Contact Football Camp Amherst College Amherst, Massachusetts
The Contact Football Camp at Amherst College is serious fun! All campers will have the opportunity to train each day, work hard, improve, make new friends, and have fun. Each athlete is encouraged to develop new skills and achieve a new level of play and self-confidence.
Directing the Contact Football Camp at Amherst college, is EJ Mills. Two of the past three NESCAC Coach of the Year honors have gone to E.J. Mills, who has led the Lord Jeffs to a 22-2 record and two undefeated seasons since 2009 as one of the top coaches and defensive minds in the country
Highlights Include
- Individual Camp ages 8-18
- Grouping by age, weight and ability
- Contact Drills and Scrimmages
- Contact Football Camp T-shirt and Prizes
- Great exposure to college coaches
- Daily training to develop speed, strength and agility
Amherst College is approximately two hours from downtown Boston, two and a half hours from Logan Airport and three hours north of New York City.
Campers train daily on Pratt Field, home of the Lord Jeffs. As the third oldest NCAA football playing site in the nation, Pratt Field is a beacon of small college athletics tradition. With modern amenities blending seamlessly with century old decor in an ideal campus setting, Pratt field is a historic landmark any football player can enjoy.
Meet your coaching staff
Camp Director
E.J. Mills
Entering his 20th season on the Amherst sidelines and 16th as head coach, Mills has been a part of 108 victories for the Purple and White. He came to Amherst in 1993 and served as a defensive coordinator through the 1996 season, working with former Yale head coach Jack Siedlecki to help the Lord Jeffs improve their record in each of his four years as an assistant. When Siedlecki made his move to lead the Bulldogs, Mills was named the interim head coach for the 1997 season and has been at the helm ever since.
The Lord Jeffs finished at 7-1 three times during Mills' first 12 seasons, but Amherst broke through in 2009 by posting its first 8-0 record since 1984. The postseason awards poured in for Mills, whose honors included an American Football Coaches Association Division III Region 1 Coach of the Year selection. The Lord Jeffs achieved perfection again in 2011, notably leading the league in scoring offense (29.9 ppg), turnover margin (+9) and sacks (28) en route to 13 All-Conference selections and another NESCAC Coach of the Year honor for Mills.
While leading the Jeffs to an 88-32 record as head coach, Mills has witnessed several of the region’s best football players come through Amherst. Under Mills’ reign the program has produced three NESCAC Offensive Players of the Year and three Defensive Players of the Year. Eighteen Amherst players have earned CoSIDA Academic All-District honors for excellence in the classroom and on the playing field, with two also being named Academic All-Americans.
Read Full BioNotably, defensive lineman Devin Moriarty ’98 was selected by the American Football Coaches Association as a Division III All-American in addition to being named the ECAC Player of the Year. Brian Daoust ’01 and Pat McGee ’02 were also named All-Americans, while Fletcher Ladd ’05—the school’s all-time leading rusher—was the 2004 ECAC Northeast Player of the Year. In 2011, Kevin Ferber '12 became the program's first-ever D3football.com All-America First Team selection.
In addition to coaching countless All-NESCAC and ECAC All-Star selections, Mills has coached some of the country’s finest student-athletes and citizens. Most notable is former defensive back Paul Whiting ’04, who in 2003 was the first ever non-Division I winner of the CSTV National Student-Athlete of the Week honor. In 2002 he was given the DeOrmand “Tuss” McLaughry Award as an outstanding scholar-athlete in Western Massachusetts. Whiting was also named the 2004 Woody Hayes National Scholar-Athlete of the Year for displaying excellence in academics, athletics and community service.
The Gridiron Club of Greater Boston has recognized several of Mills’ former players. In 1997 Rich Willard ’98 earned the Joe Zabilski Award as the most outstanding Division II/III offensive player in New England. In 2004 Ladd took home the Nils V. “Swede” Nelson Award for outstanding achievements in academics, athletics, sportsmanship and citizenship, an award that was also earned by Dan Guariglia ’08 three years later.
Although Mills focuses on the development of his student-athletes more than he does statistics and records, the numbers cannot be overlooked. Under his tutelage as a defensive coordinator, the 1996 Lord Jeffs led the nation in scoring defense, allowing a miniscule 8.4 points per game. In 2001 Amherst tied a 21-year old NCAA record by not allowing a single passing touchdown, and two years later the Jeffs tied a conference record with four shutout victories. In 2009, Mills' squad led Division III in rushing defense (50.9 ypg) and finished third in scoring defense (10.4 ppg).
Mills is a graduate of the University of Dayton, where he was a standout baseball player before earning a degree in history and secondary education in 1988. He began coaching at Midlakes High School in Clifton Springs, N.Y., before a two-year stint mentoring the defensive secondary at the University of Albany. Immediately preceding his tenure at Amherst, Mills served as the defensive coordinator at Ramapo College in Mahwah, N.J.
HALF DAY MORNING SPECIALTY CLINIC - 9 a.m. - 12 p.m. (first morning) - $145
Sample Daily Schedule
- Day 1
- 8:45 a.m. Clinic Campers Check In (Pratt Field)
- 12:00 p.m. All Skills Camp Check In/Rules/Orientation
- 2:00 p.m. Regular Camp Schedule
- Days 2-4
- 7:15 a.m. Wake Up/Stretch/Run
- 7:45 a.m. Breakfast
- 9:00 a.m. Practice #1, Offensive Emphasis
- 11:30 a.m. Lunch/Free Time
- 2:00 p.m. Practice #2, Defensive Emphasis
- 4:00 p.m. Day Campers Depart
- 4:30 p.m. Free Time/Dinner/Swimming
- 6:45 p.m. Practice #3, Competition
- 8:15 p.m. Evening Activities, Meetings, Speakers
- 9:00 p.m. Extended Day Campers Depart
- 10:00 p.m. Lights Out
- Day 5
- 7:15 a.m. Wake Up/Stretch/Run
- 7:45 a.m. Breakfast/Warm Up/Camp Recap
- 9:00 a.m. Games
- 12:00 p.m. Camp Check Out/Graduation
Outstanding Camp, Fantastic Coaches
Football camp was outstanding! Coaches were superb. A sports camp, especially football, could NOT have been better!!
After this camp, I can't wait for football season to start again!
This was my first overnight camp and I could not stop talking about it when I returned home. My love for the game was only reinforced when I had the opportunity to attend this camp. I felt that my skill level was increased and cannot wait until the football season starts to show others what I learned and also what they could learn by attending this wonderful camp. I look forward to next season. Hope all the coaches and players at Amherst College have a great season.
I learned so much...
I had a great time! I played the offensive and defensive positions that I wanted. Thank you! The coaches seemed tough at first, but in the end I learned so much. I really appreciate the time the coaches spent with me! I met new friends who will be coming back next year and so will I.
The campers included all ages
My son was the youngest camper at the Contact Football Camp at Amherst. Initially I was nervous about him participating, but the camp counselors made sure he was in a group with kids around his same size. He was easily immersed into the games/drills by all. The kids were great and he had a wonderful time. We will be sending him again next year.
Overnight Camper
Great Coach to Player Ratio
The coach to player ratio exceeded my expectations. It allowed more reps as well as individual attention to improve my technique at my position. The coaching staff was very knowledgeable and professional. It was rare to have so many Head Coaches of football programs participate in a football camp.