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Post by coachcb on Jan 10, 2010 19:30:07 GMT -6
We've had a lot of discussions on here about how weight room attendance and finding ways to get kids in there, but what about summer camps?
I mean, you really have a lot more leeway when it comes to getting kids in the weight room, because it's free. But, it's tough to include those summer camps into an attendance point system; because they're not free.
But, it's SOOO important for those kids to participate in those summer camps, 7 on 7 tournaments, mixers, etc. Basically, around here, if a good chunk of your team misses the summer stuff, you're d-mn near a month behind the rest of the league once the season hits.
What kind of experience do you guys have with this?
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Post by bigm0073 on Jan 10, 2010 19:33:32 GMT -6
We hold a team camp in June for four days - 100 kids attend...
Later in July we go to JMU for a four day camp (we get in 6-7 practices in uppers) we have 96 kids attend last year.
Yes the help us tremendously. At my old school because of the community and the socio-economic status - team camps could not be done..
Not at my school these camps are just as a apart of our program as is lifting.
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Post by Coach Shane on Jan 11, 2010 3:55:57 GMT -6
We have mandatory workouts and weekly 7 on 7 passing with Line Competitions on Wednesdays with about 2-3 other schools ending with Line 1 on 1 Pass Blocking at the 50 yard line as the 7 on 7 ends.
Everyone loves the 1 on 1 work as all the teams gather around and hoot an holler for their Linemen.
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Post by senatorblutarsky on Jan 11, 2010 12:30:37 GMT -6
We have 100% participation at camps (only misses are in extreme cases- last year, we had a player who qualified for Nationals in Rodeo- so he missed).
We are a middle class-lower middle class area. Most of our kids can pay for camp though (about $150 for 3 days at a full contact camp). Those who can not are able to do fundraisers (which may include mowing my lawn a few times or something like that).
One other thing we did last year, which has been newly approved by our state is we hosted a full contact camp (we were the host for a camp put on by Northern State University- one of our former players is the OL coach there).
This was good because we were able to have 4 scrimmages in the AM, and do 7 on 7 and OL drills in the PM. Cost was $35 per player and included a meal.
Our kids like going to camp (at Wayne State, NE), and for some specific reasons, I like it too.
Still, if the money ever gets to be a big issue, we can always do our host camp.
I'm not sure how many states allow this, but it has given us a very cost effective way to have a camp / an additional camp.
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Post by phantom on Jan 11, 2010 13:27:41 GMT -6
I'm not saying what I'm going to say to be argumentative but IMO camps are not a necessity. It's not something we've ever considered for a variety of reasons and we've done fine without them. I'm not trying to change anybody's mind if they think camp helps. Whatever works for anybody else is fine with me. I think that there are guys reading this thread who aren't inclined to attend a camp and are wondering if they're missing the boat or are oddballs. I don't think that they are.
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Post by superpower on Jan 11, 2010 14:04:30 GMT -6
I am with Phantom on this one. We have made the playoffs the past three years, won a league title and a district title in that time as well. We don't go to camps or even take part in 7 on 7. We have our own team camp (3-4 days), and we ask our kids to be in the weightroom throughout the summer. Because KS has loosened the restrictions on our summer contact with our kids, we may do some individual work this summer, but we won't attend any camps or 7 on 7. I don't feel that our choice not to participate in these things has hurt us at all even though many of the teams on our schedule do those things.
We are a small town, and there are so many things pulling on our kids: summer baseball, summer basketball, summer wrestling camps, jobs, farm responsibilities, family vacations. I don't want to force them to start choosing between summer football and other things, especially when I ask them to make a commitment to the weightroom and I encourage them to be multi-sport athletes.
Many of you are familiar with Smith Center, KS and their amazing football program. They don't go to summer camps, and I am pretty sure they don't compete is 7 on 7 in the summer either.
As Phantom said, if the camps and such work for you, great. However, I agree with him when he says that they are not a necessity.
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Post by bleefb on Jan 11, 2010 14:57:01 GMT -6
I know two of the most successful programs in our area don't go to camps, others do. My feeling is that if you think it's worthwhile for your team, then go, but don't feel like you have to "Keep up with the Jones'" to succeed. We've seen that happen here with baseball, and it was started by one of my best friends. Now everybody plays a million summer games, but the kid with a lousy fastball still has a lousy fastball when it's over.  Do what works for you. |
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Post by senatorblutarsky on Jan 11, 2010 16:04:42 GMT -6
Phantom, Superpower and bleefb all have good points... At our school it is part of the culture... has been for 20 years. We don't have spring football and aren't allowed a pre-season scrimmage (other than within our own team).
We (our players mainly) have come to think that the team needs to do this. Our parents expect us to do this, so we do (I'll admit I like going to camp...and I like running our stuff "live" against something other than a freshman scout team).
I think the nature of camps (full contact, scrimmages against other programs) is the allure, since we are very restricted (by our state) otherwise.
My feeling is if the team wants to do it, can afford it and it works for you... Great!
If that is not the case (I've seen that in Basketball here) it can do more harm than good.
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Post by 44dlcoach on Jan 12, 2010 0:43:35 GMT -6
I think camps are a great asset for our team, but that may be because we have a relatively young coaching staff (only 2 guys who have coached HS more than 5 years). We think camps are good for not only our kids, but for our coaches to be exposed to different things and come up with ideas of how to attack/defend things that we don't typically see. If we were a more experienced staff that might not be as much of a benefit to us.
That said, we are 1 of the top 2 programs in our area, we do camps and 7 on 7, the other team doesn't do either, so who can say for sure which is better or how much of an impact those things really have.
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