Top City Crush provides opportunities for Topeka-area youths: 'It takes a village'

A local youth football program has been providing a safe, positive environment for boys and young men in the Topeka area for the past 16 years.

Top City Crush began as an after-school program at Hillcrest Community Center offering tutoring and mentorship for boys from kindergarten through eighth grade, and morphed into a training ground for young athletes.

“We started thinking about different ways to incorporate sports,” said Top City Crush director Tobian Thomas. “We wanted to create a football program to hone in on the fundamentals for kids who wouldn’t otherwise have the opportunity to be introduced to the game or to youth sports.”

With a focus on providing the resources and culture necessary for the character development of student-athletes, Top City Crush emphasizes education, family and competition.

Along with tutoring, the program includes guest speakers, community service opportunities and athletic training.

“We have a very diverse program and have been fortunate to connect with many families," said Thomas. "Not only in the Topeka area, but throughout the state, region and country.”

Providing opportunities for Topeka-area kids

As a result, hundreds of area student-athletes have gone through the program, launching successful collegiate and professional athletic careers.

According to Thomas, 26 participants from the graduating class of 2020 went on to play at all levels from NAIA to Division I athletics.

Following a record-setting football career at Topeka High School, Thomas’ own son Ky was recruited as a running back to the University of Minnesota.

Other former Top City Crush participants include Elijah Lee, who played at Kansas State University and was later drafted by the Minnesota Vikings in the seventh round of the 2017 NFL draft. Lee currently plays for the Cleveland Browns.

Teven Jenkins, offensive tackle for the Chicago Bears, lays claim to being a member of Top City Crush as well. Thomas believed from the beginning that Jenkins would make it to the pros, even telling Jenkins’ father that they would be seeing him play on Sunday night someday.

“Teven started with us in the third grade,” said Thomas. “His mom had just passed away, and he was looking to get things figured out, and really dove into it.”

According to Angela Fulton, a team mother, this level of support from Thomas and the other Top City Crush coaches isn’t unusual.

“What grounds this program is that these people genuinely want to be here. No one gets paid for this," said Fulton. "We get calls at two o’clock in the morning from parents who say they don’t know where their kids are, and we go out and look for them. It takes a village."

Top City Crush partners with local school districts to check in on its student athletes’ grades and behavior at school. Thomas said every high school in the Topeka and Lawrence area has students that have participated in the program at one time or another.

“It’s not just the sports side,” said Thomas. “We don’t have any problem with communicating with the schools and helping with issues going on there. We tell the kids that without education and discipline, sports can be taken away. We work closely with parents, families, coaches and teachers to assist in putting our youth in the best position to be successful and not get lost in the streets, gangs, drugs or behaviors that will negatively affect society.”

All of the coaches at Top City Crush have experience at the high school, college or professional level, including Topeka High School head football coach Carlos Kelly who has trained and coached the seventh and eighth grade tournament team since 2008, as well as Coach David Richard from Washburn Rural and former Washburn University player Tyrone Barrett. Thomas also previously played football at Washburn.

“We’ve surrounded ourselves with good people who have goals and a vision and know how to guide youth the right way and understand how to use sports to better yourself in life,” said Thomas. “I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for sports.”

Top City Crush is built on family

Thomas said it was his grandfather who showed him the opportunities that sports could offer in his life, along with the importance of getting an education and being disciplined. His own experience is what brought him back to working with youth.

“It was something I knew at a young age I was going to do. Being that support system I needed by coaching, mentoring, and helping the community was always in me.”

Highland Park High School graduate and former New Mexico State running back Joey Dozier can relate to Thomas’ experience.

He has since returned to his hometown and works with Top City Crush as a running back and line back coach. His son Brandon went through the program and is playing defensive back for the Calgary Stampeders in the Canadian Football league.

“We’re father figures to a lot of kids who don’t have fathers, and mentors to a lot of kids who need a mentor,” said Dozier. “I wouldn’t have made it without someone to push me and support me. I’ve been all over the world and got a free education. This is my way of giving back.”

Top City Crush travels and plays out of state to give kids the opportunity to see places and have experiences they might not otherwise have.

In addition to local competitions throughout Kansas and Missouri, the team has competed in Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Nebraska, Puerto Rico and beyond.

“We’ve been all over the country to Tennessee, Texas, Las Vegas and Oklahoma,” said Thomas. “It gives the kids the opportunity to see what kind of competition is out there. We like to give them that opportunity early.”

A team effort

The program operates entirely off of the efforts of the community through fundraisers and donations, and Thomas said the community has come through over the years with practice locations, donated equipment and more.

When a Crush family is experiencing financial hardship, the Top City Crush community has even aided with birthday gifts and necessities.

“We try to find ways to get it done. We don’t like to turn kids away. It comes down to a lot of individuals who have come up and given what’s needed to get it done,” said Thomas. “(The program) is growing, and more resources and help are needed as we grow and get bigger for training and mentorship.”

Thomas said the program’s vision for the future is to provide area student athletes with the opportunity to develop through consultation and connections with college coaches and athletic directors.

He believes this is an important step in helping families who may not understand how the college recruiting process works.

“We’re going to continue to be a resource for the community. Whether it’s educational, community service, or consulting advice for student-athletes looking to go on to college or master a trade if college isn’t for them," said Thomas. "We want to create a system where youth can start at a young age and learn to compete and deal with adversity.

"It’s really about instilling in youth that if you want to work hard for it, grind. Get knocked down and get back up.”

A graduate of Highland Park High School and Top City Crush, Will White is in his second year starting for Fort Hays State’s football program. His family has been instrumental in Crush’s success over the years, with his father Phil White advocating for the program and the community. His older brother played football for Mid America Nazarene and will graduate in May.

Will returns to Top City Crush events to talk to younger students about his journey to a successful athletic and educational career.

“It gave me a space to grow into my own,” he said. “It feels like a big family, and they really helped me get where I am today. They had a lot of connections because of playing football themselves. It’s a real, authentic, genuine place to be.”

As Tobian Thomas watches generations of kids come and go from the program, he continues to show up doing the work that’s become so important to him and to the community. He said his ultimate goal would be to one day have a facility with classrooms, a conference room, basketball courts, indoor turf, and outdoor football and track facilities.

“So many great people have helped grow our program and keep it going strong,” said Thomas. “It’s a program that has saved, altered and changed lives. I love our diversity, and how we have been able to bring people together from all walks of life.”

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Top City Crush evolves to provide opportunities for Topeka-area kids