Copper to hold football camp

Copper to hold football camp
By KEVIN TRAVIS, Sports Editor
GREENVILLE — Terrance Copper has never forgotten his roots.
The New Orleans Saints star, who returned home this weekend to watch East Carolina’s annual Purple-Gold spring football game, got his start in Washington. Copper, who recently signed a two-year, $2.75 million contract with the Saints, will hold his first football camp in Washington this summer.
The Terrance Copper First Annual Football Camp will be held June 13-14 at Washington High School.
“It’s been something I’ve wanted to do,” Copper said. “It’s something I’ve been thinking about. The plans came together for me. I’m definitely looking forward to it.”
A banquet will be held on June 13, a Friday, at the Civic Center in downtown Washington. Curtis Johnson, the Saints’ receivers coach, will be the guest speaker.
Prior to his start with the Saints, Johnson was the receivers coach at the University of Miami for 10 seasons where he helped Andre Johnson, Santana Moss and Reggie Wayne, among others, earn first-round selections in the NFL Draft.
The camp, which will be for kids ages 7-18, will be held on June 14.
Copper will be joined by Saints’ teammates Reggie Bush, Deuce McAllister, Marques Colston, Devery Henderson, David Patten, Robert Meacham and Lance Moore. Also expected to help run the camp are former ECU teammate Vonta Leach, who is the fullback for the Houston Texans, along with former Pirates’ Richard Koonce, Marvin Townes and Donald Whitehead.
“We just want to get out there and motivate the kids,” Copper said. “We’re going to tell the kids to stay in school, to keep their grades up and to live their dreams because anything is possible.
“We should have a good time there.”
Copper, a new father, had a good time himself during this weekend’s ECU festivities. He and his wife, Kandy, recently celebrated the birth of a son, Tyreek, who joins siblings Terrance Jr. and Taniya.
“It’s great to come back,” Copper said. “It’s great to see all the guys I used to play with and then to see the new talent that’s on the field now.”
While the game was cut short because of inclement weather, the former ECU standout wide receiver and record-holder liked what he saw.
“They look pretty good,” Copper said. “They have some shoes to fill, especially with Chris Johnson leaving, but they’re looking pretty good.”
The 6-0, 207-pound Copper is currently in conditioning with his New Orleans teammates. While Copper already has four years of NFL experience to his credit, he’s far from complacent.
“I never take it for granted,” said Copper, who has 46 catches for 600 yards and six touchdowns in his career. “You could be here one day and gone the next. You have to take every day like you’re out trying to prove something.”
Copper, who hauled in 15 receptions for 156 yards and two touchdowns last year, said the Saints are hungry for a big year.
“Our whole mentality is Super Bowl,” said Copper, who has 24 kickoff returns for 467 yards (19.5 average) and 37 special teams tackles in his career. “If we don’t win the Super Bowl, our season is a failure. We believe we have the talent to do it and we have the coaching staff to do it.”
Copper and the Saints will start their season in London. New Orleans will kick off the 2008 NFL season Oct. 26 against the San Diego Chargers at London’s historic Wembley Stadium.