Two MSU Bobcats inspire the next generation
By Taco Dowler EBS CONTRIBUTOR
The camp is over, the prizes have been won, the autographs have been signed, and the final whistle has blown—yet no one seems to want to leave.
The cones are being picked up and coaches are gathering equipment, but the field is still full. Kids stay a little longer, throwing footballs with new friends they met just hours earlier. Parents stand nearby watching, smiling as they listen to their children retell every moment of the day. For a few hours, the worries and distractions of everyday life seem to disappear.
What remains is something simple: kids being kids, a community coming together and the reminder that sports have a unique ability to bring people together in a way few things can. That element, more than any touchdown, trophy or championship, captures why these camps exist.
Myself, Taco Dowler, and my teammate at Montana State University Football, Adam Jones, started the Taco and Adam Summer Football Camps for youth in the southwest Montana region for the very reason that sports have always been about more than the game itself. And we we’ve traveled across Missoula, Billings, and next to Butte, Helena and Great Falls, we’ve seen the results of those camps in real time.
Sports teaches discipline when nobody is watching. They teach accountability when things don’t go your way. They teach young people how to lead, how to follow, how to compete and how to be part of something bigger than themselves, and long after the scores are forgotten, those lessons remain.
Growing up in Montana, I was fortunate to learn many of those lessons through football. The game opened doors I never imagined possible. It introduced me to mentors, teammates, coaches and lifelong friends. Looking back, the moments that shaped me most weren’t the wins, the statistics or the championships. They were the people who invested in me and the communities that supported me along the way.
The older I get, the more I realize that none of us get where we’re going alone. Every opportunity I’ve had can be traced back to someone who believed in me, encouraged me, coached me or simply showed up. These camps are our attempt to do the same for the next generation.
That’s what these camps are really about.
When people see hundreds of kids running drills, catching passes and competing on the field, they see football. What I see is an opportunity to give something back to the state that gave so much to me.
Montana has a way of raising people to care about their communities. The people here show up for one another. They support local kids, local schools and local teams. Throughout my journey, countless people believed in me long before I had accomplished anything. These camps are one small way to say thank you.
A highlight of the experience has been bringing Montana State players back to their hometowns—there’s something powerful about a young athlete in Billings learning from a Bobcat who grew up in Billings. A kid in Butte seeing a player who once played on the same field. A kid in Missoula realizing that someone from their own community achieved something they dream about.
For many young athletes, dreams become more believable when they can see someone who walked a similar path. I know because I was once that kid.
Growing up, one of my heroes was Montana basketball legend Josh Huestis. I still remember being at one of his high school basketball games. During halftime, I was out on the court shooting three-pointers like every kid dreams of doing. As the players were coming back onto the floor from their halftime meeting, I made a couple shots and started running off the court.
As Josh walked by, he gave me a high five and said, “Good job.” The moment probably lasted five seconds, but I remember every detail of it.
I remember where I was standing, how excited I was, I remember telling my family about it afterward. To him, it was likely a small moment, but to me, it was everything.
Years later, that’s one of the things I think about most when I watch kids at our camps.
For us as Bobcat athletes, the drills, autographs and pictures are all part of the day. But for a young athlete, one conversation, a word of encouragement or one simple interaction can become a memory they carry with them for years.
I was reminded of that after our loss in the National Championship game in Frisco, Texas. As difficult as that day was, I remember seeing a young boy named Henry standing on the field with his dad, Kendall. Henry was emotional after the game, and I stopped to talk with them for a few moments. I told him that we’d be back. At the time, it felt like a simple conversation.
Months later, Kendall reached out and shared something I’ll never forget. He told me that interaction meant far more to Henry than I could have known. In many ways, it reminded me of my own experience with Josh Huestis years earlier. What felt like a small moment to me became a lasting memory for someone else.
Today, Henry and I still stay in touch. I send him birthday messages, and I was fortunate enough to celebrate our National Championship with him the following year, I guess I was telling the truth when I said we would be back! What started as a brief interaction after a heartbreaking loss has grown into a genuine friendship.
Moments like that remind me that sports are ultimately about people and the relations they build, and showing up for others when they need it most. To have the opportunity to create moments like that for the next generation is one of the most rewarding and full-circle experiences imaginable.
This summer, more than 1,100 young athletes attended our camps across Montana. Through the support of sponsors, donors and community partners, we were able to provide 154 camp scholarships. That’s 154 families who didn’t have to tell their child, “not this year.” That’s 154 young athletes who got the same opportunity to run onto the field, learn from college athletes, make new friends, and be part of something bigger than themselves.
For Adam and I, that’s what success looks like.
One of my favorite moments comes at the end of every camp. Families and campers gather around as my teammates and I hand out awards. One by one, each camper comes forward to receive their award, and before they leave, they’re encouraged to show off a dance move. Without fail, the crowd erupts. Parents laugh, teammates cheer, and kids hype each other up. For a few minutes, nobody is worried about being cool. They’re simply enjoying the moment together, and those are the moments that last.
In the days following camp, we received messages from parents across the state. Many shared the same sentiment: their child couldn’t stop talking about camp, and many called it the best day of their life.
As coaches, those messages stay with you.
The impact of sports isn’t always measured by wins and losses. Sometimes it’s measured by confidence, or hope, or by a young person realizing that their dreams might be possible too.
Through the Taco Dowler and Adam Jones Football Camps, we strive to create a sense of belonging for the youth of Montana. I also started the Taco Dowler Youth Foundation, where that mission continues beyond camp day. Whether it’s providing scholarships, supporting youth initiatives, or helping remove barriers for families, the goal remains the same: creating opportunities for kids and making sure they know they belong.
None of this happens alone—the parents, sponsors, volunteers and supporting communities are what ultimately make it possible, and for that, I am incredibly grateful.
Once the field empties and the footballs are packed away, somewhere that night, a kid is sleeping in their camp shirt telling their parents stories form camp for the millionth time. That’s when it becomes more than just football.
Taco Dowler is a wide receiver for the Montana State Bobcats and co-founder of the Taco and Adam Summer Football Camps, and founder of the Taco Dowler Youth Foundation.
