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Samson’s Strength & Conditioning Coaches of the Year for 2010

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NFL
Rusty Jones
Chicago Bears

In 2006, Chicago Bears Strength and Conditioning Coach Rusty Jones received the National Professional Strength and Conditioning Coach of the Year award. What made the award so special was that all 32 NFL strength and conditioning coaches voted on the award. “Because it was from my peers, it really meant something special,” said Jones.

    Jones just completed his sixth full season with the Chicago Bears, the last three as Director of Physical Development. He spent the first three in Chicago as Strength and Conditioning Coordinator. The Bears surprised a number of critics this past fall and one of the reasons was that the team had very few serious injuries. That’s quite an accomplishment when you consider the length of an NFL season – from late July to mid-January. For his work this past year, Jones has been recognized as the Samson Equipment NFL Strength and Conditioning Coach of the Year.

    “We had a great season and had a lot of good things did happen,” said Jones. “Our guys worked really hard this past year, before and during the season, and it really paid off. Like any other team, we had our share of bumps and bruises and aches and pains, but I think we were one of the healthiest teams in the league this year. I hope we can build off that and have another great season in 2011.”

    Known around the NFL as one of the finest strength, conditioning, and nutritional experts in the business, Jones has created a workout and nutritional program for each Bears player to maximize performance and limit body fat while maintaining year-round health. Jones was originally hired by Head Coach Lovie Smith because of the unusual number of hamstring injuries the Bears had been having. A firm believer in stretching, Jones created longer stretching periods for the team which resulted in fewer hamstring pulls.

    Jones made a believer out of All-Pro linebacker Brian Urlacher. “I had been having all sorts of minor nicks and pulls throughout my career,” said Urlacher. “Coach Smith’s program of warm-up and detailed stretching really helped. Now I do whatever he tells me to do.”

    Off-season training is equally important. “It’s funny how everybody wants to talk about everything that happens during the season, but the biggest and most important thing is the time and what the players do with it after the season is over,” Jones admits. “We have a 10-12 week off-season program that allows for the players to have a recovery period, an active recovery period, followed by a pre-program phase.”

    The recovery period begins right after the season and takes 4-6 weeks. The active recovery gets the players moving around and getting physical activity again, which Jones feels is critical in the grand scheme of things for an NFL athlete. “I believe it is best and we ask our players to take at least a month off following the season where they do nothing but recover and let their bodies heal. After that, their bodies are ready to go, we will get them going on active recovery techniques like the treadmills, stairmasters, and for the guys who are healthy, they do some light lifting.”

    Following active recovery, Jones said the pre-program focuses more on the use of bands for stretching that focuses on keeping the body flexible and balanced, while also working on endurance and stability. The program culminates with the power phase, slated to be completed in June.

    During the season, players are working out at least three times, and for many, four times, which is Monday through Thursday.  “Early in the week the players are working on balance and flexibility, and still doing some recovery work for their bodies,” said Jones.  “Later in the week, like Wednesday and Thursday as the intensity picks up in game week, we work on the more explosive stuff .  Strength early and power late, we are comfortable with that and the guys do a really good job with it.”

    Jones also noted that the increase in the use of bands in strength and conditioning has been a good thing for professional football.  “The use of the bands really helps the stability factor.  I think there are less issues with shoulder injuries (knock on wood); at least it has been with our guys,” he said.  “The pro game is so fast and so physical it is amazing. These guys really have to work hard to keep their bodies in the best shape possible to deal with the demands of playing in the NFL.”

    One of the most important areas in today’s world of strength and conditioning is the continuous emphasis placed on nutrition. A professional football player has to maintain a healthy diet, which is critical for success on and off the gridiron. “I tell our players all the time, if they don’t take care of the nutritional end, they will be in trouble,” Jones noted. “We tell them what foods they can have and what foods they can’t have both during the season and in the off-season.” 

    Jones has come into contact with hundreds of players over the years, working with players like established pro-bowlers as well as rookies and free agents on a regular basis. “I have always gone by a simple theme that means a lot to me in football – allow yourself to be coached. Think about it, that is a powerful statement,” Jones explains. “I believe it’s important to respect the game and make it better by how hard you work. Be a professional.”

    Jones’ big break came in 1985 when he got the call from the Buffalo Bills. He spent 19 years as strength and conditioning coordinator before being promoted to Director of Physical Development/Assistant to the Head Coach prior to the 2004 season. During his years in Buffalo, it was known throughout the league that the Bills players were always in excellent condition as they ran phases of the no-huddle offense in the early 1990’s.

