Posted by bambi2godzilla on 3/31/2008, 10:14 am
63.249.102.18
Nobody passes on chance to attend his camp
Quarterback guru Clarkson's training session at Glendale College attracts 95 signal-callers from 32 states, including Mater Dei's Barkley.
Eric Sondheimer
os Angeles Times
There were nearly 95 quarterbacks from 32 states who made the pilgrimage to Glendale College on Saturday to receive tutoring and advice from Steve Clarkson, a quarterback coaching guru who has been labeled, "The Dream Maker."
Most were high school students accompanied by their parents. Others were middle school students or younger. All were looking to fulfill aspirations of future stardom, which helps explains why the Steve Clarkson QB Academy operated through the fledgling DeBartolo Sports University could prove very popular.
The two-day session, which concludes Sunday, is the start of a series of national camps Clarkson is running as the president of DeBartolo Sports and Entertainment's amateur sports division. Each participant paid $600.
"By the fall, we're hoping to be overseas," he said.
Credited with helping develop NFL quarterbacks Matt Leinart, J.P. Losman and Ben Roethlisberger, Clarkson has put himself near the top of the growing sports industry of private coaching.
Whether it be football, basketball, baseball, soccer, golf, tennis or myriad other sports, the demand for private coaches for young athletes keeps increasing, and Clarkson has found a niche in helping to train quarterbacks.
"It's not a competition," he said of his training sessions. "We're trying to educate. I'm trying to walk them down the potholes they'll face down the road."
Randy Cross, a TV analyst who won three Super Bowls playing center for the San Francisco 49ers, flew in from Atlanta with his son, Brendan, a 6-foot-2 junior quarterback at Johns Creek (Ga.) Chattahoochee High.
"I love this kind of stuff," Brendan said. "I'm trying to improve myself."
Randy Cross played football at Encino Crespi in the early 1970s and was an All-American at UCLA. He said the training today by high school athletes has changed by leaps and bounds, and parents are looking to help their sons and daughters get the most out of their ability.
"I've got a kid who's much stronger than I was in my second year in the pros," he said.
Brendan said he wanted to participate in the camp so he could gain exposure outside the Atlanta area.
Cross has long-time ties to Eddie DeBartolo, the former owner of the 49ers, but he said the main reason his son came to the camp was because he wants him "to learn how to throw the right way."
If the participants wanted an informal evaluation as to where they stand in the pecking order, all they needed to do was watch Matt Barkley, the USC-bound junior quarterback from Santa Ana Mater Dei who was selected the Gatorade national player of the year. Barkley showed up because he didn't want to lose any edge he gained over the last year.
"Training never stops if you want to be the best," Barkley said. "There's so much that goes into a good throw."
Perry Klein, a former Carson quarterback who was one of Clarkson's first pupils 20 years ago, served as a camp instructor and brought along his 12-year-old son, Chase.
"He doesn't listen to me," Klein said. "That's why I bring him here."
There were lots of promising Southland quarterbacks in attendance, from Richard Brehaut of Rancho Cucamonga Los Osos to Matthew Schilz of Pasadena Maranatha to Ryan Kasdorf, the replacement for Dayne Crist at Sherman Oaks Notre Dame.
Corde Broadus, the son of rapper Snoop Dogg and expected to be a freshman quarterback at Long Beach Poly in the fall, was supposed to participate but hadn't shown up by early afternoon.
No problem. He can always schedule a private session with Clarkson, who plans to be quite busy through early August passing along his quarterback expertise.
Message Thread:
« Back to thread