University of Tennessee Athletics
Wills making Vols stronger, faster
December 13, 2010 | Men's Basketball
Dec. 13, 2010
Josh Pate
UTsports.com
The voice from a few rows into the lower section of Thompson-Boling Arena gasped in question.
"I didn't know Melvin could dunk!"
He can.
Melvin Goins got the pass over his shoulder like a wide receiver, looked around, took one dribble and went up. Slam. The 5-foot-11 senior doesn't display his vertical capabilities too often, but expect him to brag just a little this year. He's increased his vertical jump by 5 inches, from 36 to nearly 41. That was a result of staying on campus and working on his explosiveness during the offseason and taking his conditioning seriously.
Everyone did this year. While the conference season is nearly upon us, the hard work began back in June.
"We focused a lot on vertical jumping and speed testing, just working on our physical aspects," said junior Scotty Hopson, who played basketball in camps and leagues across the country but still found time to work on his explosiveness. "Not just getting stronger in the weight room, but for more quick strength because that's where we're going to need it."
Typically, the offseason plan is focused on conditioning and specific drills to prevent the likelihood of athletic injury. Essentially, the program is designed based off the problems athletes within the sport have.
But Tennessee assistant strength and conditioning coach Troy Wills took a different approach this year.
"What does this team need to be successful from a performance standpoint?" Wills asked. "I really felt that, more so than any other year, we needed to develop our strength, become more powerful, become more explosive. Some of the other things I've done in other summers have been more endurance-based and mentally challenging from an endurance standpoint. I changed those into more explosive, power-based movements. I think that's one of the things we saw that increased some of the guys' verticals."
Goins' increase in leaping ability is just a byproduct of the overall system Wills runs. But it still helps. Dedication does, too.
"I think the biggest key to our offseason was Melvin, being a senior and point guard, leads by example," Wills said. "He's not an extremely vocal guy or anything like that. But Melvin didn't miss a workout. That's tough to do when you've got (summer league), summer classes, all these things going on. There's a large majority of the time when you don't feel like working out. He didn't back down a bit for me. He did a great job for me all summer."
Add Skylar McBee and Steven Pearl to Willis' list of successes. Both players stayed in Knoxville this summer--with the exception of brief trips to China and Ukraine, respectively--to continue working on their game. And it's already paid off.
McBee saw his minutes increase sporadically when a minor injury to Goins allowed McBee to fill the point guard role. And when backup point Trae Golden got sick in New York, McBee's minutes went up again.
Even head coach Bruce Pearl has laid greater expectations on McBee to be a performer. So the extra emphasis on explosiveness in the offseason has also added to McBee's figure. He's bumped up a few pounds with strength, and his physicality will help him reach Pearl's expectations.
"I think being a smaller guard, you've got to be strong and physical, and the weight room can only help that," McBee said. "Maybe add some weight and keep the quickness and just be able to play physical."
For Steven Pearl, the physical side has been there. The senior plays at 6-5, 235. His center of gravity allows him to play on the perimeter, but his strength gives him an advantage inside despite playing shorter than most big men.
"That's the only reason I'm on the floor, because I'm strong and can move my feet and play defense," Pearl said. "It's not because I'm a high jumper or a big-time scorer. I'm OK at those things, but nothing special. My strength is helping to guard bigger guys, and my quickness is what has helped me around them and cutting in front of them."
Pearl credits the offseason workouts and Wills' training program in allowing him to get more time on the court as his career has progressed.
"That's been huge for me," Pearl said about the program that has built strength and quickness for the senior. "I can guard multiple positions. I can guard a 6-9 four-man or I can guard a 6-3 wingman. It's been beneficial for me."
It all proves Wills has the credentials. He's an innovator in training techniques with his customized program for each individual on the hoops squad.
"I can grasp an understanding of the individual things they do well and the things they are lacking in, whether it be flexibility, strength, endurance, whatever," Wills said. "And also, these are guys whose bodies take a tremendous pounding through the season. To understand each one of their individual aches and pains and injuries and things like that, and develop a program that can work with them individually, that's huge."
The focus also is on flexibility to prevent injuries, endurance to fit Bruce Pearl's high-octane tempo, and strength to battle with the SEC beasts. Wills has conducted research in his field to discover optimal performance in the body and with diet. He's even released his own DVD, "Power, Speed and Quickness for Basketball."
But in his seventh year at UT, Wills has also won over the team.
That's not to say the basketball players are giddy about sprinting up the giant hill at Neyland Stadium's Gate 10 at 6:30 a.m. during workout drills. Winded from the crisp riverside air and Wills' influence, the teammates are still able to latch on to visions of the future.
Brian Williams: "We always work hard. Troy is one of the best strength coaches in the country. He gets our body right. We are almost shaped into a machine thanks to Troy, and it shows on the court when we play this style of offense."
Hopson: "Troy has broken down individual aspects of what we all need. He applies them in the weight room and on the basketball court. It's really been great for us. Guys have been seeing less injuries and you can see guys getting stronger. It helps our conditioning, too. You can tell he's experienced in what he's doing."
Kenny Hall: "It's going to show. We definitely are physical. We're playing against some big dudes down there, especially in the SEC."
Bruce Pearl consults his players about his own staff. He asks them who does their job well, who helps them the most, who is the best. He asks them what they like about being at Tennessee. Wills, as well as athletic trainer Chad Newman, grade out at the top.
The toughness and explosive movement is what Bruce Pearl sees most this season. An early NIT Season Tip-Off championship in Madison Square Garden put it on display, as has a workmanlike start to the season. Yet individually, Pearl notices the improvements in bodies.
"Brian has taken advantage of that," Bruce Pearl said in reference to Wills' focus on quickness this offseason. "You could also point to Steven Pearl and say when he came in from West High School that he wasn't nearly what he is now. Now he's one of the strongest guys on the team.
"When I first got here, I was one of the strongest guys on the team. Five years later, that's not the case."
Wills credits the strength of this season's team simply to dedication, particularly among the guys who stayed on campus during the summer months when basketball season was a mere prediction.
"The overall physical ability that they possess is so well-rounded," Wills said of this year's squad. "A lot of times in the past, you had guys who were tall and could jump well but were not very strong. Or you had strong guys who couldn't jump really well or couldn't move real well. We've got a real good combination of strength and speed, what you expect to see at a Division I, upper-level college program."
With Wills, that expectation comes naturally.
