Playing a kids' game

A few years ago, a football player came to Fargo for the Shrine Bowl as a "rough, tough 'I'm a real tough guy,' kind of kid," Rugby High School football coach Scott Grochow said.

Once the All-Star team arrived in Minneapolis for its Shrine Bowl week-long visit to the Twin Cities Shriners Hospital for Children, however, the player's demeanor changed.

"All of a sudden, the next thing you see after we get down to Shrine Hospital, he's on the floor playing games with this little boy," said Grochow, a coach this year for the 11-man East team. "And his exterior look was 'I'm rough and tough and nothing affects me,' and, next thing you know, he's down there and he became a little kid again."

This year's East All-Star team, in Fargo for a week of practice leading up to Saturday's game at the Fargodome, will visit the Twin Cities hospital today. During Tuesday's media session at Dacotah Field, the East All-Stars were playing catch with local Shriners patients.

One of the players was quarterback Jake Landry, a Grand Forks Central graduate and University of North Dakota recruit.

"It was a lot of fun," Landry said. "When I was a little kid, I always looked up to the football players and then I know that would mean a lot to me if I would have gotten to do that."

Randy Gilbraith, the football chairman for the El Zagal Shriners' temple, said today's visit to Minneapolis will likely be more meaningful than Tuesday's throwing session.

"It's probably the biggest event of the week for them," Gilbraith said. "They think they're here to play football. What they realize is that they walk away from it - it could be a life-changing experience for a lot of them."

Landry seemed convinced that the trip is an important visit.

"(Today) we go to the Cities, and that'll be a good experience for everyone," he said. "I know that we play this football game to raise money for the Shrine Hospital. And to do something like that means a lot to the kids, and it's the best I can do for them."

It's a visit Grochow said will produce stories similar to that of the tough guy All-Star playing on the floor.

"I know we'll see that (today)," Grochow said. "I know there's a lot of kids here, they'll be down playing on the floor, or playing ball with them. You saw it a little bit (Tuesday), playing catch with the kids, and you'll see a lot of that (today)."

Readers can reach Forum reporter Matt Anderson at (701) 241-5544