Brad Cesmat
photos by Shannon Liebrock Photography
Historically Black Colleges and Universities held a football combine Saturday morning at Higley high school. I dropped in to see how the camp had grown from year one. The world of “combines” usually should be followed by “money grab” of unsuspecting high school parents. The silly season of summer football has lots of dudes putting on events(7 on 7, showcases) that aren’t really about the players getting exposure, but more about who can make some dough off a kid hoping to get noticed. 
Britney Buckles came up with the idea of having a Arizona Combine for HBCU’s three years ago at a Williams Field spring football practice when she picked up the phone and started making calls. She’s gone about it all the right way. OrthoArizona is her title sponsor and the group that put it all togehter is in it for the right reasons.
Saturday morning players from over 25 high schools(some from California) shwoed up to be evaluated by Jackson St., Hampton, Morgan State, Livingstone, Fork Union, and others. HBCUs emerged during a period of segregation and discrimination when Black Americans were denied access to many mainstream colleges and universities.Jerry Rice, the late Walter Payton, Michael Strahan, Aeneas Williams, and Richard Dent are just a few of the familiar names that went to college at a HBCU.
32 kids signed up in year one, 89 were on the Higley turf Saturday morning. “It’s one of those things that, I hoped it was going to be this, but it’s turned out even better than I ever imagined”, Buckles told me on the field Saturday morning. She doesn’t want what she started, to get too big. Past experience for her in the space of being a football mom has given her a good eye about the world of camps and combines. “I’d like to keep it around 100 players or less every year because I want to make sure kids are getting alot of reps and are actually getting a chance to be evaluated and I’d like to see all of the HBCU coaches on the sidelines”. 
Brittney went to Howard University an HBCU in Washington D.C.
Our community needs more Britney Buckles…
