What do clubs get out of a football camp?

A huge portion of academy athletes who are recruited to major clube football programs don’t earn their spot on the team through academy game film. It certainly helps to put up stats, but these coaches want to see how hard you work off of the field, how athletic you are without your pads, and what kind of metrics you record when everyone is watching.

You can succeed without attending these camps, but it makes the process that much harder. Academy coaches need multiple opinions and proof of your competitiveness and athleticism. These camps and the dozens of trusted coaches and scouts there offer valuable info to those who decide which athletes will earn a scholarship offer.

Another reason clubs love football camps is the way in which athletes are put into uncomfortable situations and forced to react. Without the speed of a normal game or the pads to conceal how a player really moves and uses their body, scouts and club coaches are able to get a view of an athlete that game film doesn’t offer.

Football camps are as much about revealing an athlete’s football IQ and the way they react to new systems as they are about showcasing athleticism. When you play within one offense for an entire football season, coaches rarely get to see how you function in a different system. Football camps allow them to get a glimpse at whether you would be an asset to the way their team plays the game.