HARVEY, N.D. (KMOT) – Former North Dakota State and current Cincinnati Bengals offensive lineman Cordell Volson, who grew up in Balfour and played sports for Drake-Anamoose, is back in North Central North Dakota this weekend, hosting the third annual Small Towns Big Dreams youth football camp.
KMOT Sports Reporter John Jacklin sits with the Balfour, N.D., native and current Cincinnati Bengals offensive lineman at his Small Towns Big Dreams football camp.
_JOHN: “This is your third year of the camp, what’s it like being out here in Harvey at this Small Towns Big Dreams camp?”_
_CORDELL: “It’s a ton of fun. Every year, we continue to try and improve it in some way. This year, we changed a couple things on the defensive side. We did defensive day today for the younger kids, and then we’re doing offensive day tomorrow. Finding some cool interactive drills for them and get them to interact with the coaches because we have a ton of great coaches here, a ton of knowledge. There’s six NFL players here. Randy Hedberg, who everyone in the state knows. And then we have Dan Larson, offensive coordinator at NDSU here. A lot of knowledge of the game of football is here.”_
_JOHN: “When the kids hear small town, big dreams, they think of you and what you’ve accomplished, making it to the NFL. What do you try and pass down to the kids, not only the skills but some lessons to teach them?”_
_CORDELL: “One thing that I thought about when we first started doing this was it’s not about football. To me, you get your hands on these drills, and with the kids and you do all this stuff, and you teach them football. But what’s one thing that we can make a lasting impression on their life with? What inspiration can we give them?”_
_JOHN: “Coming back to your home state and home area, what kind of joy do you draw from that?_
_CORDELL: “It’s home. I know that sounds cliche, but it’s home and it always has been and it always will be. It’s a place that you just feel comfort when you’re there. You take a lot of pride in because those people are the ones that were there for you on the way. There’s a quote, ‘Treat people right on the ride up and they’ll have your back on the way back down.’ That’s the kind of people that there is around here.”_
On KMOT First News at 10, the pair discusses Cordell’s offseason, his thoughts on NDSU Football, and his younger twin brothers ending their high school careers with a Dakota Bowl victory.
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