Speakers

SPORTS PERFORMANCE CLINIC SPEAKERS 2024

JESSE WRIGHT • Balance the Bar *Keynote Speaker*
Topic: Closing The Gap - Coaching and Connecting With Athletes Description: Lay foundation for a greater understanding of both the athletes you train and the team members you lead, how they receive your coaching and direction, and how you may consider refining your approach based on the individual and their current views. • As part of a high-performance staff, provide a framework for improved dialogue and education amongst staff members. • Practical application for success in collaborating with others and delivering your message within a high performance ecosystem. • Add to your global skillset, both professionally and personally, to empower and enhance your ability to deliver results and “get it done.” • Fun and engaging stories from Jesse’s 14 years with the Philadelphia 76ers add real-world relevance to the challenges of elite level sport. Bio: Jesse K. Wright is a high performance consultant, best-selling & award-winning author, public speaker, and founder of the Balance The Bar initiative. His career has spanned over two decades in the sports industry, including working with organizations in the NBA, NFL, NCAA, and the private sector. He most recently spent 14 years with the Philadelphia 76ers, first as the Head Strength & Conditioning Coach and then as the Director of Performance Science. During this time, he was named the NBA’s Strength & Conditioning Coach of the Year in 2013, an award voted on by his contemporaries in the league. He also served as President of the National Basketball Strength & Conditioning Association from 2013-2015. In addition, he served as chair of the committee that oversees and coordinates the anthropometric and performance testing for the NBA Pre-Draft Combine for six years. During his career, Wright has held Strength & Conditioning Coach positions with Temple University, the Philadelphia Eagles, the Barcelona Dragons (NFL-Europe), Hofstra University Football, and Saint Joseph’s University. Additionally, he served as the Director of Summit Sports Training Center, a group of sports performance facilities located outside of Philadelphia, PA. He received an Exercise Science degree from Temple University and a Master’s of High Performance Sport degree from Australian Catholic University. He is a Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) and a Registered Strength & Conditioning Coach Emeritus (RSCC*E), both from the National Strength & Conditioning Association (NSCA).

NICK TRIANO • Villanova University

Sports Performance Coach

Topic: Building the Agile Athlete. A systematic approach to building speed, agility, and quickness.

Description: As sports performance coaches it is our job to prepare our athletes for the demands of the game and increase performance on the field. Through this pursuit, and the use of different strength and speed modalities, we often ask ourselves “does this translate to on field performance?” We have long moved past the days of simply playing the game to improve performance but are we getting too specific? Are there games we can play on the field and drills we can use that keep our athletes improving while also enjoying the process of being at practice? The goal of Building the Agile Athlete is to provide a systematic approach that builds speed, agility, and quickness while in the confines of team practice and on field development. This presentation will be in lecture format and will also have a practical portion that will allow coaches to implement ideas immediately.

Bio: Nick Triano serves as a Sports Performance Coach at Villanova, a position he's held since 2022. In this role, Triano works as the sports performance coach for men’s soccer, women’s lacrosse and water polo.

Prior to joining the Villanova team, Nick served as the head strength and conditioning coach and fitness coordinator at Washington College, overseeing all 18 varsity athletic programs. Nick also worked as the head sports performance coach at Momentum Physical Therapy in Milford, Massachusetts.

Triano graduated from Endicott College with a Bachelor of Science in 2015. Nick is a certified strength and conditioning coach from the National Strength and Conditioning Association.

CRAIG TURNER • University of Pennsylvania

Assistant Director of Strength & Conditioning/Director of Basketball Performance

Topic: Velocity based training (VBT) - making methods of making data actionable, using Assessment, Intent & Monitoring (AIM).

Description: VBT has become a popular method within sports performance training. With the rise in data collection methods and velocity based training tools, there has also been a rise in confusion regarding what VBT actually is and how to apply it. In an attempt to aid understanding, we look to explore a unique system approach that categorizes different VBT methods, making them accessible to coaches and practitioners. This system includes Assessment; the utility of load velocity profiles and exploring the load-velocity relationship. Intent; using data approaches to establish effective training approaches. Monitoring; methods to evaluate success of your training program using analytical approaches. Combine the A-I-M system explores the scientific underpinnings of VBT and how it can be applied in the sports performance setting.

