SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — One of Arizona's powerhouse high school football programs is bringing a new game day tradition to classrooms all over Scottsdale.
On Friday mornings, you can find players from Horizon High School’s varsity football team reading to kindergarteners at local elementary and middle schools. For the Husky football players and Friday Night Fever stars, it’s a simple way to give back to the community that helped raise them. Horizon senior linebacker Anthony Segura is a product of Desert Shadows Elementary, the school the Huskies visited just last week.
“I do it because I love giving back to people and giving back to kids” Segura said. “They look up to us a lot. It gives me a little bit more motivation to go out there and play good.”
The Huskies, who won the 5A State Championship in 2021, have built bonds with several of the young students they’ve been interacting with during each visit.
Their young fan club at Desert Shadows is known as the “Puppy Pound.” Horizon assistant coach Tre Hickem says the student-athletes came up with this idea a few years ago as a way to engage with their community beyond the football field.
“We want to show that we care, and we want to show them that, yeah, we’re football players, but I want to make sure that these kids are growing into men,” Hickem said.
On occasion, the Huskies even flex their philanthropic muscle by donating backpacks and school supplies to the students at the schools they visit. These weekly interactions are now something the kids can look forward to every Friday morning to kick off their game days throughout the season.
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Arizona sports
The city of Phoenix is home to five major professional sports league teams; The NFL's Arizona Cardinals, NBA's Phoenix Suns, WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury, MLB's Arizona Diamondbacks and NHL's Arizona Coyotes.
The Cardinals have made the State Farm Stadium in Glendale their home turf and the Footprint Center in downtown Phoenix is home to both the Suns and the Mercury. The Indoor Football League’s Arizona Rattlers also play at the Footprint. Phoenix has a soccer team with the USL's Phoenix Rising FC.
The Valley hosts multiple major sporting events on a yearly basis, including college football's Fiesta Bowl and Cactus Bowl; the PGA Tour’s highest-attended event, the Waste Management Phoenix Open; NASCAR events each spring and fall; and Cactus League Spring Training.