All Poly Camp draws national attention

CLEARFIELD – Bob Stoops wasn’t kidding around.

Although a broad smile swept across his face, the Oklahoma football coach walked with a purpose as he entered Clearfield High School’s main auditorium Thursday morning. The national championship-winning coach had a message to deliver and he did so with the passion of a preacher in front of 400-plus young athletes at the annual All Poly Football Camp.

His message? Whether on the field or in the classroom, work hard and don’t look for shortcuts. Be dependable, be selfless and, of course, don’t forget to have some fun.

Football is supposed to be fun.

“I continue to say, at whatever level (athletes) can rise to, enjoy it,” Stoops said. “You learn a lot about yourself through competition, in fighting for whatever you get. I think it teaches you a lot about life. I think it’s good for them to hear and hopefully pursue their dreams that way.”

Players who came from across the county to participate in the camp listened intently, wearing T-shirts with the words “attitude, academics, athletics” across the back. With an estimated 100 college coaches coming to observe the action, the All Poly is one of the most prestigious camps in the country.

“I can’t believe it,” said Woods Cross resident Alema Te’o, who founded the camp in 2001. “We’re here 15 years later and Bob Stoops just got done speaking to our kids. If you’d asked me that 10 years ago I’d have said, ‘Aw shoot, who knows where we’re gonna be.’ We’ve been real fortunate. I’ve been blessed for this opportunity.”

Stoops paced the front of the auditorium, telling the youngsters that anything worthwhile is worth working for. He said anything given freely, without work, simply isn’t that satisfying.

Stoops’ motivational words were the highlight of the morning kickoff activities but his wasn’t the only speech. New Weber State head coach Jay Hill spoke first, admonishing the youngsters to take their studies seriously and to make themselves familiar with the NCAA’s academic requirements.

Hill said he routinely followed the All Poly – which is open to players of all ethnic backgrounds – during his days as an assistant coach at Utah and plans to continue doing so as the head man at Weber State. The camp has grown from a gathering of 30 players hoping to be seen by a handful of college coaches to something much bigger.

“Now there’s 50, 60, 70 college coaches coming to watch these kids and that’s fueled even more kids coming to the camp,” Hill said. “Now they know this is the one camp across the country where they can go and be in front of that many college coaches. I don’t think there’s another one like it.”

The camp got underway Thursday with a Nike combine at Clearfield. It will run through Saturday at Layton’s Ellison Park.

“It’s crazy how many good players there will be and good coaches (watching them),” Hill said.

Hill added that for him, checking out the All Poly is a high priority.

“This is one of the most important things that goes on in the month of June,” he said. “We set our youth camps and we set the other stuff around this because it does take a huge priority.”

Te’o, uncle of former Notre Dame star and current San Diego Charger linebacker Manti Te’o, hustled around Clearfield’s auditorium Thursday morning, ushering a line of campers from the parking lot into the lobby in order to complete their registrations, pick up a T-shirt and move along into the auditorium.

The line moved quickly as Te’o barked out instructions to keep moving. The shirts practically flew off the tables as staffers asked for sizes – most of them XXLs or bigger – and sent campers on their way.

Seemingly by design, there may not have been a lot of down time, but that didn’t mean the athletes, coaches and staff weren’t already having some fun.

“If you’re a football guy, this is where you want to be,” Te’o said. “End of story.”

Contact reporter Jim Burton at jburton@standard.net or on Twitter @StandardExJimbo.