More than 200 high school athletes attended the 2025 Avante Mitchell Football Mega Camp at Olivet Nazarene University on Thursday, June 5th. This event served as an opportunity for athletes to showcase their talents in front of over 30 college coaches from across the country, spanning states from Georgia to Iowa.
“This inaugural camp was a great experience for both coaches and athletes,” said Avante Mitchell, Head Football Coach at Olivet Nazarene University. “High school football players who want to play at the college level often don’t know how to get in front of coaches and show what they can do. We were able to provide that platform for the athletes today. Coaches established some great relationships with players and will continue to build those relationships moving forward.”
“Several players walked away from camp today with offers from coaches from multiple schools to play at their colleges,” Mitchell added.
The Mega Camp model allows coaches from all over the country to see large numbers of athletes competing in different drills. Watching groups of talented athletes at once appeals to coaches, who may have limitations in their schedules or travel budgets.
“A camp like this gives students an opportunity to showcase their talents, it gives them an opportunity to get direct contact with college coaches—the school that’s hosting, and the visiting coaches as well,” shared Mitchell. “We love to see how a young man can respond to coaching, take direction, and then what they can do physically on the field as well.”
For the athletes, this camp was great place to be seen by and make connections with coaches they may not have otherwise met, and the football camp attracted top athletes.
“One of the big things about coming to these kinds of Mega Camps is getting to see a lot of different kids from a lot of different areas in person,” shared RJ Melton, Offensive Coordinator and Offensive Line Coach at Culver-Stockton College. “Nowadays, with recruiting a lot of it is done virtually through social media, but it’s nice to see kids face-to-face and start building a relationship with them.”
The Mega Camp serves as a starting point for many of these relationships between coaches and athletes.
Melton continued, “The next step for us is to get their phone number, get them to fill out our recruiting link, and then the main thing is getting a transcript, to make sure they’re going to be at the academic level we need, then try to get them to our camp in Canton, MO.”
The camp was open to high school football players of all positions. Offensive and defensive line players participated in padded contact drills in the first group. After that, offensive skill players (quarterbacks, running backs, receivers, tight ends), defensive skill players (linebackers and defensive backs), and specialists (kickers, punters, and long snappers) took the field in noncontact drills.
Players had the opportunity to not only impress coaches, but also recruiting services such as 247, Rivals, and Prep Redzone. These services are responsible for high school football player rankings, along with specific talent evaluations for athletes that could attract the attention of other football programs that were not represented at the camp.
Coaches watched players throughout the on-field activities and spoke with athletes that impressed them.
What were they looking for?
“We want high academic guys,” said Nate Lewis, Director of Operations at Grand Valley State University. “We want to see guys who are going to compete, get after it. Hard working is definitely a big one that we’re looking for, and a good attitude.”
Culver-Stockton’s Melton added that they were looking for “guys who are focused on the details, who can follow coaching points and directions, and guys that just want to play hard…you want to see effort from everybody.”
This inaugural football Mega Camp will continue to provide exposure for athletes and colleges alike in coming years. “This is the first of many to come,” said Olivet’s Mitchell. “We’re going to grow the camp here. We’re going to invite more student athletes and more colleges to come to connect with one another and be exposed to Olivet.”
For more information on Olivet Nazarene University Football, click here. Athletes interested in ONU sports can complete the Recruit Me form here.
