CSCS, USAW National Level Coach/Director of Strength & Conditioning at Harker Heights HS. Developing athletes at all levels for 30+ years. Proud Dad & Grandpa.
Just received word that my friend and long time coaching colleague David Rice passed away this morning. Dave and I first coached together in 1990 at Glendale Community College and reunited years later at Copperas Cove High School in Texas. I wanted to pass the news on to those he
Impressive night for Michigan commit
@TavierreD
carrying the load and rushing for 220+ yards including a 99 yard TD run. Tavi showed tonight he’s not just a D1 talent, but is D1 tough as well. Good things happen when you come to work everyday; weight room, practice, class or game
Question?
Why would an athlete or a coach think it is a good idea to add an external load on an exercise when they can’t perform the movement correctly with bodyweight or PVC? 🤔
Any athletes that are training on the school S&C program & with an outside trainer need to make sure the 2 are coordinated. Extra work, although not necessarily needed can be beneficial IF the programs fit together and are not causing overtraining. Overtraining =‘s inefficiency
Just finished coaching my final workouts
@dvisd_athletics
. It was a great 3 years working with some great student-athletes and alongside an outstanding staff. I wish them the very best in their future endeavors. Don’t ever forget
#TechniqueFirst
and Quality > Quantity
#DVUKnow
1/3 What I’m about to post will likely draw some ridicule from the scientific community of Twitter S&C. I’m not a science wizard & am mostly self taught. However, through observation I have developed my beliefs based on years of anecdotal data. During Off-Season our football
IMO if an athlete 1) needs a coach to motivate them every day to give the expected effort 2) doesn’t have the pride to follow directions & doesn’t execute assignments with ATD 3) performs inconsistently 4) or has poor attendance & punctuality they need to do something else.
Athletes, don’t be so fast to dismiss the coach who teaches and focuses on basic fundamental training exercises and programming and pushes for excellence in them before advancing you for the “trainer” who is programming unsound, unsafe movements to put on YouTube to get likes.
1/2 Question: 1) If you are a sport coach & have access to a certified S&C coach who is full-time why would you not utilize their expertise? 2) They don’t tell you how to coach your sport why would you try and tell them how to train your athletes?
Knights Knation please help welcome
@CoachLoganBrock
as our new Offensive Coordinator & OL coach. Local prep star, TCU standout and 4 year NFL vet. He brings a wealth of knowledge and leadership to our kids! Excited for him to join us at the 🏰❗️
#RepTheShield
🛡️
#HonorHeights
⚔️
I’ve had this conversation with several athletes recently. “More” is not necessarily better. You MUST rest/recover from life & training in order for that hard work to translate into positive adaptation. Otherwise it turns into a negative adaptation.
#KnightStrong
3/3 last night
@HHKnightsTrack
won their 3rd consecutive District Championship. The videos below are of 3 guys who between them competed in 8 races & came away with 5 🥇 & 2🥈. Here they are training this morning. ME 5+ Back SQ & ME 3+ Sumo DL. Sometimes we limit ourselves.
#FTR
Daily I read social media S&C discussing the X’s & O’s of the best program/training concepts or showing the new “best” exercise/drill. This may not be a popular thought but “MY” belief is that “what” you do isn’t nearly as important in performance development as “HOW” you do it.
Day 1 at the new gig started today! It was a good day! I did miss my DV kids but I didn’t miss the hour plus drive there and another hour plus home. That 20 minutes to the house sure was nice.
“Training is only as good as our ability to recover from it!” - Dr. Avery Faigenbaum Professor of Pediatric Exercise Specifically to my
@HHKnights_FB
and
@HarkerHeightsVb
athletes, but to all as well. 🤔This concept sounds very familiar.
#FollowTheRecipe
which includes REST!!!!!
I’ve been thinking…I need more followers and it seems the more outrageous the post the greater traction. However I can’t bring myself to endanger an athlete doing a circus stunt so I’m thinking of a video of me coaching in a thong, sleeveless half shirt and 🤠 boots. 😂🤢🤮
Saw this on my FB today. Pretty good stuff from Coach Swords. Coach Swords is a USAW Senior International Coach who coached Team USA in both Rio & Tokyo. Read it and chew on it a bit.
