Video: Alexus Jackson squats 225 for 20 reps!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iAiZ3N4kdC0&feature=youtu.be

NEW: Ragin Cajun RAW Powerlifting Program!

This is the 13-week RAW program that my team has been experiencing amazing results with! It is a 3 week wave, so every 3 weeks you return to the exact same workout. During the 3-month program, you will perform each workout 4 times as you pass through 4 waves.

DO NOT MISS REPS! Start each exercise with a weight that you are certain you can handle for the prescribed number of reps. There should be no significant straining on the first set of an exercise. If it was too light, you may add weight on subsequent sets…..but NEVER miss reps and NEVER place yourself in a situation where you have to reduce the weight to finish the sets. Practice some humility in your weight selection and you will experience amazing results.

If you finish an exercise and realize that you could’ve handled a little more weight, that is just fine. The cycle is a 3-week wave and so you will return to the exact same workout in 3 weeks. Add more weight next time.

Block deadlifts can also be performed from a power rack. Elevate the bar so that it is 1 inch below the knee caps.

Dips and pull-ups may require a weight belt for advanced lifters…..or lifters may need assistance. If assistance is needed, use a band or a dip/pull-up machine that you can kneel on to reduce your bodyweight.

Week 1—Monday

1. Hang Clean—2 warm-up sets, then 5×10
2. Squat—several warm up sets, then 5×5 (all 5 sets heavy)
3. Pause Bench—warm up, then 3×8
4. Dips—warm up, then 5×6
5. Wide Grip Pull-up—5×10

 

Week 1—Thursday

1. Touch n’ Go Bench—warm up, then 5×10
2. Push Press—warm up, then 5×5
3. Squat—warm up, then 3×20
4. Good Morning—warm up, then 3×10
5. Ab Wheel

 

Week 2—Monday

1. Pause Bench—warm up, then 5 near-max singles
2. Dips—warm up, then 5×10
3. Hang Clean—warm up, then 5×5
4. Pause Squat—warm up, then 5×5 (all 5 sets heavy)
5. Wide Grip Pull-up—warm up, then 5×8

 

Week 2—Thursday

1. Touch n’ Go bench—warm up, then 5×5
2. Standing shoulder Press (strict)—warm up, then 5×10
3. Speed SQ— work up to 1 rep at 120% of your heaviest weight from 3 days ago, then multiply the weight you just did for 1 rep by 80%. Use the new, lighter weight to do 10×2 with 60 seconds rest between sets. Violent explosion! Speed! Speed! Speed!
4. Deadlift—warm up, then 5×3
5. Ab Wheel

 

Week 3—Monday

1. Hang Clean—warm up, then 5×5 @ 85% of heaviest weight from last week
2. Squat—warm up, then 5×3 with a belt
3. Pause Bench—warm up, then 3×5
4. Dips—warm up, then 5×8
5. Wide Grip Pull-up—warm up, then 5×6

 

Week 3—Thursday

1. Touch n’ Go Bench—warm up, then 5×3
2. Push Press—warm up, then 5×3
3. Pause SQ—warm up, then 5×5 progressive (start light, add weight each set)
4. Block DL—warm up, then 5×5 progressive (start light, add weight each set)
5. Ab Wheel—5 sets

 

Week 4—Monday

1. Hang Clean—2 warm-up sets, then 5×10
2. Squat—several warm up sets, then 5×5 (all 5 sets heavy)
3. Pause Bench—warm up, then 3×8
4. Dips—warm up, then 5×6
5. Wide Grip Pull-up—5×10

 

Week 4—Thursday

1. Touch n’ Go Bench—warm up, then 5×10
2. Push Press—warm up, then 5×5
3. Squat—warm up, then 3×20
4. Good Morning—warm up, then 3×10
5. Ab Wheel

 

