Niwot football to host youth camp on July 24 amidst productive summer

Niwot high School Head Coach Nik Blume and his staff will be hosting a youth football camp on July 24 from 9 to 11 a.m. The free camp will be held at the NHS football field and players ranging from kindergarten to eighth grade are invited to attend.

Walk-up registration begins at 8 a.m. and there is no ability level requirement. Blume hopes to introduce young players to Niwot football while teaching the skills of the game through drills. Several current players will also help coach.

“Parents drop kids off for a couple hours and do some skills and drills and get to know my coaches and get to know me,” Blume said. “The goal is the introduction to who we are as a program and give something back to the community.”

Blume plans on offering another free camp in 2022 and possibly a more in-depth paid camp as well.

As for the current group of Cougars, they have been lifting weights and practicing three days a week since the beginning of June. Niwot had plans to play a scrimmage on July 9 but it was cancelled due to low numbers in the Weld Central program.

Niwot players tested their physicality with a contact camp in early July but have otherwise been practicing in just helmets. August 9 will mark the first day of formal practice before the Cougars will join Boulder, Yuma and host Northfield in a four-team scrimmage on August 20.

Blume, who enters his second season at the helm, said he considers last season’s 1-6 campaign as “year zero” of building back the program. Because of COVID-19, there was limited practice time last year but the Cougars are now enjoying a more normal summer. Blume said about 50% of his players are attending offseason practices.

Niwot will certainly miss its graduated quarterback Ayden Bartko but Blume said Easten Leatherwood, Thomas Carnagie and Bryce Nemec have all stepped up as seniors.

“The focus this summer was really just to build some continuity and get kids committed and dedicated to the summer aspect of football,” Blume said. “The biggest goal was building what we want the culture to look like as far as we do lift weights in the summer multiple times a week, and we do camp days and we do have practice in the evening. That's what it takes for us to get better.”