Since taking over the Antioch Redskins program, Benji and Emily Sikes have maintained that they want what’s best for the kids.
It’s the reason why Benji Sikes can be found at the Antioch park every day, rain or shine, doing whatever he can: coaching kids, working in the board room, tending to the grounds or even cleaning the bathrooms.
It’s the reason why, ever since the takeover, the Sikeses have been referring to the team as the “‘New’ Antioch Redskins.”
It’s the reason why they just moved the team from the locally-based Tri-County Youth Football and Cheerleading Conference to the nationally-recognized Pop Warner organization.
The move, which became official March 1, came after a month of deliberation by the Sikeses.
Two years ago, Antioch wasn’t able to participate in the TCYFCC season because it wasn’t able to fill its rosters. The league did do whatever it could to help the Redskins make it through that time period, hosting several game days in Antioch and using concession sales to raise money for the program.
Still, there was a huge void without football. The Sikeses recognized that, and took over the program with the intention of fixing that problem.
Last year, the Redskins were able to field five football teams and three cheerleading teams.
In the offseason, the Sikeses knew that they wanted to do whatever they could to avoid another 2014 scenario.
“This year, we wanted to take that next step,” Benji Sikes says. “So, we started seeking out other options — options for us to grow as a program, but also to be able to offer the community and the kids more. Not as a football park, not as a cheer park, but as a family park.”
Their search efforts led them to Pop Warner, an organization synonymous with American youth football and arguably the biggest of its kind. Pop Warner representatives soon found themselves in the Redskins’ headquarters, giving a PowerPoint presentation.
A switch to Pop Warner would make the Redskins the only Pop Warner team in its area. The closest teams to Antioch are in Valrico and Fishhawk, which means that the Redskins now have a larger area from which to draw players than they did in the TCYFCC, competing against Plant City, Turkey Creek and Dover.
“We wanted to give Plant City, Thonotosassa, this area kind of an insight of the growth that we’ve had,” Benji Sikes says. “The growth that we’ve had in the past two and a half years, and the direction that our program is going.”
BEYOND FOOTBALL
The Redskins are planning to use the additional benefits of Pop Warner to draw more families into the program — perks that the TCYFCC does not offer.
“Now, on top of being able to offer football, cheer, a safe place to be, positive role models, family atmosphere — now, with Pop Warner, we can offer one of the top scholastic programs, grade monitoring, tutoring and scholarships,” Benji Sikes says. “By us doing that, it gives us another option to be able to give back to our community.”
The Sikeses consider the scholastic portion of Pop Warner football to be the team’s top priority. They’re bringing on a scholastic coordinator, who will be responsible for helping athletes with their studies, monitoring their grades and relaying such information to Pop Warner.
They’ve also brought a medical staff on board for player safety purposes.
“Hopefully, our message gets out,” Emily Sikes says. “Kids come first. School comes first, then sports.”
Another deciding factor was the fact that Pop Warner has stiffer regulations, more concussion awareness programs and coaching certification requirements than most leagues. Pop Warner participates in the Heads Up Football program, which teaches on-field safety. Central Florida Pop Warner athletes often find themselves taking classes taught by Tampa Bay Buccaneers personnel.
Competition will take the Redskins around Central Florida and, should their teams make it to the championship games at the ESPN Wide World of Sports complex in Orlando, they’re guaranteed to face new competition.
“It gives us more to offer parents, more to offer kids — more to strive for,” Benji Sikes says.
It’s also a cheaper alternative: parents can sign their kids up for the upcoming season, which begins August 1, for $150. In comparison, the Plant City Dolphins charge $325 for football and cheer, and the Dover Patriots charge $240 for football and $200 for cheer.
Contact Justin Kline at jkline@plantcityobserver.com.