    Working with the young players when they come to the NFL has always been exciting and memorable, if not special for Jones. “I tell the young guys that I’m going to be talking to them the entire season about taking care of themselves and I also tell them that they won’t be listening to me either,” Jones said, chuckling. “But next year, after you go through an entire, grueling, beat down season, I know they will listen to me.”

    Jones, who enjoys both seeing the veteran players work with and help the young players as well as watching young players go through the rigors of the NFL, has an interesting perspective on a rookie dealing with life in the NFL. “When a player gets through that first year, the OTA’s, their first training camp, the exhibition season, then that rigorous 16-game schedule, that’s the first right of passage in the NFL – they made it and did it well. That is an incredible accomplishment because this league is so hard,” Jones said.

    A native New Englander, Jones admits that like so many other aspects in today’s sports world, technology has and is playing a large role in the broadening of the strength and conditioning world, and he is excited about the future. “Science and technology have really had an impact because there is so much available. I cannot believe it sometimes when looking back when I started in this business back in the 1980s how things are different,” said Jones. “If you want to get into this field, take advantage of every aspect of fitness. With all the great science out there, you need to trust and believe in it.”

    During the course of an NFL season, injuries happen at all levels. But there seems to be a correlation between good strength and conditioning coaches and NFL success. To that degree, Rusty Smith has been an integral part of the success of two different NFL teams. After all, he’s been to five Super Bowls.



FBS
Jim Radcliffe
Oregon

Earlier this fall, Stanford led Oregon 24-3 in the second quarter and had a 31-28 halftime lead on the Ducks. But repeatedly in 2010, Oregon wore their opponents down in the second half. Stanford was no different – the Ducks outscored the Cardinal 24-0 over the final 30 minutes. In the fourth quarter alone, Oregon outscored their opponents last fall 87-7.

    Oregon has become a bona fide national championship contender over the last two years and much of their success can be credited to superior conditioning. The man responsible for the Ducks strength and conditioning program, Jim Radcliffe, feels the changes implemented in 2009 are now paying off. “We practice hard, up-tempo, and our athletes have an understanding of the total efficiency that is involved,” said Radcliffe. “They know they have to be at 100% for four quarters and not two and a half.” For their success and the program he implemented, Jim Radcliffe has been named Samson’s FBS Strength and Conditioning Coach of the Year.

    The Ducks’ practice with a structured regimen. They ice down after a game, then practice hard Monday through Wednesday with Thursday being a light day. The Ducks then go hard in practice on Friday. “We reduce the inflammation from the bumps on Saturday, get treatment and are ready to get as much done in practice Monday as we can,” said Radcliffe. “Other teams go hard Tuesday-Thursday and then have Friday as their light day. But if you back off Friday, you’re downloading when you want to be the most explosive. We want to be at our peak for Saturday kick off.”

    Radcliffe’s philosophy of strength and conditioning includes training the entire body. “I want us to train athleticism, and train from the hips outward,” he said. “We need to train not to just train technique but train for power. We need to train strength, speed, and agility with equal importance.” He feels speed has improved through loading and over-speed training. “Loading could be uphill running, towing and plyometrics, sprinting, jumping and throwing,” he said. “Our over-speed training includes downhill running, tubing, and additional plyometric exercises.”

    According to Radcliffe, “Practice is conditioning.” During the season, Oregon pushes their up-tempo practices further each week. They increase the level of their workouts weekly so the team is playing faster in November than in September. 

    Everything, even the weightlifting schedule, is up-tempo. Workouts target speed, strength, flexibility and agility. “In-season we have three 20-40 minute sessions per week and in the off-season it varies between six or seven one-hour sessions weekly,” said Radcliffe. The program includes motion – Olympic-style lifts and full-body lifts instead of normal bench presses. Many of Radcliffe’s exercises are specific forms of plyometric training. “The idea behind plyometric training is to add a little bit more speed to strength training and you do this with gravity. You’re increasing the load of your body just like when you put more weights on the bar to squat. The whole idea is to use that gravitational load and work against it. You can also look at it as elastic and reactive training.”

    According to Radcliffe, while it’s effective for an athlete to lift heavy loads, it isn’t helpful for fast-moving sports like football. “What plyometrics does is being able to exhibit strength in a short time period,” said Radcliffe. He also believes strength is best attained by working with concentrated and dynamic styles of resistance training, using different cycles throughout the year.

    Radcliffe also feels the nutritional aspect of the Oregon program is as equally important as the strength and conditioning program. “It is important enough for us to have a full-time staff of sports nutritionists for our athletes under the direction of James Harris,” said Radcliffe. Harris oversees the entire nutritional program for all athletes at Oregon.

