July 13, 2008

In a weight room filled with floor-to-ceiling mirrors, it’s hard not to notice the changes.

Everywhere you look, bodies have obviously changed.

Linemen have slimmed down, replacing fat with muscle mass, while the skill position players have toned up and filled out.

But first-year Baylor strength and conditioning coach Kaz Kazadi calls that the byproduct, not the goal, of a demanding summer conditioning program that has just completed its sixth week. The grueling 2- to 2 1/2-hour sessions at 6:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. are preparing players for a football season instead of the next body-building contest.

“My whole philosophy is I train for performance,” said Kazadi, who headed up South Florida’s program last year when the Bulls were ranked as high as No. 2 in the nation after a 6-0 start that included wins over Auburn and West Virginia.