Week 5—Monday

1. Pause Bench—warm up, then 5 near-max singles
2. Dips—warm up, then 5×10
3. Hang Clean—warm up, then 5×5
4. Pause Squat—warm up, then 5×5 (all 5 sets heavy)
5. Wide Grip Pull-up—warm up, then 5×8

 

Week 5—Thursday

1. Touch n’ Go bench—warm up, then 5×5
2. Standing shoulder Press (strict)—warm up, then 5×10
3. Speed SQ— work up to 1 rep at 120% of your heaviest weight from 3 days ago, then multiply the weight you just did for 1 rep by 80%. Use the new, lighter weight to do 10×2 with 60 seconds rest between sets. Violent explosion! Speed! Speed! Speed!
4. Deadlift—warm up, then 5×3
5. Ab Wheel

 

Week 6—Monday

1. Hang Clean—warm up, then 5×5 @ 85% of heaviest weight from last week
2. Squat—warm up, then 5×3 with knee wraps and a belt
3. Pause Bench—warm up, then 3×5
4. Dips—warm up, then 5×8
5. Wide Grip Pull-up—warm up, then 5×6

 

Week 6—Thursday

1. Touch n’ Go Bench—warm up, then 5×3
2. Push Press—warm up, then 5×3
3. Pause SQ—warm up, then 5×5 progressive (start light, add weight each set)
4. Block DL—warm up, then 5×5 progressive (start light, add weight each set)
5. Ab Wheel—5 sets

 

Week 7—Monday

1. Hang Clean—2 warm-up sets, then 5×10
2. Squat—several warm up sets, then 5×5 (all 5 sets heavy)
3. Pause Bench—warm up, then 3×8
4. Dips—warm up, then 5×6
5. Wide Grip Pull-up—5×10

_

Week 7—Thursday

1. Touch n’ Go Bench—warm up, then 5×10
2. Push Press—warm up, then 5×5
3. Squat—warm up, then 3×20
4. Good Morning—warm up, then 3×10
5. Ab Wheel

 

Week 8—Monday

1. Pause Bench—warm up, then 5 near-max singles—use shirt if wearing shirt in meet
2. Dips—warm up, then 5×10
3. Hang Clean—warm up, then 5×5
4. Pause Squat—warm up, then 5×5 (all 5 sets heavy)
5. Wide Grip Pull-up—warm up, then 5×8

 

Week 8—Thursday

1. Touch n’ Go bench—warm up, then 5×5
2. Standing shoulder Press (strict)—warm up, then 5×10
3. Speed SQ— work up to 1 rep at 120% of your heaviest weight from 3 days ago, then multiply the weight you just did for 1 rep by 80%. Use the new, lighter weight to do 10×2 with 60 seconds rest between sets. Violent explosion! Speed! Speed! Speed!
4. Deadlift—warm up, then 5×2—wear suit bottoms if wearing suit in meet
5. Ab Wheel

 

Week 9—Monday

1. Hang Clean—warm up, then 5×5 @ 85% of heaviest weight from last week
2. Squat—warm up, then 5×2 with knee wraps & belt—include suit bottoms if wearing suit in meet
3. Pause Bench—warm up, then 3×5
4. Dips—warm up, then 5×8
5. Wide Grip Pull-up—warm up, then 5×6

 

Week 9—Thursday

1. Touch n’ Go Bench—warm up, then 5×3
2. Push Press—warm up, then 5×3
3. Pause SQ—warm up, then 5×5 progressive (start light, add weight each set)
4. Block DL—warm up, then 5×5 progressive (start light, add weight each set)
5. Ab Wheel—5 sets

 

Week 10—Monday

1. Hang Clean—2 warm-up sets, then 5×10
2. Squat—several warm up sets, then 5×5 (all 5 sets heavy)
3. Pause Bench—warm up, then 3×8
4. Dips—warm up, then 5×6
5. Wide Grip Pull-up—5×10

 

