Dave Tate's Table Talk #385 Why The Best Strength Coaches Are GHOSTS | Colton Razo & Michael Silbernagel
Nov 25, 2025
Colton Razo, Assistant Strength & Conditioning Coach at Ohio State, and Michael Silbernagel, Strength & Conditioning Manager at Sanford Sports, dive deep into the world of coaching culture and athlete development. They discuss how many college coaches operate like 'ghosts' online due to their demanding roles. The duo emphasizes the importance of establishing a strong cultural foundation before focusing on exercise specifics. They also touch on mentoring strategies, the significance of safety in training, and the patient programming necessary for athletes with lower training age.
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First Lift Memory Shapes Career
- Colton first met Michael as a freshman athlete and recalls 5 a.m. lifts and early fears about punctuality.
- That experience shaped his appreciation for the weight room as a place to control personal progress.
Building A Program From Scratch
- Michael started a strength program from scratch and compared it to creating a recipe without instructions.
- He admits he'd train athletes differently now after refining the program over years.
Why College Strength Coaches Stay Invisible
- Collegiate strength coaches often remain 'ghosts' online because their job demands full-day athlete contact.
- That invisibility changes public perception of who is a 'real' strength coach versus online personalities.
