Comments

• 

  Adam Blalock December 1, 2010 at 11:31am

  Jianping is a very knowledgeable person on this subject. Him and Jed Smith are probably the best in the state. I try to compete up in Waterloo where they're at but life takes priority now. Maybe we could plan a "field trip" up to united sport and athlete and train there one weekend, Jianping keeps inviting me.
  Adam
• 

  Adam Blalock November 3, 2010 at 11:55am

  Almost forgot. We made a decent video of a bunch of lifts awhile back. We sent it out with the program the last year I was there. Definitely a good idea.
• 

  Adam Blalock October 12, 2010 at 3:42pm

  How's it going Matt?
• 

  Dustyn Baethke September 3, 2010 at 9:37am

  Hey Walt,
  
  I started here on August 5th, the first day of camp. It's going really well so far. I'm just excited to finally get the season rolling. How are things going for you?
• 

  Dustyn Baethke October 27, 2009 at 9:34am

  Hey Walt, how did the interview go with Western Illinois? Have you heard anything about the position? Hope all is well...and don't be a Muskrat.
• 

  Brandon O`Neall October 24, 2009 at 9:46am

  http://www.wiu.edu/grad/resources/APCHKLST1.pdf
  
  Hey Matt, I did Kinesiology because I felt those classes would best fit my interest in strength and conditioning. Sports management is very popular as well, because it deals more with the administrative side of sport. I did not have to take the GRE, and the website posted above is an overview of all the grad programs at WIU and what they require. I had to write an essay about why I wanted to be in the program. It was easy and if you are seriously considering this and you want to see what I wrote I could send that to you as well.
  
  While at Western I tried to assist with all groups (mainly football), but I was the head coach for baseball, swimming and diving, track and field, and golf. It's a full plate but a great experience. Every team brings something different to the table, but they are overall good kids to work with.
• 

  Brandon O`Neall October 22, 2009 at 11:06am

  My experience with Coach Doyle and the staff at Iowa was absolutely great. I could not have asked for a better group of mentors. That internship is exactly what I needed and helped me obtain an assistant position at Maine.
  
  Yes, WIU has a GA spot open and Doyle reccommended you for the position. There are some positives and there are some negatives with the position. You will have a lot of responsibility right off the bat. He is expecting you to be able to write programs and coach right away. It is neat first-hand experience. The athletes are good kids, you just need to get them to believe in you and follow you. Once you can do that, they will do just about anything for you.
  
  Coach Anderson is a character, and he will probably tell you himself that he is an "asshole" however if you can gain his trust he will do a lot for you as well. He is a retired marine and is very proud of that. Like I said, he has high expectations for his GA's. Unfortunately, strength and conditioning does not receive a lot of support from the administration. It is kind of on the back burner. However, I was just there yesterday and I guess they are in the works of getting new equipment for the weight room. Right now, the weight room has some older equipment and is only about 2,300 square feet.
  
  In all, the situation is exactly what you make of it. The classes are not very difficult if you go within the Kinesiology major. That is what I did. It is a tough environment in which you will need to be mentally strong. I am not trying to scare you, but I am not trying to sugar coat anything as well. When I first got there it was quite a surprise. I am stubborn and never quit anything so I stuck with it and it turned out to be a great experience. I've been at Central, Western, Tulsa, and Iowa. Every single place does things differently and has different attitudes. I think you can do a great job. You seem like a great guy even though we only talked a little bit this past august. It is a great opportunity to gain your master's and get some first-hand experience coaching.
  
  If you would like to talk more about this or anything else please feel free to call me at 319-415-6025. Take care!