.”

Items for both boys and girls are accepted, though Nowak asks community members to avoid donations of razors.

Below are a list of accepted donations:

— Feminine hygiene products

— Deodorant

— Body spray

— String bags or ditty bags

— Body or hand lotion

— Lip balm

— Soap

— Shampoo and conditioner

— Toothpaste

— Toothbrushes

If you are looking for additional information you can contact Nowak at 989-464-5968.

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As youth sports professionalize, kids are burning out fast

Published

2 hours ago

January 2, 2026

Your Sports Nation

A player looks on from the dugout during a baseball game at Kentlake High School in Kent, Wash., on May 4, 2025. According to a survey by the Aspen Institute, 11.4% of parents believe their children can play professionally. (Grant Hindsley/The New York Times)

Like many mothers in Southern California, Paula Gartin put her twin son and daughter, Mikey and Maddy, into youth sports leagues as soon as they were old enough. For years, they loved playing soccer, baseball and other sports, getting exercise and making friends.

But by their early teens, the competition got stiffer, the coaches became more demanding, injuries intervened and their travel teams demanded that they focus on only one sport. Shuttling to weekend tournaments in Escondido and elsewhere turned into a chore. Sports became less enjoyable.

Maddy dropped soccer because she didn’t like the coach and took up volleyball. Mikey played club soccer and baseball as a youngster, then chose baseball before he suffered a knee injury in his first football practice during the baseball offseason. By 15, he had stopped playing team sports. Both are now in college and more focused on academics.

“I feel like there is so much judgment around youth sports. If you’re not participating in sports, you’re not doing what you’re supposed to be doing as a kid,” Gartin said. “There’s this expectation you should be involved, that it’s something you should be doing. You feel you have to push your kids. There’s pressure on them.”

Youth sports can have a positive effect on children’s self-esteem and confidence and teach them discipline and social skills. But a growing body of recent research has shown how coaches and parents can heap pressure on children, how heavy workloads can lead to burnout and fractured relationships with family members and friends, and how overuse injuries can stem from playing single sports.

A report published by the American Academy of Pediatrics in 2024 showed how overuse injuries and overtraining can lead to burnout in young athletes. The report cited pressure by parents and coaches as additional risk factors. Another study, in the Journal of Sport & Social Issues, highlighted how giving priority to a win-at-all-costs culture can stunt a young athlete’s personal development and well-being. Researchers at the University of Hawaii found that abusive and intrusive behavior by parents can add to stress on athletes.

Mental health is a vast topic, from clinical issues like depression and suicidal thoughts to anxiety and psychological abuse. There is now a broad movement to increase training for coaches so they can identify signs and symptoms of mental health conditions, said Vince Minjares, a program manager in the Aspen Institute’s Sports & Society Program. Since 2020, seven states have begun requiring coaches to receive mental health training, he said.

Domineering coaches and parents have been around for generations. But their pressure has been amplified by the professionalization of youth sports. A growing number of sports leagues are being run as profit-driven businesses to meet demand from parents who urge their children to play at earlier ages to try to improve their chances of playing college or pro sports. According to a survey by the Aspen Institute, 11.4% of parents believe that their children can play professionally.

“There’s this push to specialize earlier and earlier,” said Meredith Whitley, a professor at Adelphi University who studies youth sports. “But at what cost? For those young people, you’re seeing burnout happen earlier because of injuries, overuse and mental fatigue.”

The additional stress is one reason more children are dropping out. The share of school-age children playing sports fell to 53.8% in 2022, from 58.4% in 2017, according to the National Survey of Children’s Health. While more than 60 million adolescents play sports, up to 70% of them drop out by age 13.

While groups like the Aspen Institute focus on long-standing issues of access and cost in youth sports, combating mental health problems in young athletes is an emerging area. In recent years, professional athletes like Naomi Osaka and Michael Phelps have shined a light on the issue. But parents who want to teach their children the positive parts of playing sports are finding that some of the worst aspects of being a young athlete are hard to avoid.

