Fresno State Athletics
Youngsters Ready to Hit Campus
6/5/2009 12:00:00 AM | Football
June 5, 2009
FRESNO, Calif. - With one of the nation's most successful and recognized football coaches putting on a camp for young players, Fresno State reaps the benefits as over 1,000 youngsters will be visiting campus throughout the month of June.
Head coach Pat Hill and his coaching staff annually put on individual and team camps in June, and again this summer the camps will be near capacity.
The first two-day skills camp begins Saturday with a second scheduled for June 21-22. This weekend's camp is full but there are a few spots let in that camp later this month. Anyone interested can contact the Bulldog football office (559) 278-3015 for details.
The individual camps focus on fundamental skills and techniques. It is not a full-contact camp, but there will be limited contact during certain sessions that will require pads. The camps are open to students entering the 9th through 12th grades. The most popular of the camps have traditionally been the team camps and this year is no exception. Once again the camp is at capacity. The first of two team camp sessions runs June 12-15 with the second June 25-28. All of the camps will be held on the Fresno State campus. Teams from all over California will be attending the team camps, which feature nightly controlled scrimmages.
Hill and his staff work with the youngsters during each session.
"We love putting on camps," said Hill. "It's great to have so many young players visit our campus, many of them from Valley high schools who will be exposed to Fresno State for the first time. Our Bulldog coaches enjoy teaching and working with the players and high school coaches. We get to know them better and having them in our campus is great exposure."
Hill enters his 13th season as head coach at Fresno State and ranks among the Top 30 coached in the nation for most career wins. Among the coaches ahead of him on the list only two, Oklahoma's Bob Stoops and Paul Johnson (Georgia Tech and Navy), have more wins in equal or fewer seasons.
Among the great coaches who have been on Hill's staff over the years include four who are now current college head coaches, including Cal's Jeff Tedford and Tennessee's Lane Kiffin. Five former Bulldog coaches are on NFL coaching staffs and others hold coordinator positions at BCS conference schools (Jim McElwain, Alabama; Andy Ludwig, Cal; Ruffin McNeal, Texas Tech; Frank Cignetti, Pittsburgh; Andy Buh, Stanford).
We Are Your Team! 2009 Fresno State season tickets are available. Join the Football Fiesta Night Sept. 5 as Fresno State opens the 2009 season against UC Davis. For more information, click on the tickets icon at the top of this page.