1/2 Another reason to push high school/school district admin for a full-time S&C is so they can better serve their students with coordinated Return to Play Protocols following injury and/or surgery. Most family insurance only pay for minimal physical therapy sessions leaving the
This morning is year 38 for day 1 of Summer S&C for me. Thirty at the high school and 8 at the collegiate level. My favorite time of year! Where your team is made!
#FollowTheRecipe
#AttentionToDetail
#reptheshield
Wrote my first S&C Summer Manual in 1992 for football athletes at New Mexico Highlands University. Put together & updated multiple versions at Copperas Cove beginning in 2003. Started converting to a course presentation with text & video this spring. It’s coming together nicely.
@missEmitche11
IMO the weight room is the most obvious place to see how calculators have lowered our youth’s basic math skills. A majority can not perform simple addition, subtraction, multiplication or division.
If you’re burning the 🕯 at both ends & in the middle not only will you slow your strength & speed development, you also increase the risk of injury & depressed immune system from overtraining. “More work is not always better.” Going non-stop 7 days a week is not making U better.
New Sheriff, new terminology, but thanks and shout out to
@WgSkelton
for leaving me with guys who have a solid technical foundation! This week is a de-load and today was (5-2-0) ATG Tempo Squats and Clean Pulls. The foundation is solid and transition smooth.
#KnightStrong
My throwback pic to the only times I got to coach all three of my boys. Came during the 2006 season when we played for the 4A-Division 1 State Championship game. This was after we beat Texas High in the Quarterfinals at Cowboy Stadium.
#greatmemories
COACHES: “Coaching is praising as loud as you correct.”
PLAYERS: “When a coach coaches you hard it’s not personal; it’s strictly business.” A coach’s job is to hold the athlete to the established standard & empower them to become the very best athlete & person they can be.
I’ve noticed a trend amongst some college coaches in recruiting. It seems like an increasing number just show up unannounced. I’ve been doing this at both college & HS for 38 years. As a college coach I never showed up at a school without an appointment.
#professionalism
1/2 I once worked for a coach who's definition of discipline was "doing what you were supposed to do, when you were supposed to do it." Over the years I modified his definition to "doing what you're supposed to do, when you're supposed to do it, how you're supposed to do it."
Just finished week 1 at the new gig! Each day got a little better. It takes time to build trust which leads to program buy in. We made a little progress each day & ended the week much improved in little things like OH Squat depth, re-tooling the Clean & learning néw terminology.
Been going through some old training video and came across these from 2017. A heavy triples day in the Clean. This guy was not only strong but fast. Going 275 x 3 and 285 x 3 on final 2 sets.
#barspeed
News Flash- Coaches, if your lifters are getting red lights for not hitting depth on their squats don’t get crusty with the judges. Teach them better deep than sorry. You’re coaching it or you’re allowing it to happen.
“You can lead a horse to water but you can’t make them drink.” The same can be said for athletes who think they’ve accumulated more knowledge & wisdom in their short lives than the coach has in 2+ times that amount of years. Coachable > Uncoachable
Teams that compete for championships don’t do so because they’re the most athletic; they’re at that level because a majority of their members are “All in” and are willing to make the personal commitment to put in the work necessary to consistently win.
I coached football & strength for 33 years. For the last 4 years I’ve been straight S&C & although I love it I struggle being a spectator (get-back guy) on the sideline. When I see something that needs fixing, whether it’s technique, fits, or a bad case of the SOFT’S it kills me.
As a Strength Coach what do you feel to be your greatest asset or strength? I believe mine has been 1) my ability to build relationships across the multiple generations of athletes I’ve coached 2) I’m a good teacher of exercise technique. I can “bring the juice” but I teach 1st.
Going through and cleaning up old photo files and came across some great memories. I was truly blessed to be apart of a great program from 1999-2018. WE HAD IT ROLLING! Texas HS Football Play-offs 18 of 20 years from 1998-2018 (2017 not listed).
