☕️ S&C Daily — AI in the Weight Room

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This Sunday's AI Playbook kicks off a new series, S&C Coach Spotlight, with URI Associate AD for Strength & Conditioning Scott Leech. It breaks down how Coach Leech actually uses AI in his program - from the athlete management system he built himself down to the everyday stuff like summarizing long videos and running his social templates. He's honest about where it earns its keep and what he won't hand over. The second half hands you the one prompting habit you can copy this week. Sign up here and see you Sunday.

Air Force Academy assistant strength coach Taylor Lorbiecki traded the training fields for the backseat of a Thunderbird F-16. Named the Academy's Civilian Instructor of the Year, she flew with the demonstration squadron to feel the demands her cadets will face - sustained G-forces, rapid decision-making, physical and mental performance under pressure.

"Pulling Gs is unlike any physical stress we can replicate in a traditional training environment," Lorbiecki said. She led the development of the Academy's Rated Physical Readiness capstone course, and her conditioning work has tracked real results: a 76.5% reduction in bone stress injuries between 2022 and 2024, 10-15% improvements on the Physical Fitness Test, and the highest average PFT score in over a decade.

Western Michigan football announced its 2026 staff moves, and several land on the performance side. Carson Kipp joins as an assistant strength coach after assistant roles at Eastern Kentucky, Washington, and Boise State, plus three years in the U.S. Army. Former Bronco defensive lineman Race Stewart moves into a Strength and Conditioning Analyst role after one season on the MAC Championship roster. And Joe Jenrette was promoted to Director of Sports Science/Assistant Strength Coach. Head coach Lance Taylor announced the full slate.

Staying on the AI theme. In a new piece, performance coach Pat Ivey pushes back on the idea that AI replaces coaches - he argues it makes the best ones more valuable. S&C has always been a people business, and AI handles the clutter so coaches spend more time leading, teaching, and observing.

He points to pattern recognition: AI surfacing trends across GPS, force plate, wellness, sleep, and injury data that would take weeks to spot. And to communication: organizing pathways so strength, nutrition, medicine, and mental health connect faster. The coach still interprets and decides. "AI can't walk into a locker room and command respect," Ivey writes.

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