What Washington Needs to do to get back to the top

GrundleStiltzkin

Had to be done.

Edit: At what point, and from which orifice, does that QB's soul leave his body there?

CokeGreaterThanPepsi

I did a lot of reading up on Socha after he was hired and I was beyond impressed. He seems like a really smart dude and he was also a lineman, which I am a fan of for strength coaches. When I read your post Donald, I couldn't help but remember an article Socha wrote a few years back when BSU went 14-0... I would encourage you to read it because he hits on a lot of points you brought up.

When Ivan lewis and Sark were here they had a TON of machines in the weight room, one of the first things Socha and Petersen did when they got to UW is get rid of those machines. All they basically have now are the big (for lack of knowledge on what they are) tower looking weight stations that can support bench, squat, pull-ups, etc. Picture here of what I am talking about:



I truly believe that if we are going to get to the elite level it will be because of Tim Socha, and I know Chris Petersen believes he is the best in the business, and he has won awards to back that up. Here are a few quotes I think you will like that echo what you said (article linked at bottom):

--- "While those lifts build raw strength, we use squats and the bench press to help maximize power. We believe the squat is the single most important exercise for football players after the Olympic lifts. Squats increase force production in the legs and develop sound, explosive movement patterns that improve football ability in everything from hitting opponents with maximum impact to accelerating through narrow gaps to separating from defenders downfield."

--- "For the bench press, our variants include standard, incline, close-grip, wide-grip, board presses, floor presses, dumbbell work, and the one-arm bench. While upper-body strength is obviously important for football performance, there is also a psychological component to this type of training."

--- "When someone wants to know how strong an athlete is, their first question is often 'How much do you bench?' That may not be the single most important measure of football-specific strength, but it's part of the football strength culture, and we know that confidence is an important element of success."

--- "whenever our players are in the weightroom, we expect them to not wear anything that draws attention to themselves, such as necklaces, bracelets, or non-issued clothing. Simple rules like these send an important message: No one is bigger than the team, and if you want to garner attention, you earn it through hard work and not the way you accessorize."

--- "These basic rules give rise to some interesting conflicts involving new athletes, who were almost always stars in high school and may come from programs where such strict standards didn't apply to them. But our older players set the example, and as time goes on, everyone eventually "gets it" and sees that it's an important part of our success."

LINK: training-conditioning.com/2010/04/18/the_boys_on_blue/index.php

I encourage anyone who is interested in what is going on right now (Winter conditioning started yesterday) to check this article by Socha out.

I am going to look around to see if I can find anymore.

HeretoBeatmyChest

Petersen said Socha is the best strength coach in the country. That is quite a lot of praise from a guy who doesn't give it often.

GrundleStiltzkin

Great find @CokeGreaterThanPepsi‌. In my opinion, the most important and pertinent to our current situation:

We expect the guys to be on time for all workouts, which sounds like a no-brainer. But with redshirt freshmen lifting at 5:45 a.m., it sometimes needs to be emphasized. Also, whenever our players are in the weightroom, we expect them to not wear anything that draws attention to themselves, such as necklaces, bracelets, or non-issued clothing. Simple rules like these send an important message: No one is bigger than the team, and if you want to garner attention, you earn it through hard work and not the way you accessorize.

These basic rules give rise to some interesting conflicts involving new athletes, who were almost always stars in high school and may come from programs where such strict standards didn't apply to them. But our older players set the example, and as time goes on, everyone eventually "gets it" and sees that it's an important part of our success.

Our accountability system is progressive. At those early freshman lifting sessions, the first athlete who shows up late typically pushes a plate for the length of time he missed, with a minimum of 10 minutes. For the next person who is late, he and his roommates receive the punishment. After that, we might apply it to everyone who plays the late athlete's position.

Doogles

Passion said:

Tequilla said:

Donald hits.

Yes, we know.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJbQ0YLMZUM&feature=player_detailpage

@DonaldJones‌ I counted about 17 personal fouls in your highlight reel.

Take a lap.

Tequilla

I miss those days where you could make a big play and celebrate with your teammates without showing up the other team and nobody batted an eye at it.

chuck

Good post Donald. This aspect was the difference last night. Oregon, like the rest of the league aside from Stanford, is built on quickness. Stanford is built on strength but can't come close to combining it with speed like what tOSU showed last night.

I can't say it enough. That was one physically and athletically impressive team kicking the shit out of Oregon last night. Those players were made, not just recruited. I'm 100% on board with the belief that this is the key for UW going forward.

PurpleJ

They were training on machines?! Christ!

Doogles

Tequilla said:

I miss those days where you could make a big play and celebrate with your teammates without showing up the other team and nobody batted an eye at it.

That was my point. Have fun.

HFNY

Ivan was a nice guy but that is FS...as I understand it, free weights are much better because you need your smaller muscle fibers to balance the bar / weights (bench) and keep your own balance (squat, power clean). WTF. That revelation actually concerns me because shouldn't someone in the athletic department noticed that and said something? Where were Greg Lewis and Damon Huard?

PurpleJ said:

They were training on machines?! Christ!