Alec Hess says he’s been a Nebraska Cornhuskers fan all of his life, as he shows off the small necklace he is wearing with the ‘N’ stamped on the locket.

So when his mother looked on the internet and found the Nebraska Elite Quarterback Academy just before his freshman year last summer, she signed him up for it as not only an opportunity to get some training from college coaches, but also as a chance to spend some time around his favorite team.

Hess made the most of it while he was in Lincoln, winning the freshman competition title as the top quarterback at the academy. The soon-to-be sophomore returned in June and won it again.

“Going out and competing against kids from all around, it boosted my confidence (as a quarterback) a lot,” Hess said. “Going into that camp and doing what I did two years in a row is just great. I wish there were enough words in the human language to describe this, but there aren’t. It’s great and it’s an honor."

Past winners at the academy include former Dodge City High quarterback Kale Pick, who won a number of times he went to the academy and used that to help in his training at the position. Pick signed with the Kansas Jayhawks and will be a freshman this upcoming season.

The 2 1/2-day camp is one of the top gatherings in the country for those who hope to build on their skills as a quarterback and held on the Huskers’ practice fields. The academy is both a way to help quarterbacks improve and also a competition. There are five challenges during the academy, with the quarterback earning the most points at the end of the camp declared the champion for each class.

Hess said he learned many things from his time in Nebraska. He also knows that there is still a lot of work to be done if he decides he wants to become the quarterback on the varsity team, so he looks at senior Brett Finch as a mentor to help him improve.

“The coaches they invite are great,” Hess said. “They took us into the film room and break down everything. They do a great job of doing that at the camp. I just go to the camps to get better.

“Brett Finch is a senior and he’s very good. We went up to Hutch and I asked him for some advice and he helps me out a lot. When my time comes; it comes. I just have to be patient.”

Hess said one of his goals is to win the championship title of the Elite Quarterback Academy all four years he goes up there.

“I wanted to win (as a sophomore), but I still had butterflies and I just went up there like I did my freshman year,” Hess said. “I’d like to win it all four years, but I know it’s going to be tough and that I’m going to have to work hard to win it.”