Michigan Football Showcase A Big Success On The Ferris State Campus
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Big Rapids, Mich. - Ferris State University played host to the biggest high school football camp in the state on Thursday (June 3) as the "Michigan Football Showcase" took place on the FSU campus.
The event featured more than 600 high school prep football players, including some of the nation's top prospective Division I recruits, in addition to 200-plus college coaches along with media outlets from across the state in Big Rapids.
The "Michigan Football Showcase" featured three different sessions for talented prep football standouts from across the Midwest. Campers not only had an opportunity to work out and develop their skills in front of college recruiters, but also had an opportunity to explore the FSU campus and listen to presentations from college football head coaches in attendance.
The list of guest speakers not only included Ferris State's own Tony Annese, but also other head coaches such as Michigan's Jim Harbaugh, Michigan State's Mel Tucker, Jim McElwain of Central Michigan and other coaches from both in-state and regional schools at all levels. Additionally, NFL Hall of Fame quarterback Kurt Warner was on hand and served as a guest speaker.
The event was started more than 15 years ago in 2004 in an effort to help Detroit area players be exposed to college football programs and has grown into one of the largest of its kind. The camp utilizes a unique curriculum that combines academics, athletics and life skills derived by national-level instructors, coaches and motivational speakers. It has helped to increase the number of football student-athletes graduating from the high school level and those earning college scholarships.
This year marked its first visit to Top Taggart Field and the Ferris State campus. Athletes attending the camp were afforded the opportunity to visit various campus venues with workouts held in multiple groups at both Top Taggart Field and the South Athletic Complex on campus.
"The planning for this was unbelievable and our staff did an awesome job of making this happen," said Annese. "It's a great thing for Ferris State to get this many people on campus and our university has been awesome in terms of supporting this event. We were able to use this as an opportunity to sell Ferris State and it brought a lot of people to the city of Big Rapids today so we're thrilled with how it turned out. It was a great opportunity to celebrate football."
Ferris State has captured each of the past two Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) Football Championships on the field under Coach Annese's direction and the Bulldogs own the best overall record of any college football program in the state since his arrival in 2012. FSU has also made the NCAA Division II Playoffs six consecutive years and is expected to rank among the country's top preseason teams entering the 2021 fall season.
In addition to hosting the showcase event, the Bulldogs also expect to hold various day and overnight camps in a variety of sports this summer, including boys and girls basketball, volleyball, tennis, golf, soccer, hockey, softball and more. Planning is underway to provide a safe environment for all campers and staff and registrations are currently being accepted. Please visit FerrisStateBulldogs.com/camps or email summercamps@ferris.edu for additional information.