Friday Night Lights, Ohio State's marquee football recruiting event, is something Urban Meyer brought with him from Florida. This Friday, Director of Player Personnel Mark Pantoni and the entire coaching staff will be at Ohio Stadium for drills in front of a good crowd and loud music.
WHAT: Ohio State's 3rd annual Friday Night Lights football camp
WHERE: Ohio Stadium
WHEN: July 25, approx. 6:30 p.m to 10 p.m.
Registration for participating athletes runs from 6 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. After check-in, the coaches usually speak to the campers at midfield. Fans may hear Kerry Coombs barking about bringing the juice and needing 4-6 seconds of relentless effort from the campers.
After stretching, the prospects will break into their position groups for individual drills, such as agility drills. These will begin around 7 p.m. One of my favorite drills calls for the linebacker to prevent the running back from getting to the outside. In this drill, speedsters like Demario McCall will try to burn past the linebackers in attendance.
The highlight of the event will be the 1-on-1's. These usually an hour, a little longer if the spectators are lucky. Here, participating quarterbacks and wide receivers can show their stuff against some of the camp's top defensive backs. Last year, spectators were treated to a match-up between 2014 commitment Damon Webb and 2015 commitment Eric Glover-Williams.
The event is scheduled to wrap up around 10 p.m., when the participants will finish with dinner on the field.
The coaching staff will be on the field, watching the action throughout the night. Some of the prospects may be pulled to the side to speak with some of the coaches; last year, Braxton Berrios was offered in the middle of drills.
At past events, former Buckeyes such as Eddie George have made appearances.
Prospects Expected to Attend
This list of prospects attending is subject to change. The prospects listed below are not the only ones expected to be in attendance, rather those who have told Eleven Warriors they plan to attend. Not every prospect will work out.
| 2015 Prospects | |
|---|---|
| QB | Joe Burrow (commit), Torrance Gibson |
| RB | Jordan Cronkrite |
| WR/TE | A.J. Alexander, Lawrence Cager, Eric Glover-Williams (commit), Josh Moore, Reggie Rogers, Devante Peete, Jake Pickard |
| OL | Kevin Feder (commit), Drew Richmond |
| DL | Joshua Alabi, Jashon Cornell (commit), Dre'Mont Jones (commit), Anree Saint-Amour |
| LB | Nick Conner (commit), Justin Hilliard (commit) |
| DB | Damon Arnette, Carlton Davis, Jamel Dean (commit), Tyler Green (commit), Denzel Ward (commit) |
| Specialists | Liam McCullough (commit) |
| 2016 Prospects | |
| QB | Gunnar Hoak |
| RB | Tre Harbison, George Hill (commit), Elijah Holyfield, DeMario McCall |
| WR/TE | Sam Bruce, Luke Farrell, Dez Fitzpatrick, Jake Hausmann, Justin Layne, Austin Mack, Steven Smothers, Demetric Vance |
| OL | Bailey Byrum, Tyler Gerald (commit), Drake Jackson, Michael Jordan, Thiyo Lukusa |
| DL | Kyree Campbell, Jonathon Cooper, Michael Onwenu, Auston Robertson |
| LB | Shaquille Quarterman |
| DB | Jared Mayden II, Patrice Rene |
| Specialists | N/A |
There will also be some 2017 and 2018 prospects in attendance, headlined by QB Danny Clark, WR Trevon Grimes, OL Josh Myers and RB Ricky Slade Jr.
Open to the Public
Since its inception, FNL has been open and free for the general public. In previous years, a couple thousand fans have come out to enjoy the night atmosphere at Ohio Stadium.
The jumbotron will play Ohio State highlights and videos. The stadium's sound system will blare music younger generations find "groovy", to use the parlance of our times.
Parking lots near the stadium will be open, but they typically charge $5 for event parking. Fans can enter through open gates on the East side of the stadium with no tickets required. Past events had concession stands with typical stadium pricing.
For frugal fans and families, it's a good opportunity to see some action at the Shoe close to the field. Although it may be hard to identify the recruits, a football event at the Shoe in the warmth of July is hard to pass up.
FNL Coverage
Eleven Warriors will have coverage of FNL throughout the week. Jeremy Birmingham will have a more in-depth look at which position groups to keep a close eye on. John Brandon will take a look back at the previous two camps.
Patrick Maks, Kyle Rowland, John and yours truly will provide live camp coverage via Twitter and will have interviews following the event.