The Big Summer Camp Guide is a comprehensive resource for high school kickers, punters, and snappers who want to excel at summer college recruiting camps.
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The guide covers a wide range of topics, so feel free to skip around. They include:
Importance of summer camps for recruiting
How to choose the right camps to attend
Physical conditioning and training tips
Mental preparation and goal-setting strategies
Strategies for standing out during camp drills and competitions
Tips for building relationships with college coaches
Guidelines for follow-up and ongoing communication with coaches
With the help of this guide, high school kickers, punters, and snappers will be equipped with the tools and knowledge necessary to make the most of their summer camp experience and increase their chances of getting recruited by college coaches.
Importance of summer camps for recruiting
College coaches won't offer any kicker they haven't seen live. This means you will need to be judicious about the camps you attend. Do too many and you risk your leg burning out. Don't do enough and you run the risk of not having options at summer's end. You can find most of these camps on each team’s official web page, but Twitter is a better bet for finding camp dates.
How to choose the right camps to attend
Only attend the camps of the schools whose coaches have been in direct communication with you.
Direct communication means they are replying to your emails, calls and texts and DMs with regularity. Direct communication doesn't mean you got a graphic sent to your inbox and now you think Alabama is recruiting you.
A graphic with no prior relationship doesn't mean a coach is interested in you. It means they are pumping you as a back up option.
If you really want to, you can of course attend a camp or two at your “dream level” but the odds are 98% or greater that the schools that will end up offering you a roster spot are the ones actively pursuing you, not your pipe dream schools.
Physical conditioning and training tips
These are not technique camps. Do not touch your technique during these camps. No technique. (Did you get my point about not touching your technique?) Tinkering with your technique is the fastest way to kick poorly when the stakes are high. These camps all market “coaching” because they have to justify the fees they are charging, but in actuality, no one is learning anything new at these events. They're showcases.
There is a near guaranteed level of disorganization that goes on during these camps. Opt to arrive much earlier than you think you might need to. And, have your own personal pre kick and warm up routine ready to go. In fact, have two: one that is your regular warm up and a second one that is your fire-drill warm up you can do is you're late or something changes at the camp and you only have 5 minutes to get ready instead of 25.
Lastly, beware of over kicking. Once you get a dead leg you will not recover from it the rest of the summer. Parse your reps sparingly when warming up. Take plenty of try swings. And, when coaches are not watching you directly kick, don't kick. You don't get hero points for the 55 yard FG no one saw. You only kick 10-20 balls of any consequence at these camps. Outside of these charted reps, shut it down. Shift focus to networking with coaches.
Mental preparation and goal-setting strategies
If you are in the first tier of recruits you might walk away with an offer by summer's end. These are scholarship level guys. But the second tier of recruits won't know where they are going until the fall and the third tier won't know until the spring of their senior year.
You can miss kicks at these camps, but don't miss so badly that you sink the boat. For example, wide right by three feet is OK as long as it was a clean ball. Wide right by 35 feet that hits the OL coach in the head is not. If you know you tend to shank 1-2 bad kicks early warming up, do your first few kicks into a net.
Stick to your pre kick routine: Look at the target, look at the ball, take a breath and go. This camp is a lot more like a golfer at a PGA tour than a football practice for kickers.
Tips for building relationships with college coaches
The real ROI of these camps is to spend time networking live with the coaching staffs. Here are a list of help small talk starters you can ask them:
What do you look for in kickers/punters/snappers?
What do you think sets your program apart from the others?
What are some of the biggest challenges you face as a coach?
What do you like to see from recruits at your camps?
What's your favorite drill to run at camp?
What's the most important thing a kicker/punter/snapper can do to succeed at the college level?
How has your program evolved in the past few years?
What's your favorite memory from coaching?
What do you like to do outside of coaching?
What advice would you give to a high school kicker/punter/snapper?
Lastly, remember, recruiting is a mess. It is ambiguous. You can have a great camp. Not miss, and do everything right and still not get the offer from the school you wanted. You might as well go out, have fun, let it rip and see what happens.
Strategies for standing out during camp drills and competitions
Let the amateurs burn their legs out with endless warm up reps. You'll have a fresh leg for when it counts during charting.
If you find a perfect football, hold on to that ball for dear life. The perfect ball to kick can be the difference between a good and bad day.
Cheer on other kids and be friendly during competition. Being the lone wolf doesn't usually fly well at these camps.
Guidelines for follow-up and ongoing communication with coaches
Don't fumble the follow up. Here is a message template you can use to follow up post camp:
Dear Coach [Name],
I just wanted to take a moment to thank you for the incredible experience I had at your summer camp. It was an honor to have the opportunity to learn from you and your staff, and I feel like I gained a lot from the drills and competitions we participated in.
I look forward to staying in touch as the recruiting process moves forward. Please let me know if there is anything else I can do to help you in your evaluation of me as a recruit.
Thank you again for your time and support.
Best regards,
[Your Name]
In summary, summer camps are a crucial aspect of the college football recruiting process for kickers, punters, and snappers. It's important to attend the right camps, be physically and mentally prepared, and stand out during camp drills and competitions. Additionally, building relationships with college coaches and following up with personalized messages can help increase your chances of getting recruited. By following these tips and guidelines, high school athletes can make the most of their summer camp experience and improve their chances of getting noticed by college coaches.
Here are some key takeaways from this article:
Attend the camps of schools whose coaches have been in direct communication with you.
Don't over-kick and risk burning out your leg.
Stick to your pre-kick routine and mental preparation strategies.
Use the camps as an opportunity to network with coaches.
Follow up with coaches after the camp with a personalized message.
That’s all for now, thanks for stopping by!
Coach Cahill
When you’re ready, here are a few ways I can help you:
Check out my course Your First Offers on how to go from zero college interest to your first offer here.
Check out my ebook How To Kick In College here.