Week 10—Thursday

1. Touch n’ Go Bench—warm up, then 5×10
2. Push Press—warm up, then 5×5
3. Squat—warm up, then 3×20
4. Good Morning—warm up, then 3×10
5. Ab Wheel

 

Week 11—Monday

1. Pause Bench—warm up, then 5 near-max singles—use shirt if wearing shirt in meet
2. Dips—warm up, then 5×10
3. Hang Clean—warm up, then 5×5
4. Pause Squat—warm up, then 5×5 (all 5 sets heavy)
5. Wide Grip Pull-up—warm up, then 5×8

 

Week 11—Thursday

1. Touch n’ Go bench—warm up, then 5×5
2. Standing shoulder Press (strict)—warm up, then 5×10
3. Speed SQ— work up to 1 rep at 120% of your heaviest weight from 3 days ago, then multiply the weight you just did for 1 rep by 80%. Use the new, lighter weight to do 10×2 with 60 seconds rest between sets. Violent explosion! Speed! Speed! Speed!
4. Deadlift—work up to near-max single with belt—full gear if wearing suit in meet
5. Ab Wheel

 

Week 12—Monday

1. Hang Clean—warm up, then 5×5 @ 85% of heaviest weight from last week
2. Squat—work to near max single with knee wraps & belt –full gear if wearing suit in meet
3. Pause Bench—warm up, then 3×5
4. Dips—warm up, then 5×8
5. Wide Grip Pull-up—warm up, then 5×6

 

Week 12—Thursday

1. Touch n’ Go Bench—warm up, then 5×3
2. Push Press—warm up, then 5×3
3. Pause SQ—warm up, then 5×5 progressive (start light, add weight each set)
4. Speed DL–warm up, then 10 EXPLOSIVE singles with 60% of max (60 sec rest)
5. Ab Wheel—5 sets

 

Week 13—Monday

1. Hang Clean—warm up, then 5×5 @ 85% of heaviest weight from your heavy sets of 5 reps two weeks ago
2. Speed SQ— work up to 1 rep at 120% of your heaviest weight from 4 days ago, then multiply the weight you just did for 1 rep by 80%. Use the new, lighter weight to do 8×2 with 60 seconds rest between sets. Violent explosion! Speed! Speed! Speed!
3. Pause Bench—warm up, then 3×5 with 85% of heaviest set of 5 reps last Tuesday
4. Dips—5×10 medium-intensity weight
5. Wide Grip Pull-up—5×10 medium-intensity weight

 

Week 13—Saturday

MEET or gym maxes

Claire and Dad Meet Video

Claire competes in her first full powerlifting meet along with her training partner….Dad.

Click link below for video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VmlhDKC6KBo&feature=c4-overview&list=UUXRJ_M_KTE6jVboKXw8eZ7Q

2013 Men’s Collegiate Nationals Summary!

The Men’s Division of Collegiate powerlifting has historically been dominated by the state of Louisiana. In the past six years, Louisiana Tech has won two team national championships, Louisiana State University has won two, and the University of Louisiana has won two. Prior to other Louisiana schools starting to win in 2007, Louisiana Tech had won the title for as far back as most can remember. Being the proud coach of UL’s Ragin Cajuns, I had kind of hoped it would always be this way. Sure, we’d let an outside state claim third place now and again (maybe even second if we didn’t bring our A-game to Nationals), but to let another state claim first place seemed a bit unlikely considering our state’s history of dominance. Well, my friends, those days are over! The University of Texas brought, quite possibly, the most talented roster in the history of collegiate powerlifting! Would they make mistakes and let it slip through their fingers? Would they be able to step up to the plate when it really counted? Let’s take a look….

