Sobol Trains Student-Athletes Non-Stop
4/22/2019 9:32:00 AM | Football
By: Samantha Ross
Head Football Sports Performance Coach Jeff Sobol puts in numerous hours with Kent State University's student-athletes all year round.
"The strength coach is an interesting position in college athletics," said Sobol. "We're the only ones that are allowed by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) to be around the student-athletes 365 days of the year."
Coach Sobol has a hand in anything that will help the football team on the field. Sobol gets the team mentally and physically ready to play.
"It's a pretty all-encompassing job," said Sobol. "From nutrition to recovery and everything in the weight room. It's definitely all year round and there are different phases that we go through."
Each phase is split up by season with different activities happening in the winter, spring, summer and fall.
"Winter is where we typically just build, build, build," said Sobol. "Spring is where we get into season mode. After spring ball, we go into our summer offseason which is pretty intense. It's usually about 7-8 weeks where we get them ready for camp in the fall. Then we start to get into the in-season progression which isn't necessarily easy. We have to be smart about what we're doing. They're pretty much training all year round."
The amount of time the football players are in the weight room is based on what phase they are currently in and also NCAA rules.
"For the most part I usually have them for an hour and in some cases an hour and a half," said Sobol. "I have them in two groups right now because our roster size is pretty small. Once we have a bigger roster, I'll probably have three groups."
Coach Sobol and his assistants focus on injury prevention and making sure student-athletes are able to perform at their best.
"Every strength and conditioning coach is going to tell you that their number one goal is injury prevention," said Sobol. "It's the main reason why we do what we do. We make sure that they are big, strong, fast and healthy. If they're not healthy and they can't play the sport, then we kind of take that personal, especially if we feel it was something that could have been prevented."
Sobol has worked with Nathan Monnin and Mandela Lawrence-Burke since he came to Kent State in January of 2018. Monnin made a transition from tight end to guard, while Lawrence-Burke adjusted from wide receiver to linebacker. Both needed to commit themselves in the weight room to make the transition and both credit Sobol as a great person to have by their side because of the drive that he brings and his constant encouragement to do better.
"Sobol brings a lot of energy to the weight room," said Monnin. "He gets everybody pumped up with his heavy metal music on squat days."
Lawrence-Burke likes how Sobol motivates the team with an up-front approach.
"He's always honest with me," said Lawrence-Burke. "That was key for me because I like honesty. He's a motivator for me."
Coach Sobol enjoys seeing the changes in the student-athletes from their freshman year to them leaving the team.
"Seeing their physical change is going to be a noticeable thing that I can take pride in and get excited about," said Sobol. "But it's really about their mental change and how they grow as a person. Having a direct impact on them is really what I love about my job."
When Head Coach Sean Lewis finished assembling his staff in January of 2018, Sobol became a catalyst for changing the mentality of the Golden Flashes.  Â
"Because of Coach Sobol's leadership, our family is mentally tough and physically stronger than they have ever been," Lewis said.  "He and his staff are a huge part of what we are building. The family is in his hands with Phase 3 from now through the end of summer conditioning. There is no one else I would trust more to care for our young men."
Sobol will continue to work closely with the Flashes as they prepare for their first game of the season on Thursday, August 29 at Arizona State.
