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IMG Academy (FL)

Posted on 1/3/16 at 10:52 am
Posted by BayouSizzle
New Orleans
Member since Jan 2016
316 posts
Posted on 1/3/16 at 10:52 am
Is this a new football factory concept school? I am familiar with the traditional high school football factories (eg, John Curtis in LA). I am becoming familiar with the St. Thomas Aquinas (FL) recruiting nationally. But, the IMG Academy, which does similar as St. Thomas Aquinas, seems to be built to make professional athletes (if you read their website).

Shea Patterson (Calvary Baptist turned IMG), Davis (B.R. turned IMG), for example.

Is this a new concept football factory? Will we be seeing more of these?

...new to me.
Posted by nolatrain504
Louisiana
Member since Aug 2012
973 posts
Posted on 1/3/16 at 10:55 am to
And Moses next year
Posted by tigerskin
Member since Nov 2004
40236 posts
Posted on 1/3/16 at 10:56 am to
Not just football
Posted by ehidal1
Chief Boot Knocka
Member since Dec 2007
37135 posts
Posted on 1/3/16 at 10:58 am to
quote:

And Moses next year

This hasn't been confirmed right?
Posted by TideSaint
Hill Country
Member since Sep 2008
75856 posts
Posted on 1/3/16 at 11:01 am to
A buddy and I looked it up last night during the UA Game. One year of tuition at IMG costs $70,800.

Think about that for a minute.
Posted by Lsupimp
Ersatz Amerika-97.6% phony & fake
Member since Nov 2003
78583 posts
Posted on 1/3/16 at 11:01 am to
LINK Read this.
Posted by TampaTiger22
Tampa, FL
Member since Jul 2012
6669 posts
Posted on 1/3/16 at 11:04 am to
They also give out scholarships. They have dorms , it's like a college
Posted by TheWalrus
Member since Dec 2012
40515 posts
Posted on 1/3/16 at 11:05 am to
I believe it started as a tennis academy. It's basically an athletics first high school. The concept flourished with rich tennis parents willing to spend money in hopes they had the next Sharapova. They have all sorts of sports now. Football is a bit more complicated because the kids usually don't come from wealthy backgrounds. I believe most of the good players are on scholarship, so they need their share of mediocre kids to pay full tuition to subsidize this. That's why the roster isn't absolutely loaded top to bottom. There have been a few basketball academies like Montverde, Oak Hill, and Findlay Prep. These schools, like IMG, recruit nationwide. IMG is not eligible for state playoffs, so they pretty much only play exhibitions.
This post was edited on 1/3/16 at 11:08 am
Posted by LuzianaFootball
Bay Area
Member since Dec 2008
7846 posts
Posted on 1/3/16 at 11:12 am to
TheWalrus is pretty accurate. I have a friend who I graduated with in Slidell who works there in marketing. About 5 years ago, she told me basically the same thing.

Said that they looked to rival SPARQ, but on a whole other level. Described it as sort of a boarding school setup with emphasis on the sport of choice for the kid.
Posted by Finch
Member since Jun 2015
3152 posts
Posted on 1/3/16 at 11:31 am to
Would it be a NCAA violation for TAF to financially support their football program or advertise there since it is more of a business?
Posted by DBeaux225
Baton Rouge
Member since Aug 2012
9498 posts
Posted on 1/3/16 at 11:47 am to
quote:

IMG is not eligible for state playoffs, so they pretty much only play exhibitions.


Which is why they have to call around the country to beg teams to come and play them. They asked Southern Lab to take a trip to Florida just to get an arse whoopin this season.
Posted by Rouge
Floston Paradise
Member since Oct 2004
136811 posts
Posted on 1/3/16 at 12:01 pm to
Fact that connected to IMG group of sports agents creates a huuuuuuge conflict of interest
Posted by Relham10
Ridge
Member since Jan 2013
15633 posts
Posted on 1/3/16 at 12:02 pm to
Saw a piece about them a few weeks ago, claimed that every starter was being recruited by FBS schools. Ridiculously stacked roster they have.
Posted by southeasttiger113
Member since Aug 2011
2046 posts
Posted on 1/3/16 at 12:11 pm to
quote:

Would it be a NCAA violation for TAF to financially support their football program or advertise there since it is more of a business?
They don't want or need TAF to financially support their football program. IMG worldwide makes TAF look broke. Literally no reason to let a random university buy your players like that, especially when the school is still run by people who actually care about the players' best interests
Posted by biohzrd
Central City
Member since Jan 2010
5602 posts
Posted on 1/3/16 at 12:16 pm to
Sports Academies are nothing new. They have been around for years, but focused more on the Olympic sports such as gymnastics, swimming/diving, figure skating, and so on. Now that they are pushing into the more mainstream sports, and recruiting some people are getting bent out of shape. I see it as no different than an arts school like Julliard, White Mountain Academy, or Hyde Institute.
Posted by Finch
Member since Jun 2015
3152 posts
Posted on 1/3/16 at 12:50 pm to
Ok........ I get that but it wasn't my question.


Would it be a violation?
Posted by southeasttiger113
Member since Aug 2011
2046 posts
Posted on 1/3/16 at 1:02 pm to
And I'm saying that there's less than a 0% chance of that ever happening so it's a pointless question. But to answer that question, yea, it's probably an NCAA violation for a university to throw money at a sports academy owned by a sports agency filled with a bunch of current recruits. It's a gray area because when you go to IMG you don't go to IMG high school, you go to one of a few separate affiliate high schools (most people go to Pendleton because it's the only one on campus) with no sports programs and get your sports training, etc. from IMG which is basically a sports training facility owned and operated by a sports agency. So I don't really know if it's a violation, but IMG taking money from the TAF would be like LSU taking money from Catholic High School in the hopes that LSU would take more CHS kids on their football team
Posted by Finch
Member since Jun 2015
3152 posts
Posted on 1/3/16 at 1:11 pm to
quote:

IMG taking money from the TAF would be like LSU taking money from Catholic High School in the hopes that LSU would take more CHS kids on their football teamI



Except it is the exact opposite of that.
Posted by southeasttiger113
Member since Aug 2011
2046 posts
Posted on 1/3/16 at 1:23 pm to
Except it's not and you have no clue what you're talking about. IMG is above LSU. The only reason most of the kids we'd be interested in are in high school there is to set up their pro careers and get lined up with agents. The TAF can't buy kids from one of the wealthiest media companies in the world who just happen to be their handlers during high school and are going to represent them in the NFL, sorry that you can't understand that. No colleges are going to weasel themselves into disrupting the process that goes on there FYI

TAF was worth $400,000,000 in 2012, a year later IMG sold for $2.2 billion, and it has a ton of sister companies that are worth even more. The place has been around since 1960 as an agency. Do you know what "IMG" is an abbreviation for just out of curiosity?
Posted by Jester
Baton Rouge
Member since Feb 2006
34301 posts
Posted on 1/3/16 at 1:23 pm to
quote:

the school is still run by people who actually care about the players' best interests


Ha!
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