The following is a paid press release by Kansas Pregame and Sharp Performance.
Kansas Pregame and Sharp Performance are partnering to present a free Athletic Testing Combine and Skills Day, Saturday, March 28, at the Sharp Performance Headquarters in Salina, Kan. The event, which starts at 1:00 p.m., is intended for current 8th-12th graders in Kansas and surrounding states. The day will include a professional testing combine with a variety of tests intended to measure speed, agility, and strength, along with a football skills day featuring former Division I standouts and Kansas natives Jacob Lattimer, David Leonard, Tate Omli, Curry Sexton, Jake Sharp and Braden Wilson.
The event is free, but requires pre-registration. Visit http://www.sharp-performance.com/high-school-combine.html to register. Over 60 athletes from across Kansas, Iowa, and Nebraska have already pre-registered.
"We are excited to provide this event to athletes from across the Midwest as a tool to help draw attention from recruiters and to provide a baseline measurement to help the athletes achieve their speed and strength goals as part of their overall efforts to improve as football players," Kansas Pregame publisher John Baetz said. "I'm also thrilled to see current Kansas high school players get a chance to work with some of the best football players Kansas has produced in the last 10 years. Each of the former DI standouts will coach the athletes in attendance on position specific drills and techniques."
The combine will include the 40 yard dash (both electronic and hand timed); pro agility drill (also called the 5-10-5); vertical jump; broad jump; bench press reps (athletes will chose from 155, 185, and 225 pounds); and the medicine ball toss. Combine results will be posted online and e-mailed to college football coaches from across the midwest.
The skills day will include position specific drills and technique with the coaches. Former Iowa State and Fort Scott defensive end and linebacker Jacob Lattimer will work work with linebackers, former KU and Salina Central running back Jake Sharp will work with running backs, former Wyoming and Shawnee Mission West receiver David Leonard will work with wide receivers and tight ends, former Northern Iowa, Butler Community, and Ell-Saline defensive back Tate Omli will work with d-backs and quarterbacks, former K-State and Abilene wide receiver Curry Sexton will work with receivers and tight ends, and former K-State and Smith Center fullback Braden Wilson will work with backs and defensive linemen. Other coaches will be announced.
Sharp Performance CEO Jake Sharp says the event will be a great opportunity for high school athletes in the midwest.
"This is truly the most exciting event we have had the opportunity to be a part of, and to be able to showcase these athlete's at our headquarters in Salina is a dream come true," Sharp said. "Many of our already registered athletes are from western Kansas and that means a lot. As a Salina native I share a common bond with them, along with a few of our camp clinicians like Curry Sexton, Braden Wilson, and Tate Omli, who were all in the same shoes as these athletes only few years ago. With athletes attending from at least three different states, I really believe this could be the opportunity that puts a few of these guys on the map and could ultimately help them achieve their dreams of playing college football."
Ell-Saline native Tate Omli recently finished his playing career at the University of Northern Iowa and said he's excited to work with players from across Kansas and the midwest.
"I'm very excited to come back and help motivated kids the same way people helped me growing up in central Kansas," Omli said. "I'm also excited to work in the Sharp Performance facility. It's fantastic that kids in Kansas have the chance to get better at such a great indoor facility, and just a few miles from my hometown of Brookville."
The event is sponsored by Hudl, the leader in film editing and analysis; Garage Box Equipment, a leading supplier of training equipment for gyms and weight rooms; Advanced Exercise Equipment, the leading supplier of Hammer Strength Equipment in Kansas; and Dr. Brian Harvey of Salina Pediatric Clinic. Other sponsors to be announced soon.