    Radcliffe is now in his 27th season at Oregon, the Pac-10’s longest-tenured strength and conditioning coach. He was a high school teacher before he started at Oregon in 1986 and is widely recognized as one of the leading authorities regarding exercise for the development of strength, speed and agility.


FCS
Augie Maurelli
University of Delaware

BACKGROUND: Augie Maurelli joined the University of Delaware last August as the Assistant Director of Athletics for Strength and Conditioning. He oversees the strength and development of over 600 student-athletes that participate in UD’s 22 sports.
  

  Maurelli, who came to Delaware after spending seven seasons overseeing the strength and conditioning program at Georgetown University, played four seasons of college football at Johns Hopkins. When he got to Delaware, he helped instill a program that the football team picked up on very quickly.
 

   “Anytime you make a change, there is always pressure. Coming in last August, just before the season, I knew I did not have a lot of time to build a rapport with the players, so I had to have a plan and be ready to go. I gave them a 16-week plan to take us through the season and into the playoffs, and they handled it well.”     
 

   The Blue Hens went 12-3 in 2010, captured a share of the Colonial Athletic Association championship, and advanced all the way to the Football Championship Subdivision National Championship game in January, only to lose a 20-19 heartbreaker to Eastern Washington.  

PHILOSOPHY:  While strength and conditioning practices continue to evolve, Maurelli is a firm believer that there are some elements that are constants. “First of all, it starts with commitment. It is an effort by everybody, from sports medicine, to the coaching staff, to administration. This is a culmination in the work and labor of a lot of people,” Maurelli explained.
  

  He also indicated that there is no down time in football anymore. But, according to Maurelli, that is a good thing because in the off-season the student-athletes can focus more on their academics and taking care of their bodies. “Strength and conditioning is not all about weights and working out. It is about nutrition, rest, and recovery,” Maurelli said.

TIP:  Maurelli, who has worked with just about every sport during his career in college athletics, offers up a very direct opinion for college football players. “Every student-athlete works hard in every sport, but football is the only sport that if you don’t work hard, you will get hurt. It’s that simple. There are too many different ways, from not being flexible, to not being in shape, to not being prepared. It will happen,” he said.
 

   Maurelli also acknowledges that technology plays a big role in the improvements in the areas of strength and conditioning and nutrition. “There is so much out there and with the way technology has taken off, kids at all ages can find ways to help themselves and prepare to get their bodies in good physical condition.”



D-II
Matt Bauman
Minnesota-Duluth

BACKGROUND: Matt Bauman joined the UMD program two years ago after coaching at Wisconsin-Stevens Point. This past fall the Bulldogs completed a perfect 15-0 season by winning the Division II National Championship game over Delta State, 20-17. It was UMD’s second national championship in three years.

PHILOSOPHY:  Bauman understands that one of the words that define life as a Division II student-athlete is balance. He wants to make sure their training experience is a positive one.

    “Our kids have a great work ethic and we have a tremendous atmosphere here. It is my job to develop our players, but I want it to be enjoyable for them. I want them to get something out of it, personally and athletically, and not dislike coming to the weight room to get a workout,” Bauman explained.

    Bauman wants to make sure he has as much information concerning programming and concepts in strength and conditioning so he can meet two of his biggest goals as a mentor of young student-athletes. The first is to develop the athletes in terms of their strength and conditioning, nutrition, flexibility, and rehabilitation, and second, and most important, to prevent injury to the players.
  

  “When I really got into this several years ago, and now from what I have seen and experienced, I tell kids that it is not how much you lift, but how you lift. You need to know when to go hard and when to back off.”

TIP:  Despite all the success over the past several years at Minnesota-Duluth, Bauman believes team chemistry in the off-season plays a big part in what might or might not happen in the fall. Motivation is a key ingredient. “The kids are doing all the work. I just want to help them, motivate them, and walk them through the program,” said Bauman. “We had 60 some kids stay up here last summer working out four days a week. That’s huge and it pays off, especially in November and December for the playoffs.
  

  Bauman adds because Minnesota-Duluth, like most Division II institutions, does not have a nutritionist, that is the area where he is spending a lot of time. “It is a critical part of the overall program for our players.”


D-III
Vince Kehres
Mount Union

BACKGROUND: Mount Union’s Vince Kehres enters his 12th year in 2011 as an assistant football coach and seventh season as both the defensive coordinator and the team’s strength and conditioning coach.
   

