A total of 39 NCAA coaches have been selected to participate in the 2016 NFL / NCAA Coaches Academy. The event will take place Thursday through Sunday in Tampa, Florida.
The event was first put together about five years ago, and it serves as a "collaborative program where [coaches] can help better serve student athletes, and professional athletes and enhance the resources and development that we [coaches] provide for athletes across the globe," as Austin Moss, the Manager of NFL Player Engagement notes in the video clip below.
The session is not only a great networking opportunity, but it's also a great event to hear some of the best speakers on leadership within, and beyond, the coaching profession talk about aspects of leadership and coaching, why we do it, how to be better at it, and everything in between.
At last year's event, Mike Singletary told the coaches in attendance that, "coaching is not just a game to me. It's more than a game. Coaching is a lifestyle. Coaching is not something that you just do because you want to do it."
"The only reason that you want to coach is because it is in you. It is in you. It is in your DNA. There is something inside of you that pulls you to the game."
Here's a brief look at the type of experiences that participants will get by taking a look back on the highlights from the 2015 session in Louisville.
Here's a breakdown of the coaches in attendance, who were split into two groups; those selected by the NCAA, and those selected by the NFL. Head here to see the full release.
NCAA Selections:
Steven Aycock - OL - Jackson State
Benjamin Buys - RBs / Recruiting Coordinator - Azusa Pacific
Chadd Braine - DC - East Stroudsburg
Tyler Card - OL - Sul Ross State
Chuck Miesbauer - DBs / STC / Recruiting Coordinator - Mary
Matthew Clark - TEs - Louisiana Monroe
Ryan Crow - OC / OL - Baldwin Wallace
Benjamin Gray - LBs - Elmhurst
Ryan Hansen - Co-OC / Director of Player Development - Maryville (TN)
David Hart - Co-coordinator of ST / WRs coach - Morehouse
Deon Henry - DBs / Coordinator of Football Operations - Rowan
Joseph Henry - TEs / FBs / DFO - Prairie View A&M
Bruce Jackson - DC - Stillman
Donovan Jackson - OL / Run Game Coordinator - Savannah State
Theron James - LBs - Fayetteville State
Adam Kirby - OL / Recruiting Coordinator / McMurry
Todd McComb - Nickles and Safeties / DFO / Recruiting Coordinator - Winston-Salem State
Lorel McCook - OL - Cheney
Adam Morris - WRs - Campbell
Bemi Otulaja - DL - Marist
Lamar Owens - Slot Backs - Georgia Tech
William Pluff Jr. - DC / DBs / S&C - Utica
Mario Price - RBs / Recruiting Coordinator - Louisiana Monroe
Anthony Scott - OC - Lincoln (PA)
Antone Sewell - Assistant Head Coach / OC - Bowie State
Dwight Sutton - Assistant Coach - Eastern Kentucky
Marlon Watson - DBs - Alabama A&M
Raymond Woodie - Assistant HC / LBs / STC - South Florida
Current NCAA Coaches Selected by the NFL
Montiese Culton - LBs - Texas A&M Commerce
Thabiti Davis - WRs / STC - Winston-Salem State
Autry Denson - RBs - Notre Dame
Abe Elimimian - Secondary - Hawaii
Felton Huggins - Pass Game Coordinator / WRs / Recruiting Coordinator - LaGrange
Cleo Lemon - WRs - Findlay
Charles Lockett - RBs - Bethany (WV)
Cory Peoples - DBs - Charleston Southern
Chip Vaughn - DBs - Winston-Salem State
Chad Williams - DC - Valdosta State
Roosevelt Williams - DC - Lincoln (PA)