High school spring football, traditionally a staple in other states, plays out in Colorado on college campuses in June instead. Your high school team isn’t enrolled? No problem. Those “unattached” players might draw even more recruiting looks from the host college.
Colorado coach Dan Hawkins hosted 26 teams this June, driving overall registration from 2,216 in 2008 to 3,240 last month for all campers. CU has camps for boys and girls entering first grade up to high school seniors looking to get attention, and maybe a scholarship.
The camps serve as tools both for recruiting and for community relations, with CU bringing in youngsters who might someday become Buffs, or at least fans of the Buffs.
“I’m not saying we’re perfect, but it’s not, ‘Hey, roll out the balls and have at it and here’s your T-shirt,’ ” CU football coach Dan Hawkins said.
Hawk’s June camps shattered the previous record attendance, set a year ago. They nearly tripled the attendance from his first camp in 2006, which drew 1,163. Hawkins, as with any new coach, had to build from scratch.
He did so by emphasizing the school’s four-day camp, which had 26 high schools send an average of 50 players last month.
“What the college coaches around here have sold us on is that Colorado as a state doesn’t have spring football,” said veteran Loveland coach John Poovey, who sent his team to the camp. “This is to replace that opportunity for us so we can have padded contact with other teams.”
Colorado State, meanwhile, hosted 10 high school teams last month, in addition to hosting individual instruction high school camps, youth camps, quarterbacks of almost all ages and one-day junior-senior events.
Second-year CSU coach Steve Fairchild has instituted a two-day quarterback camp, swapping out the old 7-on-7 passing drills camp.
“I felt we had a good product with this quarterback camp,” he said. “We had something to offer.”
CSU’s camp numbers were up this year, but nowhere close to CU’s, with a total of 735 participants at a one-day high school camp in July. CSU camps are open to third-graders and older.
University now operates programs
As Hawkins found out a few years ago, it’s tough for a new coach to start up a camp. Between settling in a new staff, recruiting and spring ball, summer camp is not at the top of the priority list in Year 1.
“There was no money made (the first year). It doesn’t matter,” Fairchild said. “It’s a chance to work with kids. It’s positive PR. It doesn’t matter if it’s team, individual or quarterbacks camp. Just having them here and getting a chance to work with them is a great recruiting tool.”
Recruiting might be 10 years down the road for the youngest campers, but it’s never to early to start the ticket sales pitch. CSU camp director and football operations chief Tom Ehlers concluded a little kids camp with an appeal to join the Junior Ram Club. CU entertains its youngest campers with a visit from Ralphie, its bison mascot.
Hawkins had to rebuild CU’s camps after predecessor Gary Barnett’s camps were tainted by a grand jury report on proceeds being used for the assistant coaches’ slush funds. Those camps were operated under a corporation formed by Barnett. Now, all camps are run by CU, not the coaches.
“Absolutely, there’s been changes,” CU athletic director Mike Bohn said. “The camps are managed by the university.”
The NCAA permits camps run by coaches, but the books must be open to an outside audit.
“I’m not sure what happened before, but the (university) business office has a lot of controls monitoring operation of every camp,” CU camp and football operations director Robert Tucker said.
Top players recruited at camps
Recruiting is at the heart of everything a college program does, and the same goes for hosting potential future Buffs.
“It’s a huge recruiting tool for them,” D’Evelyn High School offensive line coach Bob Baker said after he walked off the CU practice field at a recent camp.
CSU already landed one commitment this year, from tight end Crockett Gillmore, out of its June one-day individual camp. A tight end out of Bushland, Texas, Gillmore said he used the camp as a chance to make his decision. He also visited TCU, New Mexico, UTEP and Missouri.
“Colorado State is where I felt at home,” he said.
Through the years, CSU coaches drew an early bead on eventual Rams, including Joel Dreessen, Caleb Hanie and Kyle Bell, from the summer camps. At CU, former linebacker Jordon Dizon came all the way from Hawaii for a camp and went on to a stellar collegiate career with the Buffs.
Poovey said the up-close look is invaluable.
“(They) get to see kids actually play. . . . It’s mostly looking at next year’s recruiting class,” Poovey said. “If there’s a superstar, everyone already knows about him.”
CU’s team camp featured teams with anywhere from 40 to 100 participants, as well as their coaching staffs. The players received extra looks and coaching tips from the Buffs’ staff.
One of those players was Monarch outside linebacker Josh Mitchell, who is looking to get on the recruiting radar heading into his senior year. He said CU staffers liked what he showed them in a 7-on-7 camp.
“They want me to work on things. I think it helps me a lot, getting one-on-one attention from coaches, being able to talk to them,” Mitchell said. “It’s nice to be out here with some of the better kids in the state and kind of measure yourself.”
Three juniors at Mullen formed their “minicamp” for an at-large team made up of players from throughout the state.
“You learn what CU has to offer and what I need to do,” said Mullen offensive lineman Conor McKennan. “It’s a chance to go up against good competition.”
Tucker downplayed the direct recruiting implications, saying. “They might never play for us but maybe they’ll go to CU, go to games, and cheer us on.”
Denver Post staff writer Chris Dempsey contributed to this report.
Natalie Meisler can be reached at 303-954-1295 or nmeisler@denverpost.com
