It’s 7 a.m. October the 7th on a Friday morning ; the birds are chirping, the sun is not entirely up, there is a draft in the air, and most people are still asleep, except the Cougars Football Team. There’s no doubt that this team is hungry to win an NAIA FCS Championship, a title they have not captured since 2011. They’ve been close numerous times, including three losses the past three seasons to out-of-state rival Morningside College in the Quarterfinals. So what has changed? Enter new Strength and Conditioning Coach, Jaime Cano with a proven track record, including working at Michigan State University. His presence is felt with a simple trip to the Urso Center. The music is jamming, the team is encouraging each other to “do one more,” and Coach Cano is at the center of it all. This is Saint Xavier’s first experience of hiring a full-time Strength and Conditioning coach.
“Most of these players have not had this type of structure, and this type of training. In the first first couple of weeks, we have been training their bodies to train. I am getting their heart rates going, teaching them how to push themselves. I’m looking forward to seeing how the training turns out on the field. I’ve been watching them train every day at five in the morning, and the relationships I’ve built with them just gets you excited to see the product on the field. I’ve been to a lot of schools in the past five years, Big Ten Schools, Power five schools, this is really the best group of kids I’ve been around.”
– Coach Jaime Cano
The Cougars took some major hits from injury on defense last year, losing key players in critical positions to season-ending injuries. The defense inevitably took a step back because of this, with defensive injuries being felt most in big-time games. However, this year, everyone is healthy, and with a new strength and conditioning program, Defensive Coordinator Coach Bill Mckeon is hoping it stays that way.
“The key to defense every year is just to stay healthy, we have to keep our guys on the field and keep our top players playing. To improve on our defense from last year, we must improve our technique. Instead of jumping right into the scheme, we can improve on simple things like hand placement, and our get offs. It starts up front with Jaleel Holloway. He’s one of the most dynamic players at our level, he plays inside, but he can play outside. It’s his ability to disrupt the run and pressure the quarterback that’s going to be huge. Moving back a level to our linebackers, Joey Markasovic and Danny Saracco are veterans; they’ve been around the program for a few years now, and that leadership is starting to show. They are going to step up and be very solid players for us. In the backfield, Kevin Block has the single-season record for interceptions. We’re going to need him to step up and stay healthy.”
– Coach Bill McKeon
This team has personality; it has the grit to go along with Championship aspirations. But is this a surprise considering who’s running things at the top? That would be Head Coach Mike Feminis. With 22 seasons under his belt, Coach Feminis is motivated by getting this team to the mountain top once again. Sure, we may talk about the multiple coaches of the year accolades, or the flat out dominance in the conference has not lost a conference game in three years. The Ten Mid states Football championships would be a good talking point. However, that’s not good enough for Coach Feminis.
“Our goal every year is to win a National Championship, that’s all. We have one goal, and that’s to win a National Championship, that’s it, that’s our goal. One thing has changed, though; we want to be the first team in sports history to win two national championships in the same calendar year. The first thing I do to maintain a championship mindset is something I learned from my college coach. He said to ‘hire really good people and let them do their job,’ and that’s what I do. I have two great coordinators, and I let them work, I let them do their jobs. I also have a great group of part-time guys that are SXU alums, and there’s a reason for that. The guys know what my expectations are, and they have taken ownership of the program.”
–Coach Feminis
The Cougars quest to recapture a National championship begins February 5th against the University of St. Francis. This is definitely a one game at a time approach, but their eyes will be set on securing a National Championship.
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