His defensive unit has constantly ranked statistically among the top of all of NCAA Division III. In 2010, the Purple Raider defense only allowed 212 yards per game (No. 2 nationally) and they gained 47 turnovers (No. 1 in the nation). They also had a 12-game stretch during which their opponents only scored 61 points, led the nation in passing efficiency defense, allowed opponents to convert only 28-percent of third-down opportunities, and amassed 48 sacks. 
  

  A 1998 graduate of Mount Union, Kehres was a four-year letterwinner (1994-97) at defensive end for the Purple Raiders, a member of two National Championship teams (1996 and 1997) and earned All-Ohio Athletic Conference honors during his senior year. 

PHILOSOPHY: According to Kehres, there are five major areas emphasized in strength and conditioning at Mount Union – strength, power, speed, flexibility, and agility. “We have seen a lot more put into those five areas over the last 10 years or so. We talk to our guys about going through the daily grind, the day-to-day approach,” said Kehres. “We want and expect our guys to buy into the daily workouts. If they stay consistent and put in the time, it will be a win-win for everybody. We have seen a lot of camaraderie come out of this over the last few years.”

TIP:  Kehres believes that to make things more productive, putting players in smaller groups, warming up together, and communicating will help the overall program. He also feels there is a lot of information and resources available along with instructional videos on specific topics of strength and conditioning. 
 

   “We are constantly looking for ways to be more efficient with our program,” Kehres said. He also added that facilities are of major importance to incoming student-athletes today. “Young kids are getting more opportunities to train and workout, so they want a school that has top-notch facilities to help meet their goals.”



NAIA
Zach Mathers
University of Sioux Falls

BACKGROUND: Zach Mathers became the first strength and conditioning coach at Sioux Falls in 2010. Last fall the Cougars rolled to the Great Plains Athletic Conference title and a 13-1 record. Their only loss was in the NAIA Championship game, a 10-7 heartbreaker to Carroll College.
  

  Mathers was a three-year starter and captain at Buena Vista University, where he also participated in track and was a part of five record-setting relay teams. He came to Sioux Falls after being in the private sector where he was the Director of Power and Performance Programs and an athletic trainer at the Center for Neurosciences, Orthopedics, and Spine.

PHILOSOPHY:  When Mathers came to Sioux Falls, the expectations were high. The program had been successful for years, but he wanted to put his stamp on the strength and conditioning program right away. “My general theme to the football team was to make them uncomfortable. We did not want anybody to get complacent, think it was going to be easy. We told the kids we needed to step it up, push ourselves a little harder, and keep looking forward,” Mathers said.  

    Mathers indicates the best way to have a successful football program is to keep the players on the field. “We are dealing with exceptional athletes in football, so it is crucial we communicate with them, educate them, and work on reducing the risk of them getting injured.”

TIP:  Even though he has been on a college campus for a short time, Mathers knows a couple of key priorities will be the foundation as his program at Sioux Falls moves forward.
   

“Facilities are becoming so important at all levels,” he said. “It is important to improve in those areas in terms of the facilities themselves, being efficient in scheduling and monitoring the athletes, and also working with them on getting stronger and staying healthy,” he said. “We are pretty much rolling from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m.”


JUCO
Andrae Rowe
Navarro College

BACKGROUND: Navarro College won the NJCAA national championship this past December, beating Butler Community College (KS) 13-12 in the title game to finish 11-1. Coach Andrae Rowe was a part of that championship, serving as both linebackers coach and Navarro’s strength and conditioning coach.
  

  Rowe came to Navarro after serving as an assistant coach at Kansas State, his alma mater. Rowe played at Fort Scott Community College (KS) before transferring to K-State. He then coached at both schools before coming to Navarro.
  

  “I’m blessed with the opportunity I have being here at Navarro,” Rowe said. “At first, I didn’t think I would be back at a community college, but my family and I are pleased because it’s been a tremendous experience.”

PHILOSOPHY:  Rowe is a big believer in educating the student-athletes about the specifics of strength and conditioning when they get to campus. “I really think that strength and conditioning for college athletes is 90 percent mental,” he said. “A lot of these kids that we get at the community colleges have not had a lot of strength and conditioning background, so they need to be ready to come in, understand the process and do the work. If that happens, then it’s about winning and how they can move on from here. And look at what happened this past year – we won our last 11 and won the national championship.”
    Rowe also believes that what happens on the football field can easily translate into positive results off the gridiron. “We teach our kids to be explosive on the field, and we want them to be explosive in the weight room. Sometimes it can be a grind, but we want them to be productive and the results will show up on the field.”