Bio: Craig Whitworth-Turner joined the University of Pennsylvania as Assistant Director of Strength & Conditioning/Head of Basketball Performance in January 2022. He came to Penn after two years working with the NBA’s Philadelphia 76ers as a Sport Science/Strength & Conditioning Associate. While also serving as a network professional (Sport Scientist) with US Soccer.

Prior to his arrival in Philadelphia, Turner spent two years as Director of Sport Science and Associate Strength & Conditioning Coach at N.C. State University, working primarily with the Wolfpack’s soccer and women’s golf programs, while assisting with basketball, baseball and swimming programs. He also has enjoyed professional stints as a Sport Science Researcher at the Nike Sports Research Laboratory, a Sport Science Consultant with NK Istra 1961 Football Club in Croatia, an Applied Sports Scientist/Strength & Conditioning Coach with The Nike Academy, and a Strength & Conditioning Coach with Rochdale A.F.C. (Manchester, U.K.).

Turner graduated from Liverpool (U.K.) John Moores University in 2012 with 1st Class Honours in Science & Football BSc, earning the Paul Conway Award for excellence in sports & exercise science. He then completed a Master of Philosophy in 2013 and a Doctor of Philosophy in 2016, also at the Liverpool John Moores University.

Turner is a Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist from the (NSCA) and accredited by British Association of Sports & Exercise Sciences (BASES). He is also a CSci Chartered Scientist, certified in First Aid and AED, and an Associate Fellow of the Higher Education Association (AHFEA).

SARAH MILLER • Georgia Tech

Player Development Coach

Topic: Rotation and Compression: training for power in elite Swimming and beyond

Description: This talk will explore archetypes of rotational athletes to aid coaches in understanding how physical structure influences rotational strategy. It will provide an introduction to the interaction of the ribcage and the pelvis in force generation, and the common compensations of specialized athletes. Drawing from her experience working with NCAA Swimming and Softball, Miller will detail how this influences programming and provide practical insight on training to bias sport-specific goals.

Bio: Sarah Miller is a Player Development coach at Georgia Tech where she oversees all aspects of strength, conditioning, and holistic preparation for the Yellow Jacket’s Softball and Swimming and Diving programs. She previously held similar positions at the University of Pennsylvania and Kennesaw State University, working with a diverse array of sports, as well as in the private sector as a sports performance coach. Prior to collegiate athletics, Miller worked in film and media as a stunt performer and fight choreographer. She earned her Bachelor's degree at Point Park University, and her Master of Science in Applied Physiology and Kinesiology from the University of Florida. She is certified through the National Strength and Conditioning Association as well as the Society of American Fight Directors.

ANDREW BROOCKS • Temple University

Director of Sport Science/Assistant Strength Coach for Football

Topic: Hamstring Development & Methods of Injury Reduction

Description: This presentation will include data & research pertaining to hamstring development, along with methods of development. Also, this presentation will go over the breakdown of acceleration and max velocity running mechanics for healthy hamstrings.

Bio: Andrew Broocks was named assistant strength and conditioning coach for Temple Football in January, 2022, under new head coach Stan Drayton. He added the title of Director of Sports Science for Football in 2023.

Broocks came to Temple from the United States Army where he worked as the lead strength and conditioning coach for the Combat Aviation Brigade in Fort Drum, N.Y.

Prior to that he worked at Cornell where he served as the director of strength & conditioning, as well as an assistant football coach, since January 2020. Before Cornell, Broocks was assistant strength and conditioning coach for the football program at Iowa State in 2019. He spent two seasons as strength and conditioning coach at Southern Illinois, starting as a graduate assistant (2017-18) before being promoted full-time in 2018-19 as head of the baseball and golf programs while assisting with all other teams. He spent one season each as strength and conditioning football intern at Iowa State (2016) and Nebraska (2017).

Broocks played one season of football at Morningside College (Sioux City, Iowa) and finished his undergraduate studies at Nebraska-Omaha, earning a bachelor’s degree in exercise science in 2016. He was assistant strength coach at Xplosive Edge in Omaha in 2016.

Broocks, a native of Spirit Lake, Iowa, received his master’s in kinesiology from Southern Illinois in January 2020. He is certified by the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA), USA Weightlifting and the American Red Cross. Broocks is also certified in Precision Nutrition L1.

