Winston, Prescott support 1st camp

Kenny Shaw RAW football at Dr. Phillips a star-studded affair

Kenny Shaw said he was nearly brought to tears when he saw how many friends and former teammates showed up in Orlando to help kick off his first Kenny Shaw RAW football camp.

It was a star-studded affair at Dr. Phillips High led by NFL quarterbacks Jameis Winston and Dak Prescott.

“It’s a blessing because he helped me so much in my life . ... We’re brothers,” said Winston, the former FSU quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner who now plays for the New Orleans Saints.

Winston was Shaw’s teammate when FSU won the BCS national title in 2013.

“I can just see the passion that he put into this camp, and that’s the same passion that he’s trying to instill into these kids,” Winston said. “He brought all of us out here and we’re a huge family. He brought more people out here than I could ever get out at my camp. That’s just who he is.”

Prescott, who quarterbacks the Dallas Cowboys, met Shaw before he was drafted in 2016 when the two trained together with Orlando area sports performance coach Tom Shaw.

Former Dr. Phillips stars also participated in the camp, such as Buffalo Bills linebacker Matt Milano and his brother Mike Milano, and former NFL All-Pro Ha Ha Clinton-Dix.

And Winston was among about 20 former FSU teammates from the national-title team in attendance this weekend.

Others included former NFL star receiver Kelvin Benjamin,

linebacker Telvin Smith, running back James Wilder, offensive lineman Chad Mavety, H-back Nick O’Leary and defensive tackle Timmy Jernigan.

“They’re my boys for life. This is like a frat,” said Shaw, who will enter training camp with the Edmonton Eskimos in the Canadian Football League once COVID-19 travel restrictions are lifted. “Just to get these guys together is great. And we have our reunion coming up in 2023; They’re gonna have to shut Tallahassee down for that.

“People can say all they want, but they know what we did. We could not be stopped.”

The national championship will always bond these friends and competitors.

“It’s amazing. It’s something that I can never forget, being with my teammates and sharing that memory with them,” Winston said.

Winston had a fun time picking a 7-on-7 team from among the campers to go up against Prescott’s group.

“It was good,” Winston laughed. “We actually ended in a tie.”

Winston enters a new era in New Orleans this season after future Pro Football Hallof-Famer Drew Brees retired. Winston is one of three quarterbacks on the roster, joining Trevor Siemian —— who played for Olympia High in Orlando —— and Taysom

Hill.

“I just want to be the best I can be and hopefully earn the spot to lead the team to the Super Bowl,” Winston said. “That’s always my dream, always my goal.

“I think being with events like this and giving back to the community and linking with your brothers definitely inspires you to go further as a professional.”

Shaw was touched by the outpouring of love from his friends and former teammates.

“Sometimes words get in the way of what you really want to say, but there are no words,” Shaw said. “We can go 10 years without talking and we link up once and you’d think we see each other every day.”

Shaw talked Saturday about how he reached a crossroads in his life recently. The former Dr. Phillips High and FSU star receiver even wondered if it was time to give up the sport he loved so dearly.

So he reached out to God and put all of his faith in his Christian beliefs.

“It was just about finding myself. People get afraid of what others are gonna say about them when they’re confused,” Shaw said. “They think you’re supposed to be this or that, but really when someone goes through something, ... that’s how I came up with RAW — Resilient Athletes Worldwide.

“The resilient part is important because you are going to go through ups and downs in life, but resilient people are going to find a way out of that darkness. It never rains forever.”

From that day, Shaw knew football should still be part of his life, so he got busy —— and invited a large group of friends to help.

Saturday, they all converged on Orlando for the youth camp to serve children grades 1-12.

“I was just very inspired that his faith has grown in the Lord because I know that once you have reached a point where you are giving all your trust to Him, then all of your fears and all of your anxiety go to Him,” Winston said. “Like Kenny said, we always try to live up to other people’s expectations, but this is our story.”