Baldwin County kids will have the opportunity to learn from some of the best this week and next.

Some big names and successful people are hosting camps in our area, including an NFL player, a former college basketball coach who led a team to the Elite Eight and an exceptional, championship-winning volleyball coach.

For starters, former University of Alabama and Baldwin County High School star Wallace Gilberry is hosting a football camp on Friday and Saturday at Sellars Stadium in Robertsdale.

Gilberry, who is heading into his third year as a defensive lineman with the NFL’s Kansas City Chiefs, invites campers going into sixth, seventh and eighth grades to the camp, which will run from 4-6 p.m. on Friday and from 9-11:30 a.m. Saturday.

Gilberry knows the game of football. He recorded 20 tackles, two assists and 4.5 sacks for the Chiefs in 2009. He finished his career at Alabama with 188 tackles, 60.5 tackles for loss, 21.5 sacks, five forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries and 38 quarterback hurries. He was a first team All-SEC Coaches’ Football Team selection in 2007.

As a senior defensive end at BCHS he recorded 61 tackles, seven sacks, six pass deflections and two caused fumbles.

For information about the camp, call Lyle Henley at 251-367-3607 or Sharon Williams at 251-391-5904.

In Gulf Shores, basketball players ages six through 14 have the opportunity to learn from former University of Alabama head basketball coach Mark Gottfried. Gottfried will hold a camp at Gulf Shores High School on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. each day.

Gottfried compiled a 210-132 record at Alabama from 1998-2009. He led the Tide to its only basketball No. 1 ranking during the 2002-03 season and led the team to the NCAA Elite Eight after the 2003-04 season. He was named SEC Coach of the Year after the Elite Eight season. He also coached Murray State to its only AP top-25 finish and won three Ohio Valley Conference championships with the Racers. He was an assistant coach and recruiter on UCLA’s 1995 National Championship team.

For information about the Gottfried camp, call 251-769-7712.

Volleyballers in the Mobile-Baldwin area will have the chance to learn from one of the state’s best.

Bayside Academy volleyball coach Ann Schilling, who has led her team to eight straight AHSAA championships and over 1,000 victories, will host two camps July 19-22. From 8:30 a.m. until noon each day Schilling will have a camp for grades three through nine. There will also be a “VolleyTots” camp for kindergarten through second grade students from 1-2:30 p.m. each afternoon.

For more information, contact Schilling at 251-338-6436.

Eric Mann is Sports Coordinator for Gulf Coast Newspapers.

Contact him at emann@gulfcoastnewspapers.com.