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AFM Magazine

AFM Magazine


College Strength & Conditioning coach of the year

Solid Ground
by: Steve Silverman
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Mike Gentry has built a foundation of success in Virginia Tech’s weight room and is becoming a legend among his peers

The weight room. You want to talk about the basics and building blocks of any football program, start with the weight room.

That’s where the foundation is built. Players are in the weight room nearlyevery day, working on getting stronger, quicker, more flexible and more explosive.Mike Gentry, the director of strength and conditioning at Virginia Tech, overseesa program that is as productive as any in the nation.

Players like Michael Vick, Jim Druckenmiller, Corey Moore and John Engelbergerhave worked their way through the Hokies’ 20,000-square foot weight roomunder the watchful eye of Gentry and have become remarkably productive playersunder his watch.

Gentry is AFM’s Samson Strength & Conditioning College Coach of theYear, and it’s an award that Virginia Tech head coach Frank Beamer couldn’tbe happier about. The two have been in lock step since 1987 when both were hiredat Virginia Tech. Throughout the years, the Hokies have developed a reputationas one of the strongest and best-conditioned football teams in the nation. Beamergives full credit to Gentry.

“When I got here it was the first time that I had a full-time strengthand conditioning coach to work with,” Beamer explained. “Before that,it was on the coaching staff to run a weight room and the conditioning program,in addition to what happened on the practice field. From the time I met Mikeit was clear that he was a hard working pro who was going to get the most outof players. It (the relationship) started off good and has only gotten better.”

Awards are nothing new to Gentry. In May 2003, Gentry was honored by the CollegiateStrength and Conditioning Coaches Association when he was named a Master Strengthand Conditioning Coach. Gentry is currently one of only 36 coaches in the countryto have received the award.

Gentry is not motivated by awards or recognition. It’s nice, of course,to be given credit for years of hard work, but the real rewards come with thedevelopment of individual players and the improvement of the football team ona consistent basis. Gentry knows that if those things are going to happen, VirginiaTech’s players have to be dedicated and have a full-time commitment togetting bigger, stronger, quicker and more explosive.

“At the level we are playing football here, our competitors are trainingas hard in the off-season,” Gentry said. “There is definitely pressureand we recognize that. But that can’t deter us from the job we have todo.”

That’s where Beamer has the most confidence in Gentry. “The dedicationis there,” Beamer said. “He understands what players have to do andhe is very organized and very productive. And it doesn’t just end in theweight room either. He’s helping guys get quicker, faster and more explosive.That’s what really makes the most difference on the football field andanything he wants to do is OK with me. He has proven himself time after time.

“Look, I’m here in Blacksburg. I can’t say for sure what’sgoing on in other programs around the ACC. I can’t say what we do is theabsolute best in the conference or the region or the country; but I can say thatnobody does it better or puts more into it. It’s possible for someone todo as much but I don’t think anyone could possibly do any more.”

The Virginia Tech program offers a great example of how the strength and conditioningaspect of the game has grown over the years. When Gentry arrived at Va Tech in1987, Gentry had a 3,500 square-foot facility, a trainer and a graduate assistant.Now the facility is more than five times bigger, he has four full-time trainersworking for him and also has five graduate assistants providing additional help.

The additional help has allowed Gentry to attend all the coaching meetings andconcentrate all his time and effort on Virginia Tech football. “I havea great staff and they handle the other sports,” Gentry said. “Iam able to go to every meeting with the coaching staff and I give them my opinionon how players are progressing as they train.”

Beamer finds this to be an invaluable contribution. “Look at how much timeour players spend in the weight room,” Beamer said. “It’s ahuge part of what they do every day. Mike knows what these kids are doing, whatkind of effort they are putting out and what makes them tick.

“He knows their character and that is a huge part of football. If you knowthat a kid is busting it in the weight room and doing everything the strengthcoach is asking, you have a pretty good indication that he’s going to bethere for you in the fourth quarter and not cut a corner. Trust is such a hugepart of football. I have to trust the guys I put on the field. I have to makejudgments on them and I have to trust those that give me their opinion.

