Maryland running back Roman Hemby, a John Carroll graduate, to hold youth football camp Saturday in Joppatowne

Baltimore Sun Jun 20, 2023 at 5:00 am When Roman Hemby was in youth football, he always wondered what it would be like to play in high school. When his time came at John Carroll, his curiosity graduated to what the college level might entail. Now, Hemby is hoping to share his experience with the next generation through his name, image and likeness privileges. Maryland’s redshirt sophomore running back spent time earlier this year brainstorming business ventures with his family and NIL agent from First Round Management. He was adamant it should revolve around giving back to his community and impacting the next generation. Hemby’s first annual youth football camp runs from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday for athletes ages 9-14 at Millstead Events in Joppatowne. Registration starts at 8 a.m. and families can preregister online via their website anytime leading up to the day of. “After having a pretty decent season, I started to realize a lot of these younger kids were looking up to me and saw me as a role model,” said Hemby, who recorded the second-most rushing touchdowns ever by a Maryland freshman (10). “I saw it would be a great opportunity to pay it forward. ... Just being hands-on, I want to be out there and show them that I care to help them become strong people in the world.” While Hemby is in College Park for offseason workouts, his family and friends have stepped up to plan a bulk of the event in the namesake’s vision. He made that vision clear from the start of the planning process. He wanted to run the camp for 9- to 14-year-olds since those ages bookend those starting to find an affinity for football and those gearing up to go to high school. And Hemby wants to impress as much wisdom about football and life as he can in the half-day camp. Maryland's Roman Hemby, a John Carroll graduate, is hosting a youth football camp Saturday in Joppatowne. Maryland's Roman Hemby, a John Carroll graduate, is hosting a youth football camp Saturday in Joppatowne. (Nick Wass/AP) The greatest piece of advice he’s ever gotten? That football doesn’t have to be the only option in life. Hemby wants kids to leave his camp having had fun, more knowledgeable about football and knowing that they can impact their communities outside of football, too. “Just kind of giving them a hamburger helper to maneuver through situations,” he said. “Because adversity will pop up whether that’s on the field or in the classroom. It’s all important and comes together to make you the person you are.” “I think doing all this is building a great foundation for us,” Hemby’s mom, Charleena added. “He hasn’t made it yet, but the fact that he’s trying to give back like that is awesome. It speaks volumes to his character.” Planning all that goes into coordinating a camp, Charleena admitted, has been a bit shell-shocking. She’s new to all the behind-the-scenes of event planning but is devoting herself to making it a professional-looking event. Branded Hembeast shirts, wristbands and “swag bags” will be available for campers. They’ll have autographed pictures of Roman and other Maryland players for the kids to win. Also, a collection of trophies to commemorate the camp; an offensive and defensive MVP as well as a camp “Hembeast MVP” will be awarded. The nickname ‘Hembeast’ tracks back to Roman’s youth football days with the Middle River Renegades, self-explanatory to his dominant nature from an early age. It subsided as he got older but sprouted back up since arriving at College Park. Maryland’s social media team used the nickname to creatively bolster his brand in tandem with Roman’s on-field success where he rushed for 924 yards on 164 carries in 12 games. Now, Hembeast Empire LLC is his personal NIL business. “It’s cool to see how things go full circle,” Roman said. “Having a name like Roman, it means a lot to me and it’s very powerful. It has a lot of spinoffs and things like that you can use, especially with my last name. It gives me a sense of pride because it means something to my family as well.” Roman’s family has avoided letting him be too involved in the nitty gritty planning. They prefer he keeps his focus on football, where this offseason he said he’s focusing on time management, flexibility and top speed. But the opportunity to host his own camp means a lot. It’s a chance to pay forward to his community with hopes of making it an annual tradition. He’s also canvassing to bring out a few of his Terps teammates to meet with the kids and help run drills — maybe between five and 10 if they’re available, he said. “It’s definitely not something that’s easy to do,” Roman said of being a first-time camp organizer. “But it’s something that my mom and I feel is really important to do. ... Being able to do this camp and help these kids can help them move forward and be the best version of themselves.”