SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Jimmy Garoppolo is going to summer school before starting training camp with the San Francisco 49ers.
Garoppolo is spending part of his down time between the end of minicamp and the start of training camp on July 27 working in Southern California with quarterback guru Tom House.
House is a former major league pitcher and pitching coach perhaps most famous for catching Hank Aaron's record-breaking 715th career homer in the Atlanta Braves bullpen in 1974. But in recent years, House has run a quarterback academy in Huntington Beach called 3DQB where he helps passers refine their throwing mechanics.
House has worked with several star quarterbacks over the years, including Tom Brady, Drew Brees, Matt Ryan and Carson Palmer. Garoppolo met House during his time in New England as Brady's teammate on the Patriots and has been spending time working on his mechanics all offseason as he comes back from season-ending knee surgery.
``We're trying to implement drills as close to game-like situations as you could get to,'' Garoppolo said in a phone interview last week.
``At the same time, we're sticking to mechanics and the basics. That's what quarterbacking comes down to. You have to be really good with the basics and do them over and over again. It's good to get someone with as much experience as Tom.
``It's nice to have him see you throw and see if he has any little things to fix up or anything you haven't thought about that he thinks can help you. Quarterback is a very unique position and a lot goes into it. There are a lot of moving pieces.''
The extra work this offseason is important for Garoppolo, who played just three games all last season before tearing his ACL and has just 10 career starts in five NFL seasons.