“I trust Mike very much. He’s the kind of guy who keeps great recordsand understands how committed a guy may be to the program. He offers his opinionsand those opinions are held in very high esteem by the rest of the staff.”

Atlanta QB Michael Vick came of age in the Virginia Tech program and gives Gentrya great deal of credit for his development as a football player because he gaineda great deal of functional football strength while at Virginia Tech.

“I was not that strong when I got to Virginia Tech, but I realized thattraining hard was important in staying injury free and developing as a player.” Vicksaid. “I really exploded strength and speed-wise under the direction ofcoach Gentry. In two years my bench went up 50 pounds and I squatted 515. Also,my vertical leap increased from 31.5 inches to 41, and my forty time went from4.42 to 4.25, while gaining eighteen pounds of body weight.”

Gentry knows that he helped Vick, but he credits the former Hokie with havingthe dedication and foresight to do everything necessary to get the most out ofhis talent. “First of all, Michael is a genetically exceptional athlete,” Gentrysaid. “But he wasn’t willing to just rest on that. He wanted to getbetter and he wanted to get stronger. Michael did the work and it shows everytime he takes the field.”

The Atlanta Falcons clearly noticed the package that Vick brought to the fieldand were rewarded with a second playoff appearance in the last three years. Thesuccess of Vick and other former Virginia Tech stars goes along way towards motivatingcurrent players.

“They all see the results of guys like Vick and Engelberger and others,and they know that if they do everything the right way and put in maximum effort,they have a shot at getting to the next level,” said Virginia Tech athleticdirector Jim Weaver. “That’s a great motivator but that’s notthe only thing that matters around here. This is a program that has gone to 12straight bowl games, has high academic standards and wants to do things the rightway. Our players understand that.”

So does Gentry, who is insistent that the Virginia Tech players stay clean. Intoday’s day and age, anyone looking in from the outside at players whogain more than 20 pounds in a year raise an eyebrow and offer a knowing glance.But don’t raise the specter of steroids when discussing the Virginia Techprogram. Not only do the Hokies adhere to NCAA standards for steroid testing,they also have their own standards – which are more demanding than theNCAA’s.

“That’s how we do it here,” said Weaver. “We want tobe an upper-level college football team and we are just that. But that’snot enough. We want to do it the right way. That fits perfectly with Mike’sphilosophy. He is a man who has care and concern for the players that wear aVirginia Tech uniform.”

The past success of former Virginia Tech stars is one indicator that Gentry’sprogram works well, but that doesn’t mean that he’s only concernedwith superstars. He will spend as much time with a walk-on player as he doeswith a preseason All-American – as long as the effort is there.

“One of the reasons that Mike is successful is that he treats everyonethe same,” Beamer said. “He doesn’t give anyone an easier workloadbecause a player may have gotten some recognition in the past. With Mike, it’sall about effort and consistency. Players can’t get by because they havea name. They have to do the work.”

Gentry has been able to stay on top of the strength and conditioning world becausehe keeps up with the latest research and scientific data and then tries to incorporatethose changes so they benefit the players. “It’s not that we’redoing anything different here than they are at most programs,” Gentry said. “Everyoneis concerned with weight training, explosive strength and excellent nutrition.There’s no re-inventing of the wheel here – I’m not smart enoughfor that.

“But I think we know something about organization and creating a positiveenvironment. If you can do those those things with a system of rewards and discipline – anda heavy emphasis on the rewards – you have a good chance to develop speed,strength and power in your players.”

The recognition of being named the Samson Strength and Conditioning College Coachof the Year means quite a bit to the Virginia Tech program. “I couldn’tbe happier for Mike,” said Beamer. “I think it’s a great thingfor him and it’s certainly great for the program. He has put in a tremendousamount of work and he is always striving to help our players get better. Youcertainly couldn’t ask for anything more but he’s always trying.”

Gentry simply wants to help his players get bigger, stronger and more explosiveso Virginia Tech can continue to win football games.

It all starts in the weight room.






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