- May 5, 2024
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It’s cool to be in school. And on Thursday, for 18 Flagler County Police Athletic League football players, it was the coolest.
These eighteen players work hard on the football field, but more importantly, they worked even harder in the classroom last school year. They were honored Thursday, July 26, at Flagler Palm Coast High School, during the second-annual PAL Youth Football School Athletes award ceremony.
Each player was presented with a certificate. In addition, each player got a free pair of Nike football cleats.
All of the cleats were purchased through Hibbett Sports, located in Palm Coast’s Town Center.
To qualify, the student-athletes were required to maintained high honor roll for the entire 2011-2012 academic school year.
The Gilyard Group Foundation, founded in 2010 by former Flagler Palm Coast standout and Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Mardy Gilyard, has held several events in Flagler County to benefit youth athletes.
This is just another way for Mardy to give back to the community he came from, said his brother, Otis, who presented the certificate and cleats Thursday night.
“We are very pleased and proud to be a part of this,” Otis Gilyard said.
Mardy Gilyard was a player on one of the very first Flagler County PAL teams. At the time, there was no foundation giving away free cleats for excelling in the classroom. But he has helped change that — brining smiles to kids faces.
Before all the players got their new cleats Thursday night, Otis Gilyard had one last piece of advice: “Never, ever quit — in football and in life.”
The scholar athletes recognized Thursday are as follows:
Jackson Castaneda, Darraus Cooper, Nathaniel Kes, Landin Simmons, Jaylen Collins, Brockton Smith, Kaleb Christensen, Tyler Pigninelli, David Wilcox Jr., Andrew Butler, Alex Menendez, Victor Paci, August Healy, Nicholas Redding, Elijah Baugher, Anthony Masiello, Jacob Miley and Avery Arce.
