Top football programs credit strength coaches for gridiron muscle

LILBURN - It was Dec. 23 of last year, the first day of Christmas vacation. Not a time when kids think much about being at school. <br> <br> But the Brookwood weight room was full of football players, just two days after the Broncos had lost in the Class AAAAA state championship game to rival Parkview. <br> <br> ``That Monday morning, about 8:30 or 9 on the first day of Christmas vacation, there were probably 60 to 65 kids in our weight room,&#39;&#39; Brookwood head coach Mark Crews said. ``That&#39;s where our program is at. The kids know the importance of (strength and conditioning).&#39;&#39; <br> <br> So do the Parkview players. <br> <br> Both schools rode strong players and powerful lines to last year&#39;s state finals, evidence of how hard work in the weight room pays off. It also was proof that two men Brookwood&#39;s Tom Jones and Parkview&#39;s Mark Whitley were doing their jobs as strength and conditioning coaches at their schools. <br> <br> The two coaches spend the majority of their school time in the weight room, teaching five advanced weight training classes each out of a six-period day. They work with athletes from a wide range of sports, but both have a vested interest in football as assistant coaches. <br> <br> ``It&#39;s all about the weight room now,&#39;&#39; Whitley said. ``If you don&#39;t lift, somebody that lifts is going to beat you.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> ``You can&#39;t survive without (strength training) today,&#39;&#39; Jones said. ``It&#39;s the lifeblood of your program, the year-round lifeblood of your program. You don&#39;t see your coaches when the season&#39;s over. But your strength coach is the one you see every day, even in the offseason.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> The training means enough to football players at Brookwood and Parkview that they rarely take breaks, both working out four days a week during the football season. The Panthers get one week off from lifting during the summer and Christmas vacation off and the Broncos get the first week of summer and spring break off. <br> <br> Jones keeps the players going into the Christmas holidays with good reason. <br> <br> ``That&#39;s one of the best times to lift,&#39;&#39; the veteran coach said. ``They&#39;re sleeping 10 hours a day, getting plenty of rest and eating a lot. It&#39;s a good time to improve.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Putting in extra hours over the holidays is no big deal for Jones. He does it every day during the school year, arriving at 6:30 a.m. to work with a handful of students who can&#39;t fit a weight training class into their schedule. <br> <br> Whitley does the same at Parkview, where he trains the varsity football players in the early-morning hours. <br> <br> ``It keeps me young because I can lift with them and I can run with them,&#39;&#39; said the 41-year-old, who spoke along with Jones at the Extreme Clinic for high school coaches last year. <br> <br> Neither coach handles the school&#39;s weight program alone. Jones has help from Andy Dyer, Doug Jones (no relation), Murry Bell, David Nelson and his son, Philip Jones. Whitley is aided by a group including head coach Cecil Flowe, Larry Massey, Steve Brooks and Hugh Buchanan. <br> <br> But the two weight room leaders at Brookwood and Parkview are at the heart of the program&#39;s success. <br> <br> In his fifth year at Parkview, Whitley is in his 20th year of teaching, coaching and working with high school kids in the weight room. His coaching experience includes six years as a head coach at Monroe Area, but he said he enjoys his role now as an ``Indian&#39;&#39; instead of a ``chief.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> His work in the weight room has been instrumental during Parkview&#39;s current run of success with three straight state titles and a state-record 46 consecutive wins. <br> <br> ``There&#39;s no doubt about it, (Whitley) has done a great job over there,&#39;&#39; Jones said. ``They&#39;re not only strong but they&#39;re well-conditioned.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Jones, 14 years older than his counterpart at Parkview, has taught and coached since 1970. He started out as a history teacher but always had a fondness for the weight room. <br> <br> Entering his 13th year at Brookwood, the 55-year-old has been critical to the Broncos&#39; team strength over the years. <br> <br> That strength will be put to the test Friday, when the second-ranked Broncos try to topple No. 1 Parkview. The battle within the battle is when Whitley&#39;s defensive line takes on Jones&#39; offensive front. <br> <br> ``(Jones) is a mentor to me,&#39;&#39; Whitley said. ``I remember being at Clarke Central and coaching the defensive line against (Jones&#39; Brookwood teams). I knew they were going to be strong. I&#39;ve seen both his kids play. Knowing where he comes from and what he believes in, it&#39;s a challenge for me every time we play. <br> <br> ``It&#39;s not me against him, but the challenge is what can I do to get better over the years like he has. To me, he&#39;s a legend.&#39;&#39;