Lockout talks flood academy

Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning stood in front of a podium at Nicholls’ John L. Guidry Stadium and proclaimed he’s ready for football.

His little brother, Giants quarterback Eli Manning, just across the way, agreed and said it’s time the league’s owners and players put aside their differences and kick off the 2011-12 season.

With the 16th annual Manning Passing Academy in Thibodaux this week, it was the NFL’s work stoppage that took center stage as the brothers sounded off on the most widely discussed topic in the world of sports.

“I followed it early and it was so exhausting because every day was like the day that it was supposed to end,” Peyton Manning said. “And this was like three months ago. So I’ve got to the point now where I’ve told Jeff Saturday, ‘Just call me when I can go back to the facility,’ because otherwise, it’s been kind of exhausting every day hoping that’s the day.”

The elder Manning hopes the lockout is lifted so that he can test his surgically repaired neck with Colts trainers and doctors.

ESPN reported in late May that the All-Pro quarterback had surgery to repair discomfort in a disc.

Manning confirmed that operation Friday and said with players locked out of their respective team facilities, he has no idea how far along he is in his recovery.

“I’m not able to go to the training room and I’m not able to go to my trainer. But you’ve still got to find a way to make it work.

“But it’s really hard for me to give myself an evaluation because I need my trainer and my doctor to get their hands on me and kind of work with me. I’ve had a couple of surgeries in the past that I’ve rehabbed successfully with the Colts’ personnel. That’s one thing that I think these owners didn’t take into account, with a guy rehabbing, you can’t use your training room and you can’t use your trainer. That does provide some obstacles.”

Manning showed the injury to the world throughout the week and Saturday, opting to not throw at the Air It Out Challenge.

In previous years, both Eli and Peyton would lead camp counselors through drills.

“It’s been a challenge,” Peyton said. “I’ve been very, very cautious. I’ve been taking it very, very slow because I have been somewhat on my own in some ways. I have worked with other therapists, but when you find a good trainer or a rehab guy or a therapist that you like, it’s a pretty special bond and these guys know your body. So the fact that I haven’t had access to my guys and I have been someone on my own, I’ve gone extra cautious and extra slow to make sure that I haven’t had any setbacks.”

About 700 miles to the east of Indianapolis, Peyton’s little brother said he’s anxious for the work stoppage to end, just for different reasons.

With the lockout stopping organized offseason workouts to a halt, Eli said he’s lost valuable time bonding with his young receivers in New York.

Because of that, he believes league-wide, younger players will struggle in the new season.

“I believe that’s going to be the case,” Eli said. “We’ve been trying to get some workouts with some of them and get them caught up a little bit on the offense and some of the basic routes and the basic terminology.

“Hopefully we can get into training camp and have a full training camp for everyone to try and learn the system.”

One of the guys in the most difficult position of all is camp counselor and New York Jets rookie quarterback Greg McElroy.

In a league where success is defined by a quarterback’s understanding of complex X’s and O’s, McElroy said he agrees with Eli Manning’s assessment and believes he has a lot of catching up to do when the work stoppage ends.

“It’s tough,” McElroy said. “But at the same time, what can we do about it? You only worry about things you can control and that’s not something we can control.”

One thing McElroy and his friends were “controlling” was the 2011 camp, which featured 1,200 high school prospects and 36 collegiate starting quarterbacks from some of the most prestigious universities in the country.

Among the notable counselors on this year’s list were 2010 Heisman Trophy runner-up and Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck, LSU quarterback Jordan Jefferson, Oklahoma quarterback Landry Jones, Super Bowl winning coach and noted analyst Jon Gruden and ESPN analyst and former Florida quarterback Jesse Palmer.

“We have a big crew again this year,” Archie Manning said.

McElroy served for the second-straight year for the camp, which called Thibodaux home for the first time in 2005.

Archie Manning said he expects the camp to remain in the Tri-parish area for the foreseeable future, applauding Thibodaux for its hospitality.

“I just can’t tell you how much we appreciate and are grateful to Nicholls State, the Thibodaux area, Thibodaux-Houma and this part of Louisiana,” Archie said. “There’s such wonderful hospitality with what they do for us.”

And while big names like Luck and McElroy steal the focus of the camp, Archie said it’s the high school players that the camp is about.

He said he makes it a point to remind people each year that the passing academy isn’t an elite-level camp, but instead is open to any quarterback looking to get better.

“This isn’t a blue chip camp,” Archie said. “Our mission … is to help high school football players get better and enjoy the high school experience. And that’s what we try to teach here.”

From the high school experience, maybe a few of the camp’s enrollees will reach NFL status.

That is, of course, if the lockout is lifted first.

Both Eli and Peyton hope that happens sooner, rather than later.

“You’re optimistic,” Eli said. “You hope it ends sooner than later. I don’t have any insight as to when it might happen. I’m just going about my business and making sure when they call us back, I’ll be ready to go.”

New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning fires a pass over the heads of camp counselors Saturday at the annual Manning Passing Academy in Thibodaux. CASEY GISCLAIR