A long rumored event has finally be officially announced, as Mark Richt took to twitter on Tuesday evening to unveil the upcoming Paradise Camps.
Excited to finally announce PARADISE 2016! Come and compete with the ELITE of the ELITE right here at The U! pic.twitter.com/58fZCWcR7B
— Mark Richt (@MarkRicht) July 5, 2016
This has been known to be in the works for quite some time. This event will be the premier recruiting event for the Miami Hurricanes. It will be on the level of Georgia's Dawg Night (which was started by none other than Mark Richt, by the way), Florida's Friday Night Lights, and other similar events around the country.
Peter Ariz of CanesInSight.com reports that, while there is the "pay for play" camp portion as indicated by the above embedded fliers, the Saturday date will be invite only, and have some top recruits in attendance. Some of the players, in both the 2017 and 2018 classes, are committed to Miami. Others, uncommitted. Others from that may be "secret visitors", as they are committed to other schools who would probably frown upon them going to this event in Coral Gables.
On top of the fact that this premier recruiting event will host top-tier talents from around the country, Ariz reports that...well...I'll let him say it:
Mark Richt's "Paradise Camp" for elite prospects in two weeks will include UM football alums coaching the camp. Big names involved. #Canes
— Peter Ariz (@PeterAriz) July 5, 2016
Remember how everybody was excited that CMR said he was going to re-engage with the scores of Miami Hurricanes football alums? This is another extension of that, and should be AWESOME. I mean, think about being a recruit and getting coached by a UM legend? Awesome, right? Yeah, I agree.
Absolutely a power move, and absolutely what #Canes should be doing for a premier, elite level recruiting event.
— StateOfTheU.com (@TheStateOfTheU) July 5, 2016
So, those are the things that have been concretely released and reported about Paradise 2016 camp. Now, to go a bit into fantasy-land, here's my quick roster of UM alum coaches who could show up for this camp.
Before my hypothetical guesses, let me reiterate that I have not contacted anyone about this, nor have I heard anything relative to who may or may not be coaching this event. I chose individuals who are 1. no longer playing professionally, and 2. not coaching professionally, so current NFLers are off the list. This is purely the musings of my imagination, and I hope you enjoy.
HYPOTHETICAL Paradise Camp coaching staff roster
QB: Gino Torretta, Bernie Kosar, and Vinnie Testaverde
RB: Edgerrin James, Willis McGahee, and Clinton Portis
WR: Michael Irvin, Santana Moss, and Reggie Wayne
TE: Bubba Franks, Jeremy Shockey, and Kellen Winslow II (because, he's a f*cking solider!!)
OL: Leon Searcy, Bryant McKinnie, and Joaquin Gonzalez (HE SAID DOMINATE!!!)
DL: Warren Sapp and Dwayne Johnson aka THE ROCK (and you can smell what he's cookin')
LB: DJ Williams, Jonathan Vilma, and Ray Lewis
CB: Philip Buchannon and Ryan McNeil
S: Ed Reed (I know he's coaching now but I'm breaking the rules. Fight me) and the late, great Sean Taylor in spirit. RIP.
UPDATE
David Furones of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reports that Michael Irvin and Ray Lewis will indeed be among the UM alums to coach at the inaugural Pardise camp. So, some of my hypothetical staff will be there. I BE KNOWIN'!!!!!!!
#Canes alums Ray Lewis, Michael Irvin to guest star at @MarkRicht inaugural Paradise camp https://t.co/NIdWJC2GtD @ChristyChirinos
— David Furones (@DavidFurones90) July 6, 2016
Those are my thoughts. What are yours? Drop your hypothetical Paradise Camp coaching staff in the comments below.