By Craig Morgan, thesundevils.com Writer
Sun Devil alumnus Robert Nelson has wanted to host a youth football camp at ASU for the past three years. With a solid 2016 NFL season under his belt for the Houston Texans, the 2013 first-team All-Pac-12 selection finally felt he had the name cachet to pull it off.
"I went to them and said 'if you let me use the field, I'll donate $25,000 for a hyperbaric chamber in the new [student-athlete] facility," said Nelson, who spent two years at the University of Louisiana at Monroe before transferring to ASU. "I used it this offseason to recover and I think these athletes could really use it to recover, too. I think it would be a big help."
ASU approved the camp, Nelson had fliers made and he reached out to ASU student-athletes from the past two decades to lend a hand. Somewhere in the planning stages, however, Nelson decided he wanted more than just a football camp.
"I wanted female athletes, too," he said. "I wanted different sports. I wanted all these people to feel like they'd be Sun Devils forever; like we're a family."
So Nelson contacted athletes from various sports, he donated $10,000 of his own money to fund the camp, and on June 24, about 200 kids and scores of former student-athletes filled the Verde Dickey Dome with football, soccer, softball and track and field drills, among others.
"It was definitely a lot of people in one place, trying to stay out of that Arizona heat," said New England Patriots offensive guard Jamil Douglas, who graduated from ASU in 2013. "I think all that body heat made it just as hot, but it was a lot of fun. It was like this wild zoo.
"Some of those athletes in other sports I hadn't seen since I left college so it was like a reunion, but the best part was being able to give a little back to the kids and put a smile on their faces."
Among the other notable alumni at the camp were softball alumna Alix Johnson, soccer alumna Nicole Acosta, track and field alums Lawrence Trice, Shaylah Simpson and NFL players Mike Pennel, Will Sutton, Carl Bradford, Brandon Magee and Gerell Robinson.
Nelson wore many hats for the event. He picked people up from the airport, checked them into their hotels, and dropped them off at the airport after the event. In between, he admitted to moments of panic.
"I was so worried the whole thing was going to feel unorganized," he said. "It was my first camp and I was so nervous, running around trying to make everything work. I got a lot of help, but I was shocked how well it turned out."
There was no shortage of interest. Nelson had hoped to stage it outside at the football practice fields, but the weather wouldn't cooperate so he had to say no to about 400 kids. With that in mind, he has already decided to approach ASU about a second annual camp in February when the temperatures are perfect for outdoor staging.
"It's all about the kids," he said. "Coming where I come from, I didn't have the opportunity to interact with all these pro athletes and pick their brains and I would have loved that as a kid. You get to tell them how important it is to get an education. You tell them, 'don't let anybody tell you that you can't do it.'
"Those kids are the future -- I really believe that -- so to be able to give back to them and the ASU alumni and ASU was a win-win for the whole community."
Sun Devil alumnus Robert Nelson has wanted to host a youth football camp at ASU for the past three years. With a solid 2016 NFL season under his belt for the Houston Texans, the 2013 first-team All-Pac-12 selection finally felt he had the name cachet to pull it off.
"I went to them and said 'if you let me use the field, I'll donate $25,000 for a hyperbaric chamber in the new [student-athlete] facility," said Nelson, who spent two years at the University of Louisiana at Monroe before transferring to ASU. "I used it this offseason to recover and I think these athletes could really use it to recover, too. I think it would be a big help."
ASU approved the camp, Nelson had fliers made and he reached out to ASU student-athletes from the past two decades to lend a hand. Somewhere in the planning stages, however, Nelson decided he wanted more than just a football camp.
"I wanted female athletes, too," he said. "I wanted different sports. I wanted all these people to feel like they'd be Sun Devils forever; like we're a family."
So Nelson contacted athletes from various sports, he donated $10,000 of his own money to fund the camp, and on June 24, about 200 kids and scores of former student-athletes filled the Verde Dickey Dome with football, soccer, softball and track and field drills, among others.
"It was definitely a lot of people in one place, trying to stay out of that Arizona heat," said New England Patriots offensive guard Jamil Douglas, who graduated from ASU in 2013. "I think all that body heat made it just as hot, but it was a lot of fun. It was like this wild zoo.
"Some of those athletes in other sports I hadn't seen since I left college so it was like a reunion, but the best part was being able to give a little back to the kids and put a smile on their faces."
Among the other notable alumni at the camp were softball alumna Alix Johnson, soccer alumna Nicole Acosta, track and field alums Lawrence Trice, Shaylah Simpson and NFL players Mike Pennel, Will Sutton, Carl Bradford, Brandon Magee and Gerell Robinson.
Nelson wore many hats for the event. He picked people up from the airport, checked them into their hotels, and dropped them off at the airport after the event. In between, he admitted to moments of panic.
"I was so worried the whole thing was going to feel unorganized," he said. "It was my first camp and I was so nervous, running around trying to make everything work. I got a lot of help, but I was shocked how well it turned out."
There was no shortage of interest. Nelson had hoped to stage it outside at the football practice fields, but the weather wouldn't cooperate so he had to say no to about 400 kids. With that in mind, he has already decided to approach ASU about a second annual camp in February when the temperatures are perfect for outdoor staging.
"It's all about the kids," he said. "Coming where I come from, I didn't have the opportunity to interact with all these pro athletes and pick their brains and I would have loved that as a kid. You get to tell them how important it is to get an education. You tell them, 'don't let anybody tell you that you can't do it.'
"Those kids are the future -- I really believe that -- so to be able to give back to them and the ASU alumni and ASU was a win-win for the whole community."