TIP:  Rowe admits that most of the kids that come to Navarro know how to play football, but don’t really understand everything it takes to be ready to move on from the community college ranks. “We need the kids to come in and have the right attitude. If that happens, we will win here, and then, if they take care of their academics, they will graduate and move on to their ultimate dream – playing major college football. But attitude is a critical part of their success.”
    Relative to nutruition, Rowe steadfastly believes in the importance of milk for all athletes.“I’m a big believer in milk,” he said. “I just think it is great and it nourishes and strengthens the body. I tell our guys all the time to drink it as much as they can.” 

HS
Curtis Tsuruda
East St. John
High School (LA)

BACKGROUND: Curtis Tsuruda has more than 30 years of experience training athletes at the high school, junior college, collegiate, and professional levels. Prior to coming to East St. John, he was the Head Strength and Conditioning Coach at Tulane. He is now in his sixth full season overseeing the program at East St. John.
 

   Tsuruda, a native of Honolulu and a graduate of the University of Hawaii, has also spent time in the collegiate ranks at his alma mater as well as at LSU and Mississippi State. He also worked at several high schools in Hawaii before working on the mainland. 
 

   In 2004, Tsuruda earned one of the highest honors a strength and conditioning coach can achieve when he was granted the prestigious Master Strength and Conditioning Coach title by his peers at their annual convention.

PHILOSOPHY:  Because of his vast experience at the high school and college levels, Tsuruda has a unique perspective on where strength and conditioning stands at the prep level today and how it relates to the big picture in athletics.
 

   “In high school, this is like a laboratory,” he said. “We get a lot of kids from a lot of different backgrounds. We can do various things, yet there are some things I still do that I did many years ago. The strength and conditioning coaches in high school have more time to brainstorm, plan, and think, as opposed to the college coaches who have so many more athletes and demands on them.
   

 “Our goal is to reduce the amount of injuries. It’s about educating the student-athletes. For example, you need to do a lot of leg work. I know we hear about arms and lifting, but your legs are the most important part – you need legs to play football. In many respects, it’s the most crucial aspect of a lifting program.”
TIP: Tsuruda has tips on training, treating athletes and today’s world of strength and conditioning:

• “Never sacrifice technique for weight. It doesn’t matter how much weight is on the bar, it’s how you do it.”

• “Treat kids the same - that is really important. I don’t care where you are from, what color you are, how much money you have, who you know – treat everybody the same and good things will happen.”

• “Two things have drastically changed the business – the media and camps. The media, namely the internet and television, have led to technology completely taking off. Coaches see all this and the kids have so much access to this as a resource. Now, there are so many strength and conditioning camps today that everybody knows who is doing what at the high school, college and professional level.” 


HS
Phil Jacobs
Adrian High School (MI)

BACKGROUND: Since Phil Jacobs became head coach in 2004, Adrian won the league title six of those seven years, including six straight playoff appearances. Jacobs’ record is now 54-19. In addition to being head football coach, Jacobs is also the strength and conditioning coach as well as a teacher of physical education.
  

  Samson Equipment furnished the weight room in 2008, and since then, the football team has posted records of 8-3, 10-2, and 9-2. The school has also gone from offering one course in strength training to three.
  

  Jacobs knows the impact that Samson and the commitment by the school has made on his program. “It has been amazing to see how much these kids want to and sometimes fight to get into the weight room. It has made life easier for us coaches, and the trickle-down effect is that now there is a demand for strength and conditioning because the kids see what is available to them. Facilities are such an important aspect to having a successful S & C program.”

PHILOSOPHY:  Jacobs believes a simple philosophy will do wonders for young student-athletes. “You need to have a guiding philosophy and then it will carry you through everything. I tell kids and our coaches to establish what you want, define your goals and how you are going to achieve them,” Jacobs explained. “Not everyone is the same, but once you get a solid philosophy you believe in, it will guide you in school, in the weight room, on the football field, and into your adult life.
 

   “I think it’s important to design an effective strength program that improves the overall performance of the student-athlete. Once that takes place, the kids will see what is happening and will want to be a part of something special,” he said. “That is how programs are built, and then the facilities and equipment and resources can get better. That is what has happened for us at Adrian and I am pleased for the kids, coaches, and the school that we have something so nice and we built it on our own.”
TIP:  Jacobs believes in the best possible facilities for his athletes and all strength and conditioning coaches should strive for the same. “Having a facility with great equipment and enough room for training multiple athletes is critical,” he said. “Coaches should do everything they can to have the best weight rooms and equipment that is available to them.” 






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