Scott Sahli’s Career Highlights
Scott Sahli was first hired as the Strength & Conditioning Coordinator for all sports at Northfield High School in Minnesota, where he served in that capacity until 2011. During his tenure, numerous teams in a variety of sports found success, with the football team reaching the state tournament 11 times and competing in the state championship five times.
While at Northfield, Coach Sahli became one of the pioneers in Minnesota to initiate formal competition in USA Olympic Weightlifting at the high school level. Under his leadership, his teams won seven consecutive state championships in weightlifting.
In 2011, Scott moved to Burnsville High School in Minnesota, where he developed the strength and conditioning program and worked until 2017. During this time, he built highly successful football and Olympic weightlifting programs. The football team played in three section finals and went to the state playoffs for the first time in 20 years. His Olympic weightlifting team won four consecutive state championships.
Since 2017, Coach Sahli has served as the Strength & Conditioning Coordinator at Lakeville South High School. Under his guidance, the football team has reached the semifinals of the Minnesota State Playoffs six consecutive times, winning two state championships. The gymnastics team also secured a state championship, and his Olympic weightlifting teams have won five consecutive state championships.
Beyond football and Olympic weightlifting, Coach Sahli’s teams across other sports have also enjoyed considerable success at the schools where he has worked.
Scott has earned numerous honors throughout his career, including:
- Minnesota Strength & Conditioning Professional of the Year in 2001 and 2008
- National NSCA State Director of the Year in 2008
- NSCA National High School Strength & Conditioning Coach of the Year in 2010
- Induction into the Minnesota NSCA Hall of Fame in 2014
Coach Sahli is enthusiastic about the NHSSCA and its commitment to advancing the development of high school strength coaches.
What do you enjoy most about being a strength and conditioning coach?
What I enjoy most is the relationships I build with the student-athletes and coaches I work with daily. Watching students transform themselves through hard work into athletes they didn’t believe they could become is incredibly fulfilling. It’s equally rewarding to see groups and individuals reach goals they once thought were unattainable by surpassing their own expectations.
Please describe your training philosophy.
My training philosophy is built on a foundational attitude, which includes:
- Everyone matters, and everyone can make a difference.
- Proper movement fundamentals and technique are the highest priority, starting every day with bodyweight or empty bar exercises.
- Strict adherence to proper programming and technique protocols.
- Only when Step A is mastered do we progress to Step B.
- Strength, power, and velocity are trained after mastering the fundamentals.
This philosophy is fostered in an environment with high expectations for work ethic, positive behavior, and focus.
What do you consider your greatest accomplishments as a strength coach?
I believe there’s a distinction between accomplishments and achievements. My greatest accomplishments include starting strength training programs at schools that never had one, and teaching both students and coaches the value of strength training for athletic performance, physical development, health, confidence, and life. Building relationships that last a lifetime through this process is especially rewarding.
What do you feel is one of your assets as a strength coach, and what advice can you give other strength coaches to make this an asset for their training philosophy and strength program?
Over time, I’ve realized how much more there is to learn. Early in my career, I had great mentors who were always eager to learn and grow, and that attitude has stuck with me. I’m just as enthusiastic about learning new things in this field today as I was when I first started. My advice to other coaches is to always keep learning and growing. This field keeps you humble, and the key to success is staying curious and open to new knowledge every day.
