Nation Ford to host Cam Newton 7-on-7 finals for second straight year
The finals of the Cam Newton Foundation 7-on-7 High School Championship football tournament will return to Nation Ford High this weekend.
The tournament will feature up to 20 teams from the Southeast, including host Nation Ford. Teams will come to Fort Mill from the Atlanta and Birmingham regions, as well as Charlotte. The Falcons hosted the 2014 finals as well.
This year’s tournament will start at 9 a.m. Friday, July 10 and finish on Saturday, July 11. In day one, teams will be divided into pool play and will be put into brackets for day two, depending on day one’s results.
Day two will be a double elimination format. Host team Nation Ford is favored to do well due to its offense.
“It helps when you have players like Hank (Tuipulotu), Jordan (Helms) and Alex (Stennett),” said Falcons’ head coach Michael Allen, citing some of his team’s top skill position talent.
Nation Ford did well in the regional tournament at Olympic High School two weeks ago, falling to Dutch Fork in the finals.
Allen said his style of offense gives the team an edge in 7-on-7 tournaments.
“It can do nothing put help you as far as the throwing game goes,” he said.
Allen said it also helps to build timing and trust between his quarterback Cole Martin and his receivers, including Tuipulotu, the recent BYU commitment.
Allen said he has been impressed with his defense during the tournament, considering these tournaments are about defensive backs stopping receivers.
“Our defense has stepped up and made some extra stops,” he said.
The tournament will be at the Nation Ford and admission is $3. Cam Newton is scheduled to appear.
The Cam Newton Foundation also held tournaments at Westlake High School and North Cobb High School in Atlanta, one at A.H. Parker High School in Birmingham, Ala., and the most recent one in late June at Olympic High School in Charlotte. The top teams from those tournaments advanced to this weekend’s event.
This story was originally published July 9, 2015 at 1:44 PM with the headline "Nation Ford to host Cam Newton 7-on-7 finals for second straight year."