Ohio State Buckeyes: Troy Smith, Braxton Miller to host football camp in Urbana

“It will be all facets of football,” Smith said, though they expect to provide more than just Xs and Os and skill development. “We’re going back to the drawing board with how we can be successful, not only with football but how we can be better men and how we can make better decisions.”

The camp will be for three different age groups — 8-10, 11-14 and 15-17 — with both overnight and day camp options for those who wish to attend.

Smith and Miller, who both starred at quarterback for the Buckeyes before playing in the NFL and moving into the business world, are headlining the event, but they plan to have multiple other former Buckeyes and NFL players involved.

“So we have had a couple commitments, but sometimes people’s schedules are the way they are,” Smith said. “And you don’t like to throw names out there, but if I’m gonna throw one name out there, Jim Tressel will be here. He’s a Buckeye great. Everybody knows him. He’ll be here on July 9.”

Tressel, the current president of Youngstown State University, was the head coach of the Buckeyes from 2001-10 and recruited both Smith and Miller.

Aside from hearing from Tressel on the first night, attendees can look forward to skill development activities, discussions on safety and sportsmanship and flag football competitions as well as autograph opportunities.

Additionally the second day, Miller and Smith have also partnered with the city of Urbana to have a hiring event for local businesses.

The Larry Humphrey Band and Urban Jazz Coalition is scheduled to provide live music on the 10th while Michal Gaston, a Columbus-based chef, will be in charge of food.

“We all know that people love food, all different types of foods,” Smith said. “You’ve got your comfort food. You’ve got some soul food. You’ve got just regular ways of getting down in the kitchen, but we have a pretty premier guy. His name is Chef Michal Gaston. He’s in cahoots with everything we got going on. He’ll be preparing every single dish, every single morsel of food here. He’s got some lamb chops to die for, and then there are these vanilla bourbon cupcakes — oh my gosh, you’ll knock yourself out.”

The career fair is set to take place from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. with an autograph session featuring former Ohio State players to take place from 3-6 p.m.

Food trucks will be there from 11-7:30, and the live music is set for 4-7:30.

Charg1ng is the company Miller, who grew up in Springfield and starred at Wayne High School before playing at Ohio State from 2011-15, founded to forward his interests outside of football.

Smith also spent part of his childhood in Springfield before moving to Cleveland with his mother. He was a standout at Glenville High School before going to Ohio State, where he won the Heisman Trophy in 2006.

The camp could be a forerunner of things to come at Urbana from Miller and Smith, who are interested in purchasing the campus to start a school — likely for kids in junior high and high school — that would be called Urbana Prep and Sports Institute.

For more information on the camp in July, check out www.charg1ngheismanelite.com.

Other camps are coming up in the area as well.

According to the Miami Valley Football Coaches Association, Tiffin will be bringing a satellite camp to Northmont High School on Friday.

Registration begins at 5 p.m. and will cost $35. The event in the Miami Valley is the last of five this week for Tiffin, which will also be hosting players in Columbus, Cincinnati, Cleveland and elsewhere in northeast Ohio.

Tiffin, an NCAA Division II school in northern Ohio, has recruited the area extensively in recent years, including signing Kris Artis and Will Linkhart of Centerville, Jeff Moorman of Troy, Antonio O’Berry of Wayne, Braden Swank of Tippecanoe, Camden Vordemark of Sidney, Brian Bihn of Fort Recovery, Zach Gaither of Xenia  and Chucky Lewis of Northmont in February.

Next month, Miamisburg High School will host a seven-on-seven competition July 16-17 that will also include a big man skills combine on the second day.

More information on the Tiffin Camp and the activities at Miamisburg is available at MVFCA.com.

Additionally, Ohio State and Cincinnati are both set to hold multiple one-day camps this week.

Prospects can head to Columbus on Tuesday and/or Wednesday while the Bearcats will host camps on Tuesday and Thursday.

Miami University is set to host a camp on Sunday in Oxford and again the following weekend.