Vick joins drills, talks to players at Landstown practice

VIRGINIA BEACH

The Landstown High School football team got a surprise visitor Monday on the first day of practice: former NFL quarterback Michael Vick.

Landstown coach Tommy Reamon coached Vick at Warwick High School in Newport News.

Vick, who recently ended a 23-month sentence for a dogfighting conviction, didn't discuss his pursuit of a spot with an NFL team, his suspension from the league or his time in jail.

His visit lasted nearly two hours and included participating in passing drills with Landstown's receivers.

"I love working with kids and putting smiles on their faces and being able to help them in whatever capacity that I can," Vick said. "I've been through a lot of experiences in my life and they know it. And for the most part I can help them."

Since his release, Vick has been tutoring Landstown quarterback Larry Joshua. Reamon called Joshua his "next Division I quarterback."

"He's been working real hard this spring and I've told others that this kid will be the real deal," said Reamon, who has coached seven Division I quarterbacks.

Vick also was impressed.

"He's got unbelievable arm strength," said Vick, dressed in a blue windbreaker and shorts. "I just think he needs to learn to control it because that's one of the problems I had when I was young. But he's a smart kid."

Joshua, a 6-foot-1 junior, said Vick has taught him a lot in a short time.

"When coach told me Michael Vick was going to work with me, I was so excited," he said. "He's taught me how to get my arm up, how I need to step when I throw, how to throw the ball in the right spot and worked with me on my footwork.

"He's somebody I can trust since he's been in the league and he's someone who knows coach Reamon."

Reamon, now in his second season at Landstown, has been one of Vick's biggest supporters and visited him in prison. He said he got the idea to invite Vick to practice because it was a chance for his players to hear from a "real-life football player."

"He talked to them about mistakes and doing right," Reamon said. "I talk about it all the time but he represented my message as good as I could even ask for. He helps me sell the message."

Vick showed up when most players were returning from a break. He watched and cheered the players as they went through various running and stretching drills. Then he gathered the team for a 15-minute talk.

Following the talk, Vick and Reamon's son Tommy Jr., a freshman quarterback at Old Dominion, lined up and went through various passing drills with Landstown's receivers. Some were surprised by Vick's delivery since he's been away from the game for awhile.

"He threw a pretty hard ball," said junior Ronald Henderson. "I knew I had to focus on it and keep my eyes on the ball. But it was a great experience and it was really good to see him."

Those drills lasted for nearly 30 minutes before the players broke up for more drills.

Afterward, Vick talked about his message to the team.

"Coach asked me to say a couple of words to them and I told them that they will never be able to relive this again," Vick said. "Football is just a game. It's a game of just going out there and having fun, having camaraderie with your teammates and being accountable to one another. That's what it's all about. That's what makes it the game that it is today."

Larry Rubama, (757) 446-2273, larry.rubama@pilotonline.com