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Inside Ford Sports Performance: Seattle’s Star-Studded, Self-Sustaining Football Factory
DoogCourics
Member Posts: 5,739
Before Gaskin became an all-state athlete at O’Dea High School, before he became an all-conference running back at the University of Washington and before he became an NFL draft prospect, Gaskin was a high school freshman looking for an edge, walking into a life-changing environment.
At that time, Ford Sports Performance (FSP) was in the early stages of its evolution. It wasn’t the elite, 25,000-square-foot training center it is now. There weren’t over 50 yards of turf. The walls weren’t decked with autographed jerseys from some of the best football talents in the state of Washington. The ceiling wasn’t draped with regional and national accolades belonging to FSP’s numerous 7-on-7 teams. And there certainly weren’t towering, superimposed images of Seahawks linebackers Bobby Wagner and K.J. Wright on the back wall.
But even before the added amenities and upgrades, Tracy Ford’s gym carried a characteristic that has remained consistent over the years: an arena to compete against the best.
“There was no slow down with it,” Gaskin recalled on a recent Thursday afternoon at FSP. “You lifting weights and you running from station to station. Once we get to the running part, you’re competing with some of the best athletes in the state every single rep.
“You could be lining up and racing Budda Baker for all you know, you could be racing Myles Jack or somebody. You never know.”
Before I head upstairs with Ford — a man who was once training players with equipment he kept in the trunk of his car and now runs the top facility in the Pacific Northwest — I stop to admire the scenery.
One wall is covered with accolades belonging to his FSP 7-on-7 high school teams over the past few years. Another wall has NFL jerseys belonging to Richard Sherman, David DeCastro, Baker, Jack, Wagner and Wright. Working out on the turf is Ford’s 2019 Draft Combine Class, headlined by Gaskin and fellow Husky Kaleb McGary, along with other in-state studs, like WSU’s Peyton Pelluer and Hunter Dale and UW’s Jojo McIntosh and Ben Burr-Kirven.
This is Ford’s seventh draft class, a nine-week combine-prep program that effectively functions as a full-time job. Athletes train roughly eight hours per day, 5-6 days per week. FSP provides housing, meals, massage therapy, acupuncture and physical therapy. Program fees are typically paid by agents.
This was the plan all along — to build a facility for up-and-coming in-state talent to prepare for the scouting combine and their pro days. What Ford didn’t envision was hosting athletes from across the country, like Syracuse quarterback Eric Dungey. A dynamic dual-threat QB for the Orange, Dungey chose FSP via suggestion by former teammate Zaire Franklin, who was drafted by the Colts in 2018.
“Talking to Zaire, I knew it was a no-brainer to come here,” said Dungey. “Tracy, he gets you right.”
Dungey recalled Franklin showing up to the Syracuse pro day in spring 2018. “(Franklin) just looked crazy — toned up, killed everything, all the tests. You could tell he was working. What Tracy did worked.”
When Ford formally began FSP in 2011, he primarily catered to local athletes of all levels. Ford had a pro connection through his relationship with fellow Portland State alum DeShawn Shead, who signed with the Seahawks as an undrafted free agent in 2012. Shead brought Jermaine Kearse. Then Kearse brought Korey Toomer. Then Toomer brought Wagner and Wright.
They weren’t in the state-of-the-art venue Ford just opened last year. As Ford reminisces on FSP’s humble beginnings, he pulls out a video of his first formal training grounds, showing off what couldn’t be more than a 300-square-foot space tucked inside a cage-like structure. It wasn’t much, but it got the job done.
“I knew they thought I was crazy,” Ford said. “I was a crazy motherfucker here in the dungeon. From there the floodgates kind of opened up with the NFL market.”
It’s the perfect cycle, really: One wave provides the pathway for the next. Baker and Jack trained alongside that initial Seahawk group and learned the blueprint to NFL success. Players like Gaskin learned college success from Baker and Jack. Then local products like UW running back Salvon Ahmed (Juanita High School) and Stanford wideout Connor Wedington (Sumner) set the stage for players like Eastside Catholic WR Gee Scott Jr., one of the nation’s top-ranked 2020 recruits and a recent Ohio State commit.
After that, the names only get bigger: five-star athlete Sav’ell Smalls of Garfield High is the No. 4 2020 recruit in the country, per 247 Sports; Eastside Catholic defensive lineman J.T. Tuimoloau is their No. 1 recruit for 2021. Their 7-on-7 squad is loaded with other highly touted prospects. And when those players reach the next level of competition, they will come back to train at FSP.
