Jim Harbaugh brings enthusiasm unknown to mankind to the football field. But does that approach work on kids? In September, the 49ers’ coach first appeared in a Visa commercial that showed him yelling at a group of disinterested youth football players.
The high-strung coach’s NFL approach contrasted with the sweet innocent style of the youth football players to produce a hilarious result for television. At 49ers’ headquarters in Santa Clara, that commercial recently became a reality — well, sort of — as part of Visa’s “My Football Fantasy” campaign.
On October 30, around 50 youth football players from the Santa Clara area gathered at the 49ers headquarters and Harbaugh personally led them through a 45-minute session. The whole thing was designed to be a publicity stunt with community ties, but the 49ers’ coach kept it real. He kicked all of the cameras off the field after the first five minutes of practice in order to spend some quality personal time with the youngsters.
There were no eye-rolls, yawns, or parents needing to protect their kids from the coach when he spoke this time around. It was football in its purest form. To say he made these kids’ football fantasies a reality would be an understatement.
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- Santa Clara Lions helmet waiting to see some football action. -- Field of Teams
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- Jim Harbaugh instructs the young football players to head to the practice field. -- Field of Teams
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- Jim Harbaugh separating the young players into groups. -- Field of Teams
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- Jim Harbaugh instructs Santa Clara youth football players on the 49ers' practice field -- Field of Teams
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- Jim Harbaugh telling the kids about his own personal experiences in football. -- Field of Teams
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- Jim Harbaugh leading the youth football players in stretches. -- Field of Teams
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- Jim Harbaugh addresses Santa Clara youth football players. -- Field of Teams
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- Jim Harbaugh explains the importance of keeping your shirt tucked in on the football field. -- Field of Teams
