From Basement Weights to Texas A&M: Coach Tommy Moffitt’s 38-Year Strength Journey

Episode Summary
In this episode of The Moffitt Method Podcast, host Joe Ryan flips the script and puts Coach Tommy Moffitt in the hot seat. For the first time on his own show, Coach Moff tells his full story—from lifting in his parents’ basement in the 1970s to high school strength coach at John Curtis, to Tennessee during the Peyton Manning era, to Miami, 22 years at LSU, launching The Moffitt Method, and now leading the strength & conditioning program at Texas A&M.
They dig into how the profession has evolved, why the meat and potatoes still matter more than trends, how to train in the transfer-portal era, and how technology like GPS and VBT can support (not replace) great coaching. They close with some fun rapid-fire questions—superpowers in the weight room, desert-island equipment, and favorite war-movie classics that shaped his mindset.
If you’re a strength coach, sport coach, or just love football and physical preparation, this is a masterclass in longevity, consistency, and culture. In This Episode, You’ll Learn:

- How a junior high football coach and a basement weight room sparked a 38+ year coaching career
- What Coach Moffitt learned at John Curtis, Tennessee, Miami, and LSU—and how those stops shaped his philosophy
- Why he started The Moffitt Method and how it helps programs without a full-time strength coach
- How the transfer portal and NIL have changed athlete development
- Why his training methods haven’t radically changed in decades—and why that’s a good thing
- How Texas A&M’s morning practice / afternoon lift schedule improves academics, recovery, and quality of life
- How GPS, force plates, and VBT fit into a “barbell-first” philosophy
- Why he categorizes athletes as skinny, force-deficient, or speed-deficient—and trains them differently
- How better fueling and sports science are helping the Aggies stay healthier and heavier in-season
- Coach Moffitt’s favorite movies, books, and the one piece of equipment he’d bring to a deserted island
Time-Stamped Outline
00:00 – Intro & Welcome Joe Ryan opens the show, introduces Coach Tommy Moffitt, and sets the stage for finally telling his story on the podcast named after him.
01:00 – Basement Beginnings & Early Influences

- Lifting in his parents’ basement with his brothers
- Early junior high and high school training
- Playing at Tennessee Tech and meeting strength coach Jack Williamson, who showed him strength & conditioning could be a career

03:20 – First Job at John Curtis Christian School

- Moving to New Orleans sight unseen
- Six years as full-time strength coach (no teaching classes)
- Training every sport plus coaching O-line, wrestling, and track
- Learning under legendary head coach J.T. Curtis and being part of a powerhouse program

06:30 – Breaking Into College: Tennessee, Miami & LSU

- Connections with Philip Fulmer, Randy Sanders, and John Stuckey
- Joining Tennessee during the Peyton Manning years
- Meeting Larry Coker and moving to Miami as head strength coach
- Getting the cold call from Nick Saban and landing at LSU, where he spent 22 years and won a national championship

12:30 – Getting Let Go, Resetting, and Creating The Moffitt Method

- Being fired at LSU and taking time away from college football
- Constantly helping coaches over phone/email and seeing a need for remote programming
- How a conversation with Matt Bruce turned into The Moffitt Method partnership
- The mission: helping high schools and coaches without strength coaches run safe, high-level training

16:20 – Back to College: Joining Texas A&M

- Former assistant Jeremy Jacobs tipping him off to the A&M opportunity
- Driving from Baton Rouge to College Station to interview with Coach Mike Elko
- Getting the job and transitioning back into the college grind

18:00 – What’s Changed the Most: Transfer Portal & Schedule

- Why the transfer portal is the biggest change since his LSU days
- Less time to develop athletes who might only stay a year
- The shift to early-morning practices and midday lifting, and how that helps:
- Academic schedules
- Player recovery
- Coach quality of life

23:00 – Programming Philosophy: Old-School Principles, New-School Tools

- “The only way to get stronger is to lift heavy weights; the only way to get faster is to run fast.”
- Why he avoids wholesale philosophical changes and instead makes micro-adjustments
- Using decades of data from LSU and now Texas A&M to evaluate training without chasing fads

27:00 – Culture vs. Fads & the Value of Old Books

- Why culture—not “secret exercises”—wins
- Guarding against copycat Twitter workouts
- Re-reading classic texts from the 70s and 80s instead of chasing whatever’s trending online

30:20 – Balancing Tactical vs. Physical Preparation

- How more practice & year-round “ball” can actually hurt development
- The 2020 LSU example: practicing before even starting off-season training after the national title
- Making sure technical/tactical work doesn’t crush physical progress

33:20 – Fueling, Food, and Holding Weight In-Season

- Mandatory breakfast and lunch, conditional mandatory dinner based on target weight
- Full-time nutrition support and steak/chicken/fish quality meals
- How portal athletes from resource-poor programs react to A&M’s fueling setup
- Why better fueling has been a game-changer for in-season bodyweight and performance

36:20 – Squats, VBT & Perch: Heavy but Smart

- Viral squat clips: 675–705 lb squats with impressive bar speeds
- Using velocity stops instead of true max-outs
- How tech like Perch, force plates, and VBT help keep athletes safe and motivated
- Letting guys “push” when they’re rolling but with smart guardrails

40:15 – Hearing the Bar: Coaching Feel in a Tech World

- The lost art of hearing and seeing the bar moving
- Why good coaches can hear a great clean or a risky lift without a screen

43:10 – Life in the Transfer Portal Era

- Why he stopped relying heavily on previous-school opinions of portal players
- How many portal kids treat it like a second chance to “do it right”
- Managing the salary cap, expectations, and development windows with limited time

48:00 – No Fluff: Only What Moves the Needle

- Categorizing athletes into three buckets:
- Too skinny (need everything)
- Force-deficient
- Speed-deficient
- Adjusting sets/reps and volume based on the bucket
- The rule: if it doesn’t make them bigger, stronger, faster, or leaner, they don’t do it

53:00 – Sports Science, Data, and Collaboration

- Using GPS, force plates, Nord boards, 1080 Sprint, and more
- The “force plate combine” and building detailed athlete profiles
- Tight integration between strength staff, athletic training, PT, and sports science
- NFL-style approach to rehab and why they’ve had so few injuries

1:07:00 – Staff, Roles & How the Job Has Evolved

- From doing everything at LSU to now focusing on planning and implementation
- Multiple assistants, a dedicated PT for football, and better support staff
- Why that structure could let him coach another 10 years (even if he jokes no one would put up with him that long)

1:11:20 – Rapid-Fire: Superpowers, Movies, Books & Desert-Island Gear

- Superpower in the weight room: mind-reading, a.k.a. “The Mythbuster”
- Favorite movies: Band of Brothers, Fury, Shawshank Redemption
- Recommended reading: classic Soviet weightlifting texts and the Bible
- Desert island equipment: a kettlebell—for training and survival

1:15:30 – Closing Thoughts & Where to Find The Moffitt Method

- Joe thanks Coach Moffitt for his time and impact
- Reminder that the Moffitt Method exists to support coaches and athletes at every level
- Follow The Moffitt Method on X, Facebook, and Instagram to stay plugged into future episodes and resources
About Coach Tommy Moffitt
Tommy Moffitt is one of the most respected strength & conditioning coaches in football, with nearly four decades of experience across John Curtis, Tennessee, Miami, LSU, and now Texas A&M. A three-time national champion at LSU, he’s known for combining old-school barbell training with modern sports science and technology, while never losing sight of what matters most: developing tougher, healthier, faster athletes and better human beings. About The Moffitt Method
The Moffitt Method provides remote strength & conditioning solutions for schools and team

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