PALMER JOHNSON • Drexel University

Men’s Basketball Strength and Conditioning Coach

Topic: From blenders to barbells: lessons learned as a dual-credentialed practitioner.

Description: Carrying both the CSCS and Registered Dietitian (RD)credentials has allowed me to work with a unique skillset within the high-performance team setting. Combining both nutrition and strength and conditioning has provided me with the avenues to provide athletes with a high level of care that extends beyond the weight room. I began my career as an RD with the CSCS credential then I later transitioned into a dual role as an on-floor coach/dietitian and now work full-time as a head strength and conditioning coach. During this presentation I will share insights learned from my journey and practical applications for integrating nutrition into our athletes’ daily routines. I will also share resources and strategies for becoming competent within the field of sports nutrition and how to successfully work with your organizations RD if there is already one in place.

Bio: Palmer Johnson was named Drexel’s Head Strength and Conditioning Coach for basketball in September of 2023. Johnson came to Drexel after working with the men’s basketball team at the University of Illinois. He brings experience in many phases of sport performance, including strength and conditioning, nutrition and education.

Prior to arriving in Philadelphia, Johnson was an assistant performance coach for the University of Illinois men’s basketball team from 2020-2023. Johnson was responsible for implementing the yearly strength & conditioning program as well as creating and running the nutrition program for the Fighting Illini. During his time in Illinois Johnson was a part of two Big Ten championship teams, including the Big Ten Tournament in 2021 and a regular season championship in the 2021-22 season. Johnson spent two years (2018-20) as the Director of Performance Nutrition for the University of Missouri football program. In that capacity, he was responsible for providing performance nutrition education and resources to the Tiger football team.

Johnson earned his bachelor’s degree in nutrition and dietetics from West Chester in 2014. He completed a Master’s of Science degree in exercise physiology with an emphasis in sports nutrition at Florida State University in 2015. Upon graduating at FSU, Johnson joined the FSU sports performance staff full-time and worked with men’s and women’s basketball for the 2015-16 season.

Johnson is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist through the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA). He also is a Registered Dietitian with the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (AND) and a Board Certified Specialist in Sports Dietetics.

A native of Wilmington, Delaware, Johnson currently resides there with his wife, Pamela and daughter, Ivy.

EVANGELOS REGAS • St. Joseph’s

Assistant Strength and Conditioning Coach

Topic: Strength and Conditioning Coaches: Chameleons in the Weight Room (Developing Buy-In and Building Culture Across Different Sports)

Description: Within this Field, you are bound to work with athletes and coaches that have different backgrounds or athletic experiences than your own, and you’ll need to gain their trust and confidence in what you will do with them and, ultimately, have them buy into who you are as a coach. Now for some sports, that might be easy (I.e. soccer background/ coaching soccer), but for others, it might seem like a daunting task (Football Background/ Coaching Women’s Water Polo). During this presentation, we will go over some scenarios and ways to help S&C Professionals develop that Buy In.

Bio: Evangelos (Evan) Regas joined the Hawks as an assistant strength and conditioning coach in August 2022. Regas works with baseball, men's soccer, men’s and women’s lacrosse, and men's and women's tennis.

Prior to coming to Hawk Hill, Regas spent time at Wagner College as a graduate assistant strength and conditioning coach. While at Wagner, he worked with the 2022 MAAC champion women's water polo team and the men's lacrosse team while also assisting with the football team. In addition, he also worked with the men's water polo, men's tennis, men's and women's swimming and diving, men's and women's golf, and baseball teams during his time on Staten Island.

Before Wagner, Regas was the head strength and conditioning coach at Camden Catholic High School in Camden County, New Jersey. He worked primarily with the football team, helping develop proper techniques and movement patterns, as well as overseeing their conditioning. In addition, Regas has been a personal trainer in the Philadelphia area since 2015, having stops at Philly Phitness and Forza Wellness.

Regas is certified by the National Strength and Conditioning Association, as well as a Level One Sports Performance Coach through USA Weightlifting. He is also active in fundraising in the battle against breast cancer.

The Toms River, N.J., native earned his degree in kinesiology with a focus in exercise and sport science from Temple University. While at Temple, he was a three-year letterwinner on the Owls' football team.

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Sports Performance Clinic