Pittsford, N.Y. (WBEN) - " Bills Mafia", are you ready?
Wednesday marks the opening day of Buffalo Bills training camp at St. John Fisher University, where the team's new and returning players showcase their skills up and close for fans in the weeks leading up to kickoff for the 2024 regular season in Orchard Park.
"The team's together, it's the first and real true opportunity for them to bond 24 hours a day," said Todd Harrison, director of camp operations at St. John Fisher University.
"They're here on campus, living amongst each other, meeting with each other and practicing with each other. You really start from a team building perspective, laying down a strong foundation. And then our university supports that just in the proximity of all of our facilities. To the dorms that the players and staff stay in, to the meeting rooms they all work in, to the dining hall, weight room, locker room and athletic fields that they practice on. It's all pretty proximate. ... That proximity allows for sort of a tighter-knit engagement the team has."
For the 23rd time since 2000, St. John Fisher University in Pittsford will, once again, serve as host of the first three weeks of Bills training camp.
"There's been a lot of hard work going on from a whole bunch of people on campus," Harrison said with WBEN.
"From our facilities team, food service team, to events and reservations, and just a large group that I have in camp operations, it's exciting to see the campus transformed from what we look like a lot of months a year to now. And we're pretty excited to see everybody show up, and see what the team looks like, and what we have in store for them this summer."
As soon as you get off the shuttles to the campus, there will be many opportunities for Bills fans to enjoy their experience at training camp.
"There'll be an interactive games area with different games for kids to play. There's a number of vendor spaces where fans can engage with different partners that the Bills have and organizations around. There's merchandise spaces, concession spaces," Harrison detailed. "And a part that really separates training camp from the regular season is the proximity of many fans to the players. The fence lines that you can watch practice from are much closer than you would get unless you have a front row seat at the stadium."
And not to mention, plenty of opportunities for autographs after practice.
"A large number of players will stop everyday on those fence lines and sign autographs, take pictures and engage with the fans," Harrison noted.
With the Bills in a rebuilding period, seeing the departure of the team's best wide receivers and a few other key veterans, are there any players the fans are keeping a closer eye on?
Harrison notes eyes are always on the best players, like Josh Allen. But at the same time, it's a chance to see what the higher drafted players are made of, like Keon Coleman and Cole Bishop.
Other players to maybe keep an eye on at this year's training camp includes the free agent additions at wide receiver like Curtis Samuel, Chase Claypool and Marquez Valdes-Scantling.
More information on this year's training camp in Pittsford is available here :
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