#GoodTimes
#OnceUponATime
#DAWGS
Did someone say Round 4!!
Regional Semifinal Champs 🛡
63-35 over Spring Dekaney
Most wins in a single season and deepest run ever by a Heights TEAM!
#reptheshield
As an athlete coming to get extra work is always good…if you’re working to refine areas of weakness. Don’t spend extra time working things you’ve already mastered. Get out of your comfort zone.
Got my autographed copy from
@coach_jackwelch
. Can’t wait to read what I was blessed to live and contribute to for 19 years. I got the OJT (On the Job Training) version. What an opportunity I was given.
#developmentalprogram
A team CANNOT be successful without being coachable, paying attention to detail & executing correctly on ALL things BIG & small. They must exhibit discipline doing what they’re asked, when they’re asked to the best of their ability. Failure to do so leads to mediocrity.
#Details
Nothing better that moving to 8-1 on the year by defeating your former school 64-17, getting home at 11:30, waking up at 3:25, leaving house at 4:00 and driving 3 hours to help host the Houston Area
@NHSSCA_TX
#familyday
. I’m picking up breakfast 🌮 and will see you soon.
@NHSSCA
2/3 athletes that run track strength train hard even with an upcoming meet scheduled later in the week. We treat every meet up until the District Meet as a “competitive workday.” And because we’ve built a foundation of work capacity our kids expect to compete at a high level.
3/3 and you have access to a full-time S&C coach and you’re not taking advantage of their expertise and ability to devote 💯 of their time to researching and developing the best performance development program for your teams you’re missing the boat! Just my opinion.
1/3 I’m finishing up year 37 of my coaching career. The first 33 years I coached multiple sports (primarily football) as well as taught classes or for the last 11 when I was an athletic administrator, and I was the strength coach for those teams too. Always considered myself a
Have you ever noticed that the Cats that have mental busts in the game or get stupid unsportsmanlike penalties are the same ones that miss summer workouts, cut reps & sets, are borderline when grades come out, don’t buy in to the program? Talent alone doesn’t win.
#CharacterWins
It’s pretty much finished; just have some aesthetic tweaks to line out. A little over a week out from presenting at the
@THSCAcoaches
Coaching School. Presentation sponsored by the
@NHSSCA
. I love the opportunity to give back to the profession.
Have you ever noticed that regardless of ability the athletes who freelance & don’t follow the workout or skip sets & reps are the same ones who bust or cut a corner on game day & cost the team? Uncoachable athletes become unemployable adults. Don’t be that person!
#BeCoachable
Our season came to an end last night in the regional finals. I’m proud of the progress
@HHKnights_FB
has made in the past year empowering us by setting a NEW standard & legacy for those of the future to follow. Continue to
#FollowTheRecipe
& be prepared to take it ⬆️ a notch.
Not the ending we had hoped for tonight but we still have a lot to be proud of:
✅ 12-2 season
✅ District Champs
✅ Bi-District Champs
✅ Area Champs
✅ Regional Semi-final Champs
That closes out the historical run and the best group of men to ever wear the red and black!
De-Load week, Day 3 ME Bench Press & DE Pause Cleans!! Emphasis on bar speed and vertical bar path. Been focusing on full extension without lots of horizontal displacement.
#EliminateTheChase
I was at a powerlifting meeting yesterday and was visiting with some coaches I’ve known for years. I noticed they’re all looking pretty old. Glad I haven’t aged at all. 😂😆😂😆😂😆😂😆
It all starts with discipline; doing what you’re supposed to do, how you’re supposed to do it, when you’re supposed to do it. There’s NO detail too small! The difference between mediocrity and success!
If the athletes of a team have to be constantly reminded, prodded & re-directed to focus on the details & to put forth the required effort to achieve the expectation & meet the program standard they are not yet at a championship level as a team. The standard is for EVERYONE!
