Jason Whitens, right, poses with Michigan State University alum and NBA great Earvin “Magic” Johnson at a Spartans practice in October 2021. (Courtesy photo)

IRON MOUNTAIN — One of the most successful and accomplished athletes in Upper Peninsula history is making a return to the U.P. this weekend.

North Central High School alum and Michigan State and Western Michigan University cager Jason Whitens will be the guest speaker on the final day of the high school session of the 2025 Jamie Angeli’s Basketball Camp of Champs. He’ll speak at noon Sunday at the Iron Mountain Middle School gym.

“Jason is arguably one of the best athletes in U.P. history, and likely the most successful,” said Camp of Champs founder and director Jamie Angeli. “Having been a key member of five state championship teams in a three-year span in two sports in high school, as well as having a successful college basketball playing career, Jason is without a doubt a future U.P. Sports Hall of Fame selection.”

The public is encouraged to attend Whitens’ speech, Angeli said.

“I am incredibly excited and honored to speak at an event like Camp of Champs. I couldn’t say yes fast enough when I was asked by Mr. Jamie Angeli to appear at his camp,” Whitens said Thursday in a phone conversation. “There is no greater feeling than being able to share my experiences with people that have either walked, or are about to walk on the journey I’ve been on being a young athlete coming from the U.P.”

Whitens, now residing in Green Bay, Wis., was an All-State selection in both football and basketball for the Jets. He was the quarterback for North Central’s back-to-back MHSAA 8-player football state championships in 2015 and 2016.

In basketball, Whitens was a four-year starter for NC. He holds the school record for career points with 2,062, which is currently seventh in U.P boys basketball history.

The Jets captured three consecutive MHSAA Class D state championships as well as undefeated seasons from 2015-2017, with Whitens playing in an MHSAA state record 109 games, posting a record of 108-1 during that time.

“I am eager to see many familiar faces, as well as meet new ones and become an outlet or resource I can be for them moving forward,” Whitens said.

Angeli, a 2025 U.P. Sports Hall of Fame inductee, an Iron River native and West Iron County class of 1980 graduate, brings the Camp of Champs back to the area for a second consecutive year, after a 21-year hiatus.