That was apparent to the parents who took their sons to hear Travis Snider speak at Driveline Academy in Kent, Washington, one Sunday last spring. Snider was a baseball phenom growing up near Seattle and was taken by the Toronto Blue Jays in the first round of the 2006 MLB draft.

But he finished eight unremarkable seasons as an outfielder and played his last major league game at 27. While attempting a comeback in the minor leagues, he worked with a life coach to help him make sense of why his early promise fizzled. He unearthed childhood traumas and unrealistic expectations on the field.

In a playoff game as an 11-year-old, he had had a panic attack on the mound and was removed from the game.

Though he reached the highest level of his sport, Snider felt as if distorted priorities turned baseball into a burden, something he wanted to help others avoid.

Last year, he started a company, 3A Athletics, to help children, parents and coaches develop healthier approaches to sports that include separating professional aspirations from the reality that most young athletes just want to get some exercise and make friends.

“We as a culture really blended the two into the same experience, which is really toxic for kids as they’re going through the early stages of identity formation,” Snider said. “You have a lot of parents who are sports fans that want to watch youth sports the same way they watch pro sports without recognizing, ‘Hey, the thing I love the most is out there running around on the field.’”

He added, “We’ve got to take a step back and detach from what has become normalized and what kind of vortex we get sucked into.”

Driveline Academy, an elite training facility filled with batting cages, speed guns, sensors and framed jerseys of pro players, might be the kind of vortex Snider would want people to avoid. But Deven Morgan, director of youth baseball at Driveline, hired 3A Athletics to help parents and young athletes put their sport in context.

“It’s part of a stack of tools we can deploy to our families and kids to help them understand that there is a structural way that you can understand this stuff and relate to your kid,” he said.

“We are going to get more out of this entire endeavor if we approach this thing from a lens of positivity.”

During his one-hour seminar, Snider and his partner, Seth Taylor, told the six sets of parents and sons how to navigate the mental roadblocks that come from competitive sports. Snider showed the group a journal he kept during the 2014 season that helped him overcome some of his fears, and encouraged the ballplayers to do the same.

“It’s not just about writing the bad stuff,” he said. “The whole goal is to start to open up about this stuff.”

Taylor took the group through a series of mental exercises, including visualization and relaxation techniques, to help players confront their fears and parents to understand their role as a support system.

His message seemed to get through to Amy Worrell-Kneller, who had brought her 14-year-old son, Wyatt, to the session.

“Generally, there’s always a few parents who are the ones who seem to be hanging on too tight, and the kids take that on,” she said. “At this age, they’re social creatures, but it starts with the parents.”

Coaches play a role, too. The Catholic Youth Organization in the Diocese of Cleveland has been trying to ratchet down the pressure on young athletes. At a training session in August, about 120 football, soccer, volleyball and cross-country coaches met for three hours to learn how to create “safe spaces” for children.

“Kids start to drop out by 12, 13 because it’s not fun and parents can make it not fun,” said Drew Vilinsky, the trainer. “Kids are tired and distracted before they get to practice, and have a limited amount of time, so don’t let it get stale.”

Coaches were told, among other things, to let children lead stretches and other tasks to promote confidence. Track coaches should use whistles, not starting guns, and withhold times from young runners during races.

“We’re trying not to overwhelm a kid with anxiety,” said Lisa Ryder, a track and cross-country coach for runners through eighth grade. “CYO is not going to get your kid to be LeBron.”

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Hoop dreams | News, Sports, Jobs

Published

2 hours ago

January 2, 2026

Your Sports Nation

Basketball players Thiago DeJesus (first photo), Riley Severson (second photo) and Talon Stockdale (third photo) compete recently in the Fuller Hall Youth Basketball 5th and 6th grade boys league at Jefferson Gym in Webster City.