Darrin Reaves Sammie Coates interview on Med State Elite League

In the Darrin Reaves Sammie Coates interview, Reaves explained why he is building Med State Elite League in Clay, Alabama: he wants to protect young athletes while giving them access to training, game film and individual evaluations. He also described the standards he plans to set for coaches, a competition for offensive linemen and support for athletes pursuing college scholarships.

Why did Darrin Reaves start Med State Elite League?

Darrin Reaves said he is building Med State Elite League because he wants a youth sports structure that protects athletes as well as developing them. Based in Clay, Alabama, where he played high school football at Clay Chalkville, the league is intended to serve multiple sports rather than football alone.

Reaves pointed to the volume of games some youth teams play. He recalled a team that had played about 30 games before its first regular-season league game. People he has spoken with disagree about tournament-heavy schedules, he said, and he sees advantages and disadvantages in different approaches. His priority is to put athlete protection into the league’s structure.

From a childhood NFL goal to a youth league

His ideas also come from his own experience as a young player. Reaves said he set his sights on the NFL at six. Around age seven, he practiced one day with 10- and 11-year-olds who were taller and more experienced. Making a tackle or two against them felt, to him, like reaching the NFL. Reaves summed up how early that ambition took hold:

I've been an NFL player when I was six years old.

He wants young athletes to feel that sense of possibility without losing sight of their development and safety. The league’s planned events and testing are meant to give them some of the structure he associates with higher levels of sport.

What did Darrin Reaves say about youth football development?

Darrin Reaves said Med State Elite League members will have access to personal training, recorded games and individual athlete evaluations. He plans to use laser timing at combines and testing events, while making film available for every game across the sports and organizations in the league.

Game film and individual evaluations

Reaves described technology that would let the league isolate an athlete’s performance in a particular game and provide an evaluation. He wants that assessment to identify what the athlete does well, where improvement is needed and what their movement may indicate about injury risks. He compared the idea to a scouting report for a young player.

Training is another part of the plan. Reaves said athletes in each sport would have access to personal training through their member organizations. He also wants workouts that can be implemented across organizations, rather than leaving every participating group to build its own approach from scratch.

How is Darrin Reaves training youth football coaches?

Darrin Reaves said coaches in Med State Elite League will need to complete clinics, testing, background checks and other qualification steps. He sees coach development as essential to athlete development: coaches work directly with young players, so training athletes alone would leave a gap in the league’s plans.

Qualifications for coaches

Under the structure Reaves described, coaches who complete the required processes could become eligible for stipends. In football, he said, someone seeking a head-coach or coordinator role would also have to meet those requirements. The league intends to keep track of which steps each coach has completed.

DJ Taylor and Melanie Sledge’s training plans

Reaves named DJ Taylor, his offseason trainer in Birmingham, and director Melanie Sledge as people working on a system to distribute workouts across participating organizations. He also plans certification classes for coaches and parents who want to train athletes in their respective sports.

Reaves said coaching ability cannot be judged simply by whether someone played football. He has seen effective coaches at high levels who did not play the game, and he wants the league to train people and place them in roles where they can succeed.

What is Darrin Reaves planning for Champions of the Trench?

Darrin Reaves said Champions of the Trench is the first event Med State Elite League is preparing. He described it as a competition for offensive linemen, with group and individual awards designed to give the players who work in the trenches a dedicated event.

Reaves compared the format to seven-on-seven for bigger players, with Olympic-style games rather than a conventional football game. He said the event would identify a top offensive-line group and recognize individual performances. He did not give an event date.

Champions of the Trench fits his broader plan to offer young athletes organized events and measurable opportunities. For offensive linemen, it would create a setting built around their positions rather than asking them to participate in an event designed for skill-position players.

What did Sammie Coates say about coaching at Columbia?

Sammie Coates said he took the Columbia coaching job because he did not want its players to go through school without experiencing a win. He described a program associated with 101 losses and said his biggest challenge has been persuading students to join and believe in the team.

Coates said his first year at the 6A program brought out about 25 players. This year, he said, participation had risen to roughly 50 to 60. Much of that increase came from recruiting students already in the school, including some who had not previously played football.

He credited fellow coaches and the school administration with buying into the program’s direction. Even with more players coming out, Coates said changing expectations takes work: some students had avoided joining a team known for losing. Coaching there has taught him what to do and what not to do, he said, while giving him a chance to pass on what he learned in college and the NFL.

How will Darrin Reaves handle recruiting support and league rosters?

Darrin Reaves said Med State Elite League plans to help athletes prepare for recruiting and college eligibility, while setting rules for coaches and players who enter the league. Valencia Bell will work on recruiting, ACT and SAT eligibility, and scholarship preparation; Reaves also wants assessments to help assemble coaching staffs.

Valencia Bell and college preparation

After Coates discussed the need for youth programs and the difficulty high school athletes face in recruiting, Reaves named Bell as part of the league’s plans. He said her role would be to help athletes be prepared to receive college scholarships. He did not promise that participation in the league would produce scholarship offers.

Staff assessments and player releases

Reaves said DJ Taylor has discussed a personality assessment that could help determine how coaches with different working styles fit together on a staff. He gave dominant and influential personalities as examples, while saying he could not recall the assessment’s exact name or all its categories. His aim is to build cohesive staffs, including when some coaches are new to the role.

For athletes moving from another league, Reaves said he plans to require a release from their previous team, organization or league before they join. He also discussed adjusting the timing of weigh-ins to accommodate transfers. He framed both measures as part of a larger goal: adding value for the participating organizations, parks and communities.

Who is Darrin Reaves?

Darrin Reaves is a retired NFL running back. He played college football at UAB, signed with the Carolina Panthers as an undrafted free agent in 2014 and also played for the Kansas City Chiefs.