I’d like to congratulate these young men on earning an opportunity to continue their education and athletic careers at the next level. I’m blessed and thankful for the opportunity to work with them over the past 3 yrs.Thanks
@TavierreD
@DekedrickSterns
@calebburtoniii
#BESTofLUCK
1/5 Been thinking about this since my conversation with
@MashElite
a couple days back. Often times on a Twitter thread or at a conference I hear folks talk about a program's quality because it's based on science or lack of quality because it's based on "Bro science." We discussed
So I go to HEB in Belton on my way home & I’m checking out & I hear, “hey coach! How are you doing?” I look up & behind the mask is Tim Edwards who played for us at Cove. Here’s Tim hitting a PR Clean.
#OnceADawgAlwaysADawg
Unfortunately there aren’t many who “get it” and some that don’t like extracurriculars at all. Yet it’s those extracurriculars that keep our At Risk students connected to school.
One of the best principals I ever had. There was some teachers complaining that sport coaches didn’t have to do certain duties and didn’t have to attend open house etc. they claimed favoritism. My man said “Yes you give up hundreds of hours a year outside of school, weekends,…
Observation
#1
from today’s PL Meet- most squats look decent depth wise. The kids that aren’t hitting depth it looks to be an ankle mobility issue in most cases. Coaches add some mobility work into those early workout rotations. A little dab will do ya!
The 2007 team was loaded with talented players. Obviously Rob and Tanner, but also Josh Boyce (TCU), Brandin Byrd (UNT), Brelan Chancellor (UNT), Troy Vital (Idaho), Donnell Hawkins (Tulsa), Cody Elenz (Idaho), Chris Miller (Air Force), Sean Robertson (Lamar), Geoff Neal (UFC-mma
Today's cleaning out my desk is a roster from the 2007 Copperas Cove Bulldawgs, Class 4A Div 1 runner up. Robert Griffin (
@RGIII
) was the future Hesiman winning QB, but the best player on this team may have been No. 35, Tanner Brock, who was an absolute menace on defense.
“Too many cooks in the kitchen spoil the soup.” The same result occurs when folks not educated in strength training dictate an athlete’s programming. The moral of story is don’t let the guy at Discount Tire tell you how to fix your transmission.
Last week before camp starts. Decided to call an audible with our JV to work squat depth & technique. Replaced Back Squat with Zombie Squats. It worked out well so I did the same with varsity. Depth & bracing is improving each session.
#TrustTheProcess
#KnowUrWhy
#KnightStrong
Everybody wants to be good, and many will do the bare minimum they're required to do. The Great Ones go above and beyond what is expected and do whatever is necessary to attain their goals. Right now doing just the minimum is difficult. The Great Ones WILL find a way!
#GetItDone
Just finished our
@AthleticsKISD
“Job Alike” for the district’s 5 new Strength and Conditioning coaches. Like all good S&C coaches we had a working lunch over some BBQ getting to know each other and collaborating on ideas to better develop our kids.
#TeamWork
Old Guy Tid Bit- Young Strength Coaches I strongly recommend adhering to the following: 1) focus less on sets & reps schemes & more on becoming great analyzing & teaching exercise technique 2) Read & learn non-stop. NEVER 🛑 LEARNING!
#ChasePerfection
#CatchExcellence
I have always been a big believer in using the Clean as a primary movement in my programming. Tonight I was sifting thru video primarily from the past 5-6 years and was surprised to find that I had 40 videos of athletes performing Cleans at 260 lbs or better.
#Lovethetechnique
Blessed to have the opportunity to coach guys like these. They’re the only 3 in this picture but there were many more talented, hard working guys right along side of them. It was fun coaching guys that came to work daily, would COMPETE and always had the expectation of winning!
Going back through my notes from Gray Cook’s books and re-reading The System & am reminded of the importance & simplicity of using the Overhead Squat to evaluate movement & assess motor control issues.
#reminders
#KISS
1/3 No one likes coming up on the short end on the scoreboard. However, most times a loss can show you more about your team and what it’s weaknesses are than a win does. 1) we don’t look at mistakes or things that may hurt us as critically when we win.