“I got yelled at during film session that next day. ‘Anthony, how come you didn’t go cover your guy? Why are you standing there staring at him?’ And I was like. ‘I was staring at my idol.’ That was a moment that a lot of kids, they will never have. To play against your idol and then be in awe of your idol during a play.”
Midway through his career, Newman began planting seeds in his hometown, “The City of Roses,” by offering free camps for kids after noticing that there were few Oregonians playing in the NFL, NBA or Major League Baseball.
“What I wanted to do was, come back to my community, start camps, and give the opportunity to kids to get some football IQ, enhance their game, and maybe get more kids (earning a scholarship to get) in college or in the NFL from the state of Oregon,” Newman said.
“That’s why I started those camps. I’ve always liked helping kids out. My dad was always talking about helping people, making sure people get what they need. And so I was like, ‘Okay, I’m going to help these kids out with the profession that I know. I can give them knowledge.'”
After 10 years, the Anthony Newman Sports Camps moved to Nike World Campus in Beaverton, and now the multi-sport summer day camps are held at the Catlin Gabel School in Portland.
“We do everything: basketball, soccer, football, track. A little bit of baseball and softball. We do it all for kids,” Newman said. “They come for the week, and we will pick a day and say, ‘We’re going to play these two sports today.’ Or ‘We’re going to play maybe five sports today.’ We kind of just pick and choose during the week and the kids love it.
“It’s fun for me because I love to see the excitement and the joy with the kids. Every day when you come to camp, “Hey, we’re going to do this today and have a blast.’ And the kids are excited to do whatever you want to do. They’re happy to be there. We call it the NFL, National Fun League. We make sure they have fun.”
For the past 12 years, Newman has also coached scholastic football in the Portland area, the last four at West Linn High School, where he’s the assistant head coach and defensive coordinator.
He and his wife, Teri, have three adult children: Baylee, Anthony Jr., and Daelyn, who is engaged to Las Vegas Raiders safety Jaydon Grant.
“His father is Brian Grant,” Newman said. “He used to play for the Blazers and the Lakers, and played 12 years in…
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