Player’s in Training -
Lil’ Cavs Football
by Tanya Sell

He is running down the field with the ball tucked neatly under his arm like the seasoned Wyoming Cavalry player he is. All the other players are yards behind him and he has nothing to worry about. All of a sudden he stops at the one yard line and waits. What is he waiting for? The crowd is screaming, and then he turns with a big smile on his face and hands the ball to his teammate, his 10 year old teammate. It was the highlight of the season; Lil Cav’s season.   “One of the Cavs’ players took the ball and did his juke and jive all the way down the field, then waited at the one yard line for one of his Lil Cavs’ teammates…after which he handed the ball to the youngster and let him score the touchdown. “Even the opposing team loved it,” says Ken Dockweiler.

Ken Dockweiler is the president of the Casper Midget Football Association (CMFA), an organization that since its beginning in 1969 has familiarized about 11,000 5th and 6th graders to the game of contact football. This is the CMFA’s 3^rd year teaming up with the Wyoming Cavalry to present Lil Cav’s Football before each home game. 

In 2007 the Casper Midget Football Association is home to 10 different teams each in the 5^th and 6^th grades. With 20-25 players on each team, the organization brings in the 5^th grade players for the Lil Cav’s Football games in order to make sure each child has the opportunity to grow with the team.  “I love the game of football and am very passionate about the Wyoming Cavalry, and even more so about CMFA. It sounds cliché, but kids are the future and anything we can do to positively support our youth is an investment that always has a great return,” explains Dockweiler. 

The Midget football teams are coached by volunteers, some who have worked within the organization for longer than they can remember.  Head Coach Tony Paiz has been coaching for about 15 years, “I played when I was a kid and now my grandson plays. It is just a great organization and opportunity for kids.”  For the kids the opportunity to play on the same field as the Wyoming Cavalry and often meet and work with the players is a dream come true. The focus of CMFA and the Lil Cavs program is to provide kids with the opportunity to operate as a team, which is a skill they will use in all aspects of their lives. “Learning to work as a team is great and I love playing on the field and getting to talk to the Wyoming Cavalry players,” says Austin age 10.

Ken Dockweiler understood the great impact that joining forces with the Wyoming Cavalry could have on the kids and the community. “The Wyoming Cavalry is a very community minded organization and has done many things to support all sorts of civic organizations.  They have a unique exposure that helps them capitalize on those types of activities and be effective in doing so. There are several Cavs players who are GREAT role models.  It is very fun to see the Cavalry players interact with the youth. They are very aware of the youth around and are very positive in their interactions with them. I watched Spiderman Jones give out a game ball to a very small child last week and we see those kinds of examples all the time.”

In partnership with the Wyoming Cavalry, Lil Cavs’ Football is sponsored by Honda of Casper, Smiths RV, and Pepsi of Casper. “Each Lil Cavs’ athlete receives a complimentary ticket to the evening’s game and a Lil Cavs’ T-shirt,” says General Manager Mike Layton. “We are able to continue these types of programs because of our Cavalry business partners and fans, and we can’t ever thank them enough.