Third annual Social Justice 7 on 7 brings teams together for football and more

The event drew teams from Columbus, Cincinnati, Detroit, Lima and Northern Kentucky joined many local squads with schools ranging from the size of Fairfield and Centerville to Bradford and Cedarville spread across three sites.

At the University of Dayton football practice field, Chaminade Julienne and Stebbins, four-team pods played round-robin for two hours then gathered for a post-game message about social justice and race, an idea hatched by former area football coaches Jim Place and Albert Powell three years ago in the wake of the civil unrest that followed the death of George Floyd in Minnesota.

The seven on seven has grown from 28 teams the first year to 40 last year to more than 50 this year.

“This is a great opportunity for people to be able to share thoughts from different neighborhoods and different backgrounds,” Douglass said. “For the world to be successful, we’ve all got to be one and try to love one another and try to show each other respect.”

Alter coach Ed Domsitz, who coached Douglass at Trotwood-Madison, said the event has been valuable for his players after the Knights played Piqua, Northmont and Franklin in the morning.

“We’ve gone up against good competition on the field,” Domsitz said. “It gives us a pretty good idea of where we are in terms of our offense and our defense and when it comes to skill positions. Now, on top of that, the interaction between teams and the message that Coach Place and the organizers intended to pass on, I think we’ve benefited from that. It’s a little different this year because we aren’t able to go inside and break down into groups, but like I say, I think it’s good for all the programs.”

Springfield was in a group with Reynoldsburg, Middletown and Cincinnati Withrow.

From a football standpoint, the Wildcats’ matchup with the Tigers was one of the most intriguing of the day because it meant standout Springfield cornerback Aaron Scott Jr. was matched up often with Chris Henry Jr., a sophomore receiver at Withrow and the son of the late Bengals receiver Chris Henry.

For Douglass, the day served as another reminder of the power of football, a game he played at Trotwood, the University of Kentucky and in the NFL for the Chicago Bears and New York Giants.

“Just the fact that you have people from all different backgrounds and neighborhoods and nationalities and in that one room, everyone has to be of the same accord and for that to happen everybody has to show respect and love for each other,” Douglass said. “The teams I’ve been on that have been really successful have had love for each other and a brotherhood, and that’s what it’s all about.”

Other schools making the trip were Hamilton, Dunbar, Thurgood Marshall, Ponitz, Wayne, Belmont, Meadowdale, Beavercreek, Urbana and Cincinnati St. Xavier.