By Matthew Reamer
NFL High School Player Development
Nearly fifteen years ago in the Bronx, a small group of high school football coaches assembled with a common goal in mind – to create an opportunity for underserved high school athletes to experience similar football training and to provide lasting life lessons. The result – the NFL High School Player Development Program which has been an incredible success since its inception. These coaches recognized that they had created a tremendous opportunity to truly grow the player on and off-the-field. The NFL High School Player Development Program is comprised of several different opportunities including free football fundamental camps, the NFL HSPD Leadership Program, and the NFL HSPD National 7-on-7 Tournament. Each element of the Program shares a central focus: character development.
During the five day football fundamental camp, student-athletes cover the basics of the game. The first day begins in the classroom. All participants are required to attend a seminar conducted by the Site Manager that covers such topics as time management, player safety, and bullying. For the remainder of the program, players spend time working on the fundamentals of the game. Each player is given the opportunity to showcase their skills on both the offensive and defensive sides of the ball. Through this program players also receive guidance from local coaches during one-on-one training sessions that allow the students to understand intricacies of the game from experts and participate in different positions in the game, providing a more well-rounded experience.
The Leadership Program is split up into three sessions and all participants are hand selected by their high school coach or athletic director. First, these participants interact with NFL Legends and learn the importance of education and social media best practices. In the second session, the students participate in a community service project such as working with special needs children, volunteering at a food bank, or packing materials for soldiers overseas. The third and final piece of the Leadership Program is the team building competition. The participants work with students from other schools to solve different puzzles and overcome several physical challenges, showing the importance of teamwork and how to work together towards a shared goal.
The National 7-on-7 Tournament is made up of teams that won their local regional HSPD tournaments. The tournament began with only four teams and has grown exponentially to represent all 32 NFL clubs by 2012. Nearly four hundred athletes from across the country are flown in to an NFL team’s facility to compete to be crowned the NFL 7-on-7 champion. While athletes spend their day on the football field in grueling competition, their nights are dedicated to learning. NFL Legends sit down with the participants and cover a variety of life skill topics including NCAA eligibility and the do and don’ts of social media. Hearing these lessons from the participants’ role models truly makes a huge impact on their lives.
As of 2014, the NFL HSPD Program has reached over 200,000 students in 49 different states as well as Puerto Rico. The program has produced several athletes that are currently playing in the NFL such as Cam Newton, Kelvin Benjamin, Eric Berry, and Vernon Davis. The NFL HSPD will continue to strive to create not only talented football players, but also to produce the best citizens.