Jon Gruden’s Quarterback Camp Returns This Spring

Courtesy: ESPN

Jon Gruden’s “Quarterback Camp” will return this Spring.

Gruden’s series of SportsCenter specials will return this spring for its fifth season.  Gruden mentors a handful of college football’s top quarterbacks in the series, as they prepare to take the next step in their careers.  This year’s installment of Gruden’s “Quarterback Camp” will see nine of college football’s top quarterback prospects.  Those names include the likes of 2012 Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel of Texas A&M, two-time BCS National Champion A.J. McCarron of Alabama, and Teddy Bridgewater of Louisville.  The complete list of this year’s “QB Camp” participants is noted below.

2014 Gruden’s QB Camp participants:

Quarterback	School
Blake Bortles	Central Florida
Tajh Boyd	Clemson
Teddy Bridgewater	Louisville
Derek Carr	Fresno
Jimmy Garoppolo	Eastern Illinois
Jordan Lynch	Northern Illinois
A.J. McCarron	Alabama
Johnny Manziel	Texas A&M
Aaron Murray	Georgia

 

Gruden prepares a specialized lesson plan of sorts for each of the participants in his “QB Camp.”  Through his specialized plan, he points out to each prospect, a balanced look at both their strengths and weaknesses, allowing them to see where they need to improve in order to be successful NFL talent.  Over the past four seasons of his “QB Camp” Gruden has mentored no fewer than twenty-nine quarterbacks from twenty-seven schools.  Fourteen of those QBs went on to be NFL regular season starters.  Among the names that Gruden has mentored through his series are: Andrew Luck, Robert Griffin III, Cam Newton and current NFL Super Bowl champion Russell Wilson, of the Seattle Seahawks.

Gruden’s “QB Camp” moves this year to the ESPN Wide World of Sports Arena at Walt Disney World Resort outside Orlando.  It replaces Gruden’s Tampa office, where the “QB Camp” was previously held.  The new set will replicate his Tampa office, playfully dubbed the “Fired Football Coaches Association.”  The 220-acre facility also includes athletic fields, which will be used for quarterback workouts.

More information on Jon Gruden’s “Quarterback Camp” and all things NFL is available online now at http://espn.go.com/nfl and http://www.facebook.com/NFLonESPN.  To keep up with the latest sports and entertainment news and reviews, go online to http://www.facebook.com/philspicks and “Like” it.  Fans can always keep up with the latest sports and entertainment news and reviews in the Phil’s Picks blog at https://philspicks.wordpress.com.

ESPN Announces Details For 2014 Armed Forces Classic

Courtesy: ESPN

ESPN has announced the schedule for the annual NCAA Armed Forces Classic Men’s Basketball Games.  The schedule, set for the next three years, will shift to the Coast Guard in 2014.  Next year’s annual Men’s Division I matchup is scheduled for November 14, 2014.  It will originate from the United States Air Station Borinquen in Puerto Rico.  The game will feature defending National Champion Louisville taking on Minnesota.  Next Fall’s matchup will be made even bigger as it will be a father son coaching duel.  Rick Pitino, a 2013 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductee will bring the Cardinals in to face the Gophers, coached by his son Richard Pitino.  Richard Pitino is in his first season as head coach of the Gophers.

Details for the 2015 game are yet to be fully determined. However, it is known that the game will be handed off to the Marines for 2015.  It is currently scheduled to be played November 13, 2015.  2016 will see the game shift to the Navy.  The game, scheduled to be played November 11^th, 2016, will actually feature a double-header at the naval base in Pearl Harbor, HI.  It will be played just a month away from the 75^th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor.  Teams for both the 2015 and 2016 matchup have not yet been announced.  They will be announced at a later date.

The Armed Forces Classic Men’s Basketball Game will be broadcast on ESPN each year.  It is part of the network’s America’s Heroes: A Salute to Our Veterans initiative.  America’s Heroes: A Salute to Our Veterans America’s men and women in uniform past, present, and future, both at home and abroad.

The Armed Forces Classic is owned and operated by ESPN Regional Television (ERT), a subsidiary of ESPN.  More information on the annual ESPN Armed Forced Classic is available online at http://espnevents.com/armed-forces-classic, http://www.facebook.com/ESPNEvents, and http://twitter.com/ESPNEvents.  To keep up with the latest sports and entertainment news and reviews, go online to http://www.facebook.com/philspicks and “Like” it.  Fans can always keep up with the latest sports and entertainment news and reviews in the Phil’s Picks blog at https://philspicks.wordpress.com.