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PRIME PATH ATHLETICS
PPA PRO
Issue No. 28 · Week of September 14
OUR MISSION
Helping families spend their time, money, and trust on what actually moves their athlete forward.
THIS WEEK Five more pieces of advice, boiled down to one line each — why talented kids quit, the poaching problem, NIL basics, overlooked prospects, and team-first culture.
🏈FOOTBALL
🏀BASKETBALL
⚽SOCCER
⚾BASEBALL
🥎SOFTBALL
CAMP SPOTLIGHT
Offense-Defense Mini Camp — Myrtle Beach, SC
July 17–19, 2026 (2027 TBA)
Youth & HS — all positions · $399 (+$60–$80 equipment rental)
Registration OpenCAMP SPOTLIGHT
USA Basketball Gold Camp — Pittsburgh (extended)
2026 — see usab.com
Grades 6–9 (age 16 or under) · $265
Registration OpenCAMP SPOTLIGHT
Barça Academy Florida Day Camps
Summer 2026
Ages ~6–17 · $499 early bird; $579 standard
Registration OpenCAMP SPOTLIGHT
University of Michigan September Team Camp
September 2026
HS teams · Varies — verify at registration
Check WebsiteCAMP SPOTLIGHT
Connect Sports — Scenic City Multi-College & Individual College Camps
Not in sources — verify
HS prospects · Varies — verify at registration
Check WebsiteTrainer picks are pulled from the PPA Trainer Directory. Want to update your info? Claim your listing →
RECENT FROM PPA
Clips from this week's shorts and podcasts — links go live once published.
⚾►
Incredible Baserunning IQ: Escaping a Bases-Loaded Rundown (Youth Baseball Breakdown)
YouTube Short
10 Reasons Why Youth Sports Matter
Rotates every issue — sport-specific some weeks, big-picture others.
- 01Talented kids quit sports too, and it's rarely about ability.A gifted player who feels like every decision is made for him can walk away from a sport he's genuinely good at.
- 02Loyalty still has real value most families underestimate.A trusted coaching relationship gets disrupted by bigger offers more often than families expect — not every offer is an upgrade.
- 03NIL for teenagers is real, but the rules vary by state.Some states allow high school NIL activity freely, some restrict it, and some still prohibit it — check before assuming a deal is fine.
- 04A slow recruiting start doesn't predict a slow finish.Some of the best college players got zero interest as underclassmen — their bodies simply caught up on a different timeline.
- 05A program's culture talk is often a real recruiting filter.Coaches genuinely weigh a player's team-first mindset against her stats when comparing two similarly talented recruits.
- 06A one-line takeaway is only useful if you actually remember it.Every piece this issue compresses into a single, repeatable line — something worth having on hand in the actual moment.
- 07Some advice is simple to say and still hard to live by.Staying patient, staying loyal, checking the rules before assuming — simple ideas, genuinely hard to hold to under pressure.
- 08A short version doesn't mean a shallow one.The full reasoning behind each one-line takeaway is still there for anyone who wants the whole story.
- 09The best advice is the kind you can actually use under pressure.A single sentence remembered in the moment beats a paragraph forgotten by the time it matters.
- 10We ask the same question every time.What's actually worth paying for, and what isn't? Every PPA guide and every issue of this newsletter starts there.
Got a list you want to run? Reply to this email — we read every one.
FUEL UP — MEAL PREP MEAL OF THE DAY
Tuna Salad Protein Boxes
No-cook lunch option, ready in 15 minutes. Serves 4.
DIRECTIONS
- Drain tuna and combine with Greek yogurt, mayo, celery, and relish in a bowl.
- Season with salt and pepper.
- Divide tuna salad into 4 containers.
- Add crackers, cut vegetables, and a hard-boiled egg to each box in separate compartments.
- Keep crackers separate until eating to avoid sogginess.
- Refrigerate up to 4 days.
GROCERY LIST
- 3 cans (5 oz each) tuna, drained
- 1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
- 2 tbsp mayo
- 1 celery stalk, diced
- 1 tbsp relish
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1 box whole-grain crackers
- 2 cups cut vegetables (carrots, cucumber, bell pepper)
- 4 hard-boiled eggs