NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (WTKR) — Anytime Bethel High School faces off Hampton High School, the emotion is going to be through the roof.
Marquis Godwin and Kyle Foster know that as well as anyone.
"If you're from around here, you know it's a different environment," said Godwin, who suited up for the Crabbers. "Me and Kyle used to go at it a lot playing in those environments and we used to shine."
"We had some great wars. I'm going to say we won the series," Foster, who starred for the Bruins, said.
This weekend, the two putting their allegiances aside to host a basketball clinic at Vertex Performance in Newport News.
"Really happy to do something with a person like him because we came from the same shoes," Godwin said. "Just glad we're able to put on for our city."
"He's had his own journey, I've had my own journey and now we're just combining that together," Foster said. We've had similar experiences and now we're just trying to pass that down to the youth."
The duo have plenty in common beyond the rivalry. Both starred at HBCU schools during their college careers, Foster at Howard and Godwin at Hampton.
With an eye on helping fundamentals, the pair of guards lessons for the players this weekend focused on being efficient shooters and careful ball handlers.
"We didn't really have things like this which is another reason we wanted to do this," Foster said.
After averaging 15.8 points per game in his final season with the Bison, Foster played his first year professionally overseas in Europe. That's another thing he'll have in common with Godwin, who is weighing a few options to play overseas this upcoming season.
The Crabber alum posted a 12.4 point average in his final season with the Pirates in 2022-2023.
It's that common bond that helps the pair realize how important it is to show the next generation what they can do too.
"Connecting with guys like Kyle and the rest of those coming from HBCU's, we've got a chip on our shoulder," Godwin said. "Just doing this and giving back to the kids and showing them what it takes to get to this point is real big."
