Nonprofit youth football raises money to send players to national championship

A year-round football program for kids is raising money to send all of its players to the national championship in Florida next month.

The program was started four years ago by Ike Williams who won a national basketball championship in the nineties with the fabled St. Anthony High School team.

Williams tells News 12 that he took what he learned from basketball and poured it into Hudson County Dolphins, for kids 14 years old and under.

The organization's mission is to stay committed with helping young people reach their full potential through competitive team sports and academic enrichment.

"I started this program with nothing," says Williams. "It took years to get there, and so it's an amazing feeling and it's a much more amazing feeling to give kids in Jersey City the opportunity to see more than just Jersey City."

The Hudson County Dolphins are with the Amateur Athletic Union's New York Metropolitan/New Jersey District Football League.

For the second year in a row, three team levels have made it to the national championship in Florida next month. Many of the families, however, can't afford the costs. As a result, the team is trying to raise $60,000.

With just weeks left to go, the team is asking the public for help. The program is a nonprofit organization and does not receive money from the county or the city.

Click here to read more about the group's fundraiser and/or donate.