116

Texas came out swinging! Longhorn Mario Leos had dropped from 123 and showed up with a 369 squat. Louisiana hit right back though…La Tech freshman, Josue Leon returned fire with 363. Texas went on to out- bench Tech’s Leon 275 to 203 which led to a large subtotal lead for the Longhorns. Both lifters nailed their opening deads, but Tech’s Leon passed on his second so that he could load the winning deadlift on his third attempt. 440 pounds was loaded for Leon’s win and he launched it all the way to the top before getting stuck at lock-out! Texas had their first gold medal, Louisiana Tech had silver, and Ricky Hu of the University of Louisiana chimed in for bronze.

130

Texas wasn’t done yet; they brought the talented Austin Deshane as their hopeful gold-medalist at 130. But Deshane was no match for the heavily-muscled newcomer from San Jose State, James McCabe! McCabe won easily with a 1256 total, leaving Deshane (Texas) and Sidney Belcher (West Point) to battle it out for silver. When the dust had settled, Deshane pulled 2.5 kilos more to take silver on bodyweight (1157 total).

 

145

Quest Nutrition’s James Vang (University of Georgia) had little trouble dismantling his competitors at 145. Northeastern’s Anthony Grimaldi loaded up a winning deadlift on his third attempt, but the 66-pound increase was just too heavy. Vang took gold with 1416, Grimaldi took silver with 1350, and Texas took ANOTHER medal thanks to Abel Escamilla’s 1322.

163

Ladies and gentleman, I’d like to introduce the greatest lifter in collegiate powerlifting. When he switched over from the APF two years ago, I watched his YouTube videos and boldly predicted that he would bomb out of the 2011 Collegiate Nationals. I was right, he bombed, and my own  lifter went on to win the gold medal that year which ultimately led to my team winning first place. Would the new superstar give up and return to the APF? NO! He came back harder, stronger, crisper….and he has dominated ever since! He won the Junior World championships this past year, re-wrote the USAPL record book, and wiped with the floor with all who have challenged since. Ladies and gentlemen: Louisiana Tech’s  Mr. Jordan Dunn. The 2013 national meet was another jaw-dropping display. He set the collegiate American squat record with 705, benched 479, and then pulled 556 for a 1741 total and best-lifter honors of the whole meet. John Kaleb Rollins (LSU) secured the silver with 1432 and Mauricio Valdez (University of Texas-San Antonio) took bronze with 1394.

 

182

This one was a dog fight! The top 6 seeds had almost identical qualifying totals of approximately 1575 pounds! Who would pull it off? The lifter that made the most attempts of course. Pre-meet speculation indicated that Louisiana Tech’s Jacob Wayne Williamson was the strongest contender, but his 4/9 attempts on this day pushed him down to bronze (1598 total). After bronze, the 4^th, 5^th, and 6^th place lifters all tied….and 7^th through 10^th place were right behind them. A dog fight!!! Who won then? The University of Texas-San Antonio, that’s who. UTSA had two lifters go 9/9 and finish with the same total (1625). Anthony Munoz had to take the silver, however, when teammate Jeff Button pulled a final attempt of 595 to win on bodyweight.

205

Ian Bell is well on his way to winning 4 consecutive collegiate gold medals. This year would be his third. The big news was that he proved that he’s no longer a deadlift specialist. In fact, he squatted an American record of 760 and then posted a MUCH improved bench of 462. He “only” needed a 749 pull to lock in an easy win with a 1973 total. Garrett Bailey (LSU) took second with 1774 and UL’s Brennan Riche claimed the bronze after losing 40 pounds of body weight since placing fourth at 242 last year.

231

Last year, Chris Vickery (Sam Houston State) lost his gold medal to Malcolm Richard on the final deadlift of the session. Apparently this didn’t sit well with Vickery because he came back ROARING this year. He blasted up a huge squat of 804, a powerful bench of 551, and a greatly improved deadlift of 672! His 2028 total was the new American record. Nobody would deny Vickery his gold in 2013! World team member Jon Rivas (Virginia Military Academy) came close and even had the winning deadlift in his hands, but when he couldn’t quite lock it out, his excellent total of 1989 left him with the silver. Texas State’s William Leblanc claimed third place with 1851.

