Waddell launching AAU football in York County

Beady Waddell is bringing AAU football to York County.

The former college football player originally from Gastonia, N.C., is launching the Border City Bengals in conjunction with a May 21 combine at District Three Stadium.

“That is our introduction to the Rock Hill community,” said Waddell.

The program will have several teams serving kids ages 6 to 12. The Bengals teams will play a traditional fall tackle season from August into December or January, depending on how far the team advances into the postseason, and then a 7-on-7 football season that begins in June and runs through July.

Waddell is the state’s AAU football director; he lives in York County. The Bengals will play teams from other parts of the state. Many of the 20 AAU football programs in South Carolina were started by or with the help of Waddell.

Waddell said three pillars of AAU football in South Carolina are discipline, extra attention on being an athlete and a student, and high parent involvement with the program.

Waddell expects participation to cost around $150; travel expenses aren’t included in that total. Players can sign up this season, but Waddell expects the program to move to try-outs in the future, as long as demand grows.

AAU football is highly regulated; participants can’t play on other teams in other programs

“That’s a national rule,” said Waddell. “That’s a national AAU rule. For one, it’s all about player development. I think a lot of programs get caught in doing what’s best for their program and not the athlete. It’s always best for an athlete, in my philosophy, to play for their school team. Regardless of what anyone does, that’s the No. 1 route for kids to go to college. We want relationships with the middle schools and the high schools. We want to be in strict compliance.”

This story was originally published May 9, 2016 at 8:17 PM with the headline "Waddell launching AAU football in York County."