J.J.

[#1DieHardHawk]

There is not a problem with Iowa WBB S&C, just look at the physical improvements our players have made through the years. Or, look at the seniors on this year's team: Stuelke, Feuerbach, and McCabe all made huge strides physically.

The problem is that this team was largely sophomores and freshmen. They just hadn't had enough time in the system to hit their physical peak, yet. They will get there.

The other thing to keep in mind: there are no secrets in S&C. There are no programs doing some secret exercises that others are not. Like sport in general, it is about culture, buy-in, and consistency. Iowa WBB has a great S&C coach, and the players love her.

Pointing out a potential area for improvement doesn't necessarily imply a criticism.

I'm sure they have a great program in place and great coaches, but, in every sport, be it S&C, offensive scheme, defensive scheme, etc., occasionally something will jump out at you, where you go, "That's pretty impressive. I wonder how they're doing that?"

The best coaches always keep an eye on what other programs are doing, and are humble enough to reach out and/or incorporate things. Back in the day, Jerry Kill asked to attend Iowa practices to learn how we do things. There aren't many coaches that can put aside their egos to do something like that. I've always had a ton of respect for him.

If you objectively re-watch the FDU game, the intensity and "twitch" of those players is really impressive. There's nothing wrong with inquiring about how the staff gets those kinds of results.

 

[guffus]

I took the S&C comment to mean that the 3 freshman especially needed to hit the off-season S&C training program that the coaches recommend for them. Usually the biggest improvement in S&C occurs between a players freshman and sophomore year. That is one of the key reasons you expect the biggest jump in performance to happen between the 1st and 2nd year.

Now that Addie Deal is leaving, it makes you wonder how much that will screw up her S&C training in the off-season. Of course, she probably makes enough in NIL to hire her own full time trainer.