Today’s guests are Cameron Josse and Joel Reinhardt. Cameron Josse is an Assistant Strength & Conditioning Coach with the Detroit Lions. He’s previously led training at DeFranco’s and worked in college football at Auburn and Indiana, training athletes across the NFL, NHL, UFC, and WWE. Joel Reinhardt is the Director of Football Performance at Lafayette College. He’s coached at San José State, Stanford, UMass, and Nicholls State.
Both Cameron and Joel are field leaders in applied performance, data-driven programming, and athletic movement for physical preparation in American Football. Details in athletic preparation change from the level of high school to college to professional.
On today’s episode, Cameron and Joel speak on the nature of contact and collision preparation in their athlete populations, with a specific emphasis on the use of the ground and rolling patterns. They discuss the specific game demands of football, especially on the college and pro level, and how to prepare athletes for 25,000+ weekly yards of total on-field movement. They break down their approaches to speed, direction change, and capacity building work, with these ideas in mind. This was a show with lots of wisdom on helping players fully meet the needs of their sport.
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Timestamps
1:57 – In-Season Program Differences: NFL vs. College Strength Cycles
4:48 – Navigating Player Relationships with Private Trainers
15:57 – Adapting Contact Prep and Agility for Different Levels
32:38 – Tempo Running as a Foundation for Training Camp Readiness
37:44 – Total Yardage and Conditioning Strategy in Football Preparation
50:16 – Designing Multi-Directional Conditioning Sessions That Mimic Football
58:28 – Integrating Multi-Directional Movements in Conditioning for Athleticism
1:03:46 – Reframing Speed Development Within Annual Training Cycles
1:10:04 – Shifting Focus: From Pure Speed to Building Complete Players
Actionable Takeaways
In-Season Program Differences: NFL vs. College Strength Cycles [1:57]
College and NFL environments demand different strategies due to season length, player access, and structure. Joel discusses managing heavy summer phases before camp, while Cam explains the shift in autonomy and scheduling when transitioning to the NFL.
What to try:
In college, leverage summer access to build in more football-specific work before camp.
In pro settings: Expect less year-round control—build players' autonomy and keep lines open during away periods.
Plan for longer in-season stress in the NFL (17+ games); taper early and build recovery into weekly rhythms
Navigating Player Relationships with Private Trainers [4:48]
Cameron emphasizes collaboration with private-sector coaches when players train off-site. Rather than resisting outside input, he advocates for using it to better individualize in-team programming.
What to try:
Reach out to private coaches working with your athletes—especially vets with long-standing relationships.
Use those conversations to shape training direction, not override it.
Drop the ego—focus on what helps the athlete feel and perform best
Adapting Contact Prep and Agility for Different Levels [15:57]
Literal contact prep (e.g., wrestling, rugby-style drills) is mostly off-limits in team settings. Cam shifts toward decel work, ground-based drills, and rolling patterns to mimic collisions without violating rules.
What to try:
Use crawling, rolls, and tumbling as proxies for contact—especially during early prep phases.
Emphasize deceleration and COD mechanics for lower body contact loading.