The Wam has a deep dive on this topic, so stop being a fucking bitch and donate to the place you spend 65% of your battery each day. Stalin would appreciate it, and @Swaye will post tits just for you (right @DeepDawg ?)
At that time, Ford Sports Performance (FSP) was in the early stages of its evolution. It wasn’t the elite, 25,000-square-foot training center it is now. There weren’t over 50 yards of turf. The walls weren’t decked with autographed jerseys from some of the best football talents in the state of Washington. The ceiling wasn’t draped with regional and national accolades belonging to FSP’s numerous 7-on-7 teams. And there certainly weren’t towering, superimposed images of Seahawks linebackers Bobby Wagner and K.J. Wright on the back wall.
But even before the added amenities and upgrades, Tracy Ford’s gym carried a characteristic that has remained consistent over the years: an arena to compete against the best.
“There was no slow down with it,” Gaskin recalled on a recent Thursday afternoon at FSP. “You lifting weights and you running from station to station. Once we get to the running part, you’re competing with some of the best athletes in the state every single rep.
“You could be lining up and racing Budda Baker for all you know, you could be racing Myles Jack or somebody. You never know.”
Before I head upstairs with Ford — a man who was once training players with equipment he kept in the trunk of his car and now runs the top facility in the Pacific Northwest — I stop to admire the scenery.
One wall is covered with accolades belonging to his FSP 7-on-7 high school teams over the past few years. Another wall has NFL jerseys belonging to Richard Sherman, David DeCastro, Baker, Jack, Wagner and Wright. Working out on the turf is Ford’s 2019 Draft Combine Class, headlined by Gaskin and fellow Husky Kaleb McGary, along with other in-state studs, like WSU’s Peyton Pelluer and Hunter Dale and UW’s Jojo McIntosh and Ben Burr-Kirven.
This is Ford’s seventh draft class, a nine-week combine-prep program that effectively functions as a full-time job. Athletes train roughly eight hours per day, 5-6 days per week. FSP provides housing, meals, massage therapy, acupuncture and physical therapy. Program fees are typically paid by agents.
This was the plan all along — to build a facility for up-and-coming in-state talent to prepare for the scouting combine and their pro days. What Ford didn’t envision was hosting athletes from across the country, like Syracuse quarterback Eric Dungey. A dynamic dual-threat QB for the Orange, Dungey chose FSP via suggestion by former teammate Zaire Franklin, who was drafted by the Colts in 2018.
“Talking to Zaire, I knew it was a no-brainer to come here,” said Dungey. “Tracy, he gets you right.”
Dungey recalled Franklin showing up to the Syracuse pro day in spring 2018. “(Franklin) just looked crazy — toned up, killed everything, all the tests. You could tell he was working. What Tracy did worked.”
When Ford formally began FSP in 2011, he primarily catered to local athletes of all levels. Ford had a pro connection through his relationship with fellow Portland State alum DeShawn Shead, who signed with the Seahawks as an undrafted free agent in 2012. Shead brought Jermaine Kearse. Then Kearse brought Korey Toomer. Then Toomer brought Wagner and Wright.
They weren’t in the state-of-the-art venue Ford just opened last year. As Ford reminisces on FSP’s humble beginnings, he pulls out a video of his first formal training grounds, showing off what couldn’t be more than a 300-square-foot space tucked inside a cage-like structure. It wasn’t much, but it got the job done.
“I knew they thought I was crazy,” Ford said. “I was a crazy motherfucker here in the dungeon. From there the floodgates kind of opened up with the NFL market.”
It’s the perfect cycle, really: One wave provides the pathway for the next. Baker and Jack trained alongside that initial Seahawk group and learned the blueprint to NFL success. Players like Gaskin learned college success from Baker and Jack. Then local products like UW running back Salvon Ahmed (Juanita High School) and Stanford wideout Connor Wedington (Sumner) set the stage for players like Eastside Catholic WR Gee Scott Jr., one of the nation’s top-ranked 2020 recruits and a recent Ohio State commit.
After that, the names only get bigger: five-star athlete Sav’ell Smalls of Garfield High is the No. 4 2020 recruit in the country, per 247 Sports; Eastside Catholic defensive lineman J.T. Tuimoloau is their No. 1 recruit for 2021. Their 7-on-7 squad is loaded with other highly touted prospects. And when those players reach the next level of competition, they will come back to train at FSP.
The Wam has a deep dive on this topic, so stop being a fucking bitch and donate to the place you spend 65% of your battery each day. Stalin would appreciate it, and @Swaye will post tits just for you (right @DeepDawg ?)
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