“WOW”… is the best phrase to recap this year’s national conference! The NHSSCA pulled off another fantastic event providing the best high school-specific strength & conditioning educational content, excellent food, awesome swag/giveaways, and life-long connections. In this article, we will provide a snapshot of the #FamilyReunion we enjoyed in Nashville this year–from the social, awards, lectures, hands-on presentations, and more, as we celebrate 2022 NHSSCA NatCon one last time!
Unlike any other event in our industry, our National Conference started with our Virtual Kick-Off on Monday, June 20. At that time, we gave first-time and veteran attendee’s a glimpse of our program, opportunities to learn more about the NHSSCA, and the chance to connect with other attendees. This event helps coaches get to know people before stepping on the ground at the conference.
The first in-person portion of NatCon was our social event at Tailgate Brewery. This portion was a fantastic time of socializing, talking shop, reconnecting, and meeting new friends. Coaches enjoyed drinks, food, and fun while at the brewery.
For the first time, the NHSSCA offered a Female Coaches Breakfast, sponsored by PLAE. Coach Mark-Kate Feit of Springfield College provided tremendous insight into the world of strength & conditioning through the lens of a female coach.
This year’s Pre-Con presenter was Coach Bobby Stroupe of APCE in Texas. He is most recognized for his work with Patrick Mahomes of the Kansas City Chiefs. Coach Stroupe took a deep dive into his method of physical performance enhancement with a combination of lectures and hands-on presentations. This Pre-Con was attended well by almost 200 coaches, and everyone benefited from participating.
Registration opened at 3 p.m., and NatCon 2022 was off and running. Beginning at 4 p.m., we started with our Awards Dinner, followed by our Keynote Speaker. In traditional NHSSCA style, the spread laid out for dinner was second to none. Then after our meal, we enjoyed recognizing our outstanding Coaches and Athletes during the awards presentation! We honored our All-American Athletes, Program of Excellence honorees, State Coaches of the Year, and Region Coaches of the Year. Then John Garrish, our National Coach of the Year, received his belt and provided a fantastic acceptance speech.
Next were our Hall of Fame honorees–Rich Lanksy, CJ Stockel, and Rick Huegli. The wisdom, knowledge, and passion shared by our HOF inductees in their acceptance speeches were truly memorable. This induction was the first time the NHSSCA inducted three coaches into the Hall at one time. We then enjoyed an inspirational Keynote presentation from Jeremy Garrett of Liberty University. To finish off the night, coaches enjoyed spending time together and reconnecting.
The Athletes In Action sponsored breakfast led off Day 2. Coach Steve Watterson, formerly of the Tennessee Titans, shared his perspective on coaching and the daily impact we can have on the athletes we work with. The first lecture presentation of NatCon was by Coach Nick Garcia of Notre Dame High School (CA), in which he talked about Foundational and Work Capacity Phases for Freshman. He provided real-world applications of movements and programming to set the building blocks for long-term success. After that, we enjoyed our first of two hands-on breakout sessions:
- “Teaching and Implementing the Olympic Lifts for High School Athletes” by Matt Bruce of Catholic High School (LA)
- “Game Speed & Separation Web” by Tony Vilani of XPE Sports (FL)
- “Jump Training & Plyometrics” by Missy-Mitchell McBeth of Byron Nelson High School (TX)
- “Block Zero Programming with Limited Equipment” by Isaiah Newsome of Donaldson Christian Academy (TN)
After our first group of hands-on sessions, we enjoyed a lecture presentation from Kahil Lee of the Gatorade Sports Science Institute sponsored by Gatorade, titled “Prescribing Rest: How to optimize recovery.” Our Partner Mini-Session followed this lecture, where coaches visited our amazing sponsors and learned about their products and services. After that, again in NHSSCA fashion, we enjoyed another incredible meal from Bacon & Caviar.
After lunch, our 2022 National Coach of the Year, John Garrish of North Broward Prep (FL), presented “Bounding for Team Sports, Why? How? When?” John provided valuable drills, programming, and methods to assist a coach in implementing bounding into their speed program. After Coach Garrish’s presentation, we had our 2nd round of hands-on sessions:
- “Warm-Up 101” by Candice Walls of Mullen High School (CO)
- “Speed Development in Large Group Settings” by Joey Bergles of JJ Pierce High School (TX)
- “Biological Assessment, Player Profiling, & Programming” by Des Ryan of Setanta College (IRE)
- “Large Group Rotations to Maximize Minimal Equipment” by Scott Pherson of Concord High School (IN).
We then enjoyed our final lecture from Cody Hughes of Madison Academy (AL) titled “Slow Down to Speed Up: Training Strategies for Robustness.” After Coach Hughes’ presentation, we had another unreal meal, followed by the one and only NHSSCA NatCon Raffle! Once again, in typical NHSSCA style, we gave away thousands of dollars in gift certificates, cash, coolers, equipment, and scholarships to our attendees!
NatCon 2022 was another banner event for the NHSSCA; it was the biggest NatCon ever, with more than 400 attendees and possibly the best content we have ever offered. Considering the tough economic challenges we are facing, holding an event of this size and success is a true testament to the NHSSCA, its membership, and the strength of our organization moving forward.
Two other things that deserve mention from NatCon — our awesome store, which had many one-of-the-kind items that our attendees picked up, and the NHSSCA booth, which Coach Mike Bewley and Dr. Mike Martino manned. Coach Bewley will lead our administrative duties moving forward, especially concerning our increased online presence. Dr. Martino shared important information about our certification process, of which he is serving as our senior editor. NatCon was again not just a clinic, conference, or event.
IT WAS AN EPIC FAMILY REUNION! We hope to see you next year in Chicago at the 2023 NatCon.
2022 NHSSCA NatCon Image Gallery
