The middleis a mindset.
Read. React. Rearrange the offense. Position-specific linebacker training built by a former NFL LB. Instincts. Pursuit angles. Contact through the runner. If you play the middle, this is where the middle gets sharpened.
The best LBs arrive early.
Linebacker is a position played with the eyes before the feet. You read the run fit before it develops. You feel the play-action before it releases. Coach Simmons played that way at the highest level for six years. Now he teaches it.
"MIKE"
Simmons
Four years starting at LB in the ACC. Six years in the NFL. Played every LB role in a 3-4 and a 4-3. Learned the position from Hall of Fame coordinators. That education gets handed down to every kid on this field.
The MIKE isn't a camp — it's a system. Every LB gets a run-fit chart, a coverage-drop chart, and a film file. Progress is measured in eyes, not just tackles. That's what separates D1 LBs from starters.
Since 2018: 22+ D1 placements, 3 NFL alumni, and the go-to LB pipeline for the Charlotte metro area's HS teams. If you play the middle and you want to keep playing it after high school — come find out what the standard is.
Four pillars. every rep hits one.
Linebacker is a compound skill. Every rep we do is designed to sharpen one of the four pillars — and eventually integrate them all into one instinctual response.
Formation recognition. Run/pass keys. Guard triangle reads. Backfield tell-signs. The MIKE with the fastest eyes wins the play before it starts. Film work is baked into every session.
Fill mechanics. Shuffle-to-run. Zone drops. Coverage responsibilities. Contact through the runner, not to the runner. If the feet don't move on time, the eyes don't matter.
Gap responsibility. Force + secondary force. Spilling vs. squeezing. Playing the block, then the ball. This is how you rearrange the offense — one gap fit at a time.
Sideline-to-sideline pursuit. Angles to the ball carrier. Second-effort tackles. Coverage range in zone. If you can't cover the field, you can't play the middle.
Every rep. on film.
Six ways to train with The MIKE. Every session is documented and filmed. Progress isn't ambient here — it lives in the file.
Private 1-on-1
60-minute position-specific session. Custom plan based on your last two games. Film of every rep in your inbox within 24 hours. Written notes on 3 corrections.
Semi-Private (2–3 LBs)
Same curriculum as private, small group. Perfect for HS teammates or brothers. Splits cost, keeps quality. Live LB-vs-LB reps in coverage drops and pursuit angles.
Film Study
90-minute session breaking down your last game or upcoming opponent. Run fit corrections, coverage tells, keys flagged. Written report + clip package included.
Camp Series
4-week Saturday camp. Full LB curriculum: run fits, coverage, pursuit, tackling, blitz work. Combine-style testing at end. Max 20 LBs per cohort.
Recruiting Package
Full evaluation, HUDL edit, target-school list built to your level, direct outreach to college LB coordinators. 3 private sessions + film breakdown included.
The MIKE Circle
Application-only. 10 slots. Weekly training + monthly film + brotherhood community. For the LB serious about playing at the next level.
Trained here. playing there.
Selected placements from the last five recruiting classes. The list grows every signing day.
"Trevon was undersized as a junior. Sat in film every Sunday for 8 months. Signed as a 3-star with 6 P5 offers — because the tape spoke for him."
"DeShaun's feet were his edge. Two years refining his eyes and now he's the QB of the App State defense as a redshirt sophomore."
"Kwame trained with The MIKE from his senior year through Draft prep. Still comes back in the off-season. That's the standard being set."
Charlotte. the middle.
Private turf in Charlotte. Weekly hours run Tuesday through Saturday off-season, Sundays only during HS + college season. Remote Zoom film available nationwide.
Address shared after booking
Remote film review available nationwide
Three ways in. one standard.
- 1-on-1 or semi-private
- Custom plan for your position
- Film + written notes · 24-hour turnaround
- Book anytime · no commitment
- 4 private sessions per month
- Monthly film review (90 min)
- Weekly game-film notes
- Priority booking window
- Text access · pause anytime
- Weekly private session + film
- Monthly group meetup
- Direct recruiting outreach
- Combine prep + testing
- Alumni network access
The reps show up on Fridays.
"My son went from average tackler to defensive MVP in one off-season. The film sessions with Coach Simmons changed how he sees the game — that's what did it."
"I've coached HS football for 18 years. LBs who train with The MIKE come back reading the game like grown men. That's rare."
"The Circle changed my recruiting year. Coach Simmons called schools directly. Three offers came from that outreach — not from anything I did on Twitter."
Real answers. no fluff.
Your school coach has 50+ players. Here it's just LBs, often just you. Every rep gets filmed and coached in the moment. We're additive to, not replacing, your HS staff.
All three. The fundamentals (eyes, feet, fits) are universal — the assignments and coverage responsibilities get tuned to your alignment. Some athletes end up playing multiple roles depending on the front their defense runs.
If he plays LB seriously, no. What we install at 15 sticks at 22. Earlier means fewer bad habits to unlearn. Semi-private is the recommended entry.
Yes — for athletes on the Weekly Track and Circle. That means HUDL edits, calibrated target-school lists, and direct outreach to college LB coordinators.
24-hour notice = full credit. Same-day = 50% credit unless game-related injury. Weekly Track members can pause anytime.
In-person is Charlotte-only. Zoom film review works for LBs anywhere. Several Circle members are out-of-state and come in monthly.
Come play the middle.
Turf is booked in 60-minute blocks. Show up with your last two games' film. Let's see what you've got.