Notes From the Summer

Just wrapped another awesome summer of training with URI Football. Before we move into preseason, I wanted to take a minute and jot down a few thoughts, mostly for myself, but maybe there’s something here that helps you too. This summer, we made a point to include things that other coaches might not agree with. We took more sets to failure in the weight room. We brought back more glycolytic conditioning than we’ve done in years past. And we made sure there were moments where the kids had to get gritty. Not just physically, but mentally. Every single time, they responded. And responded together. That was a good reminder for me. Somewhere along the way I started chasing optimization so hard that I lost sight of what training can do. Not just how fast it can make you, but how tough. How connected. How capable. We also flipped our sprint days; Max velocity early in the week, acceleration later. That shift came partly because of the amount of 7-on-7 our guys were doing, but it ended up being a great decision. It allowed us to push volume later in the week without breaking them down.

Nutrition continues to be the biggest dial we can turn when it comes to making real, team- wide changes. Education is great, but getting actual food in front of the guys is what moves the needle. That’s still a challenge for us at the FCS level, one I want to keep finding ways to improve. And lastly, we brought out the Patriot’s Test a few times this summer for a mental gut check. Here it is: 3 Rounds, 3 minute time limit to run: 800 yards for Skills 600 yards for Mids 500 yards for Bigs The first time we ran it, we gave them a 1:2 work-to-rest ratio. By the end of the summer, they handled it with a 1:1 and crushed it. Yes, I know “Football is an alactic sport!” “YoU’lL nEvEr RuN fOr 3 sTrAiGhT mInUtEs iN a GaMe.” But training isn’t always about mimicking the game. Sometimes it’s about throwing something at the group that’s unfamiliar, uncomfortable, and hard… and seeing how they respond. For us, it was a clear, objective gut check. No gray area. (Here’s a great article about the test if you’re interested) Now that it’s behind us, I’ll take a few quiet minutes this weekend to make notes for 2026. While the details are still sharp and the feeling of this summer is still fresh. We’re already better than we were. But we’ve got more work to do. Keep the Fire Burning, Leech