MARYSVILLE — Joey Coverson, formerly of Snohomish, played four seasons at Occidental College in Los Angeles. Vann Vetch of Stanwood was a one-year walk-on at Boise State University. Brandon Belcher of Lake Stevens and Max Kazyuberdin of Lynnwood never played college football.
Different backgrounds, in other words, but on Saturday afternoon the four men showed up at an Everett Raptors tryout camp with a common dream — to play professional football.
Three hours later, all four were penning their names to player contracts for Everett’s new indoor football team. It means they will be on the field when the Raptors open training camp on Feb. 11, two weeks prior to the team’s inaugural Indoor Football League game.
The four Snohomish County products must still make the team — 40 players will go to training camp and 25 will be on the season-opening roster — but for now the dream is intact.
“It’s a great feeling,” said Vetch, a 2007 graduate of Stanwood High School. “I was pretty surprised because there were a lot of good athletes out here. There were better athletes than I thought there’d be. But now I’m really excited and really happy.”
“It shows that all the hard work pays off,” agreed Kazyuberdin, who attended Lynnwood High School. “There’s a great sense of accomplishment.”
The 26-year-old Coverson, who attended Snohomish High School for two years before transferring to Seattle’s Lakeside High School, has spent the last few years playing semipro football and hoping for an opportunity to turn pro. Like most of the players at Saturday’s tryout camp, he knows the feeling of showing up and being rejected.
“The coaches are going around talking to different players, and you realize you’re not one of the players they’re talking to,” he said. “You realize that all your preparation didn’t work out and it hurts.
“But to finally hear a yes and be able to put my name on a dotted line … I’m so grateful for that feeling.”
A gathering of some 40 players was on hand, and Raptors head coach Sean Ponder and assistants put the players through nearly three hours of speed and agility tests, and then offense vs. defense drills. A few players from the team’s current roster, including quarterback Charles McCullum, were on hand to help out.
“We’re obviously looking for athletes,” Ponder explained, “but we’re also looking for guys who are coachable and who have the ability to fit into the positions we’re looking for. And I’m also looking for character guys and guys who are out there doing things the right way.
“I can find top athletes all around the United States, but the biggest thing for a football team is team chemistry. Because you can win a lot more games with team chemistry than you can with great football players.”
Satuday’s hopefuls paid $40 in advance, $50 at the door, for the chance to try out. The money helps pay for rental of the indoor practice facility, player t-shirts and additional tryout-camp coaches, Ponder said.
Most of the players went home disappointed, but at least grateful for the opportunity. But for Coverson, Vetch, Belcher and Kazyuberdin, the session ended as they happily signed IFL contracts.
“This is their dream,” Ponder said. “They want to play pro football. And like I told them, I didn’t sign anybody just for a PR stunt. If nobody was good enough, I wouldn’t have signed anybody. We did it because I want to give guys who are good football players a chance.”
When training camp opens in four weeks, the tryout players “will have the exact same chance (to make the team) as anybody else,” he said. “Some guys may have played at small (colleges) or maybe they haven’t played at all, but they’ll have the same chance as the guy who’s suited up in the NFL.
“What you did in the past doesn’t really matter to me because I really don’t care who makes the team. I’m going to pick the best football players.”
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