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Limited Camps Becoming The Rage At Colleges
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Published: July 21, 2007
GAINESVILLE - Music thumped through an almost-empty Florida Field on a wet night a year ago this month as dozens of the nation's top high school football players competed against one another for pride and for the attention of University of Florida coaches.
That night, a group that included at least 10 of Florida's 2007 signees - including former Armwood star Torrey Davis - lifted weights, ran 40-yard dashes, and competed in individual drills in the one-evening camp Florida coaches call Friday Night Lights. One camper, Atlanta Westlake quarterback Cameron Newton, performed so well that Florida coaches offered him a scholarship and recruiting analysts hurried to boost Newton's ranking.
Friday, the Gators drew even more star power to the third edition of Friday Night Lights. Today, Florida State will try to duplicate that success with the first Seminole Showtime, which will allow top prospects to mingle with former FSU stars such as Ernie Sims, Casey Weldon and Corey Simon.
'Both ideas are brilliant,' Scout.com national recruiting analyst Jamie Newberg said. 'As long as they stay within the NCAA rules, you're going to see these camps popping up all over the country.'
The camps do not violate the NCAA rule that prohibits invitation-only clinics because both schools advertise the camps, but only eagle-eyed readers of each program's Web site can find the registration information. The prospects, meanwhile, learn about the camps from each school's coaches and from other blue-chippers.
Florida coach Urban Meyer and his staff dreamed up the Friday Night Lights concept in 2005, setting the camp in late July when players would be more excited about the start of their upcoming seasons. Meyer also knew a game-like atmosphere would heighten the experience.
'We wanted to be unique,' Meyer said. 'I wanted something that stood out from everyone else. ... I wanted someone to experience The Swamp.'
One local player believes Meyer succeeded. Moses McCray, a Hillsborough High defensive lineman who has committed to FSU, attended Friday Night Lights last year and loved its intensity.
'That's my favorite camp,' said McCray, who said he planned to attend Seminole Showtime today.
McCray said he learned about the camps in conversations with coaches and other players. Had he been an average player, he would have been eligible to attend, but he would have needed to know where to find the information.
'They want them to be select camps,' Newberg said. 'They don't want every kid that's interested in the University of Florida or Florida State coming. They invite the kids they want to recruit and sign.'
Florida posted an ad early this month for Friday's camp on the camps page of the football section of gatorzone.com. The ad included a link to a downloadable registration form that showed the camp cost $35 and was open to any rising prep junior or senior.
Information about Seminole Showtime proved more difficult to find. A link buried at the bottom of a list on the right edge of FSU's football page on Seminoles.com brought up the following text, which was posted Monday:
Seminole Showtime
Camping with the stars
Staurday (sic), July 21
A fourth line listed a pair of phone numbers, the first of which was answered Wednesday by FSU director of player personnel Bob LaCivita. Though LaCivita initially said he didn't want to discuss the camp until after it was done, he eventually explained that it is open to rising ninth-12{+t}{+h} graders and costs $35.
Thursday afternoon, FSU's sports information department sent a news release touting the former players who would attend the camp. Seminoles coaches hope that star-studded lineup will make their camp as popular as Friday Night Lights, which has won acclaim from recruits and recruiting analysts alike.
'This Friday Night Lights camp has been established,' Rivals.com analyst JC Shurburtt said, 'as the premier camp that a specific college holds.'
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