Build rapport with strength coach

A Lance Guidry-coached squad will likely never lack enthusiasm, but that didn’t keep the second-year head football coach from finding a strength and conditioning coach who would help him rally the troops as the 2017 season neared.

When Guidry hired Ben Sowders in June to run workouts with the Cowboys, he knew he had a catch, but Sowders — who wasn’t available for comment — has already made an impact that Guidry and the Cowboys likely won’t let fade as the season progresses.

“He’s a heck of a strength coach, a great freakin’ strength coach,” Guidry said. “I’m telling you, top of the line.”

“He was a summer hire because (former strength and conditioning coach John) Little took a job during the spring in his hometown in Mississippi. Sowders came in during the beginning of June. So he’s been here for the whole summer program and the kids have picked up on him really quickly.”

A slew of colleagues recommended Sowders to Guidry because of a résumé that included a stint at Guidry’s former stomping grounds of Western Kentucky, as well as positions held at Alabama and most recently Georgia Tech. 

“I had some coaches that I had worked with at Western Kentucky call me about him,” Guidry said. “Everyone was calling me about him.”

Guidry said Sowders’ ability to communicate with athletes and push them to do workouts they don’t want to do separates him from most strength and conditioning coaches he’s worked with. 

“He’s a great disciplinarian, but he knows how to talk to kids without demoralizing them,” he said. “In the weight room, the hardest guys to get to lift are the wide receivers and defensive backs. He gets them to want to lift. 

“Then when you get outside, the guys who typically don’t want to run — like the linemen — he has ways of getting them to want to run. He’s just really good at what he does.”

In a world run by social media in which athletes often post videos lifting obscene and often borderline dangerous amounts of weight in an attempt to garner attention, Guidry said Sowders keeps the Cowboys focused on what’s important.

“We max out, but we’re not interested in numbers,” Guidry said. “When you’re strong, you’re strong. What’s the difference if you squat 600 or 650? You’re strong. I’ve never been big on numbers.”

Sowders has only been with the Cowboys since June, but already he has the favor of Guidry and the Cowboys. 

He said there’s a bright future ahead of the young coach, and it’s not just limited to the strength and conditioning side of the sport.

“He’s a guy I would want on my staff to coach football, not just strength,” Guidry said. “He could be a position coach or a coordinator. He has that aura about him. The kids just feed off of him.”