By: Chad Wilson – Editor in Chief Gridiron Studs Blog
Twitter: @Gridironstuds
Email: cwilson@gridironstuds.com
One of the more common questions I get from parents and prospective college football recruits is should I go to a camps during the offseason. There is no simple answer to that question. The real answer is, that depends. In this brief article below I give you the run down on recruiting camps.
Recruiting camps are the one’s put on by recruiting publications and websites. So that would be Rivals Camp, Under Armour Camp, Nike Camps, NUC Camp, FBU Camp. Camps like that are the ones that fall into this category. Your attendance at these camps has a lot to do with what you expect to get out of them and where you are in the recruiting process. If you have passed the 10th grade and you have not secured an offer from a school then attending camps like NUC and FBU are not likely to yield you the results you are searching for. After 10th grade, you are hunting for college offers. Both NUC and FBU are good for the younger crowd. They can position you to get your name out there as a future prospect. Attending these camps are best in the middle school years and in the case of NUC 9th and 10th grade. No camp can really promise you that they can get you an offer so wipe that thought out of your head. NUC and FBU are great for a young prospect to get the feel of what it is like to compete against other prospect, go through drills and do physical tests. Those things can be stressful, so exposing a young player to this pressure early can pay off down the road.
The Rivals, Under Armour and Nike Camps have their place as well. However, if you are not a highly recruited athlete and don’t possess some unique physical characteristics (excessive height or speed) then your chances of being disappointed at one of these camps is high. The name of the game at these camps is to try and find the Five Stars and that usually means athletes with standout physical traits. Again that is height and speed. What you will get out of it is competition against some of the elite athletes in your area or in the country. Yes, you may do quite well against those 5 star type athletes and you may very well still go unnoticed. What you can take from that is confidence that you can compete. What you shouldn’t do is get frustrated because I have already told you what the name of the game is. These camps are also very good at showing you where you may need to improve. If you have excessive height and speed, by all means, hit these camps and get your name out there. Shoot for one of those prestigious events like The Opening, Rivals 5 Star Challenge, Under Armour All Star Game or Army All American Game. If you don’t fall into that category, still go and compete but don’t get all worked up if you name is not featured in a prominent article after the camp even though you tore it up.
For those that are not in the elite recruit status, there are some better options for you in terms of camps as you reach nearer the end of your high school career. I will discuss those options in a future article regarding camps.
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Chad Wilson is a college football recruiting expert and creator of the GridironStudsApp which allows high school football players to gain exposure to college football coaches and fans. Wilson is a former college football player for the University of Miami (92-94) and Long Beach St. (’90-’91) and played briefly for the Seattle Seahawks (’95). He is also a former youth and high school football coach for over 15 years most recently for 5-A State of Florida Champs American Heritage. He runs All Eyes DB Camp a defensive back training company located in South Florida IG: @alleyesdbcamp. Wilson’s oldest son Quincy plays in the NFL for the New York Giants and his younger son plays cornerback for the Arizona Cardinals.