264

This class had three of 2012’s gold medalists going head to head. World team member Kyle Ramsey (UL) won gold at 242 in both 2011 and 2012, but entered this meet injured and was content to earn 4^th place points for his team by placing some safe lifts. Scott Dobbins of Texas A&M claimed bronze with 1879 and LSU’s Malcolm Richard (2012 champion of the 220 class) posted a huge 766 deadlift and 2006 total that earned silver. But Texas wasn’t done cleaning up on medals just yet! Legendary Longhorn Preston Turner lit up the scoreboard and amazed us all with an Open American Bench press record of 716 pounds! He easily lifted an opening deadlift of 622 and then scratched on his final attempts (2116 total). It was over.  Preston had dominated and Texas had dominated. Louisiana would at last be humbled.

 

SHW

Ryan Carillo (Texas State) was back for another collegiate nationals and spent much of his weekend conducting interviews for his powerlifting documentary. He’s a genuinely nice guy and I really hoped he’d secure the bronze medal…..but Ryan had a different plan! After posting a 903 squat at the Junior World Championships, Arron Gonzales (Sam Houston State) failed to come up with all three attempts of 804! Then, to everyone’s surprise, the second-seeded lifter (Travis Nichols of LSU) met the same fate. By the time squats were over, it was an open game. Carillo was in 5^th after squat, but launched his way back into contention with a huge 617 bench. It all came down to the deadlifts, and on the last deadlift of the entire meet, Carillo successfully pulled for the gold (1890 total!). Stephen King of Northeastern claimed silver with 1884 and Taylor James Lightner (LSU) took bronze with 1785.

The Results

1. The University of Texas—They came, they dominated. I’d like to tell you that (as a Louisiana coach) I was disappointed, but that would be a lie. This team is so classy and humble that I couldn’t help but cheer for them.  We all did. Congratulations Longhorns…you earned it!
2. Louisiana Tech—the bulldogs were every bit as talented as the Longhorns, but were lacking a head coach. Four of Tech’s former head coaches were in attendance (Talton, Cunningham, Cooper, and Chovanec) and there was a lot of talk about finding a long term coach that could bring the dynasty back. One thing is for sure though….they have all the other ingredients already at hand. From top to bottom, Tech is still loaded with talent. They will be VERY tough to beat in 2014!
3. The University of Louisiana—After dominating the field with 63 points in 2011, the Ragin Cajuns dropped to fourth place in 2012 with a roster of mostly underclassmen. Well, those same underclassmen are now sophomores and juniors. This year, they had plenty of 3^rd-5^th place individuals and that was enough to earn their team third place. Look out though, almost all of them are coming back for another year!
4. Texas State-San Antonio—This team was the sleeper. They weren’t on anybody’s radar, but they should’ve been. Coach Wes Zunker had his boys looking like well-oiled machines. Congratulations to the Roadrunners on a GREAT meet!
5. West Point—Best known for beating La Tech in 5 consecutive years in the 1980’s, this team is rich with history and always competitive. This year, their solid lifting was good for an honorable 5^th place.

 

2013 Women’s Collegiate Nationals Summary!

Collegiate Nationals—the most intense powerlifting atmosphere that you are going to find! With weight classes up to 40 lifters deep, only a small percentage of lifters go home winners. If a lifter makes the award platform, they should be proud. If they win gold in this meet, I tip my hat to them. Let’s take a quick look at our female champions of 2013:

Women’s 94 –pound class

Defending National champion and world team member, Dana Wallace of the University of Louisiana, cruised to an easy victory. After battling health problems the entire semester, she hadn’t trained even one time since November. With two weeks to go before Nationals, she put her gear on one time to pick some reasonable openers.  That’s all it took for another gold medal. She cruised through all 9 attempts and won easily with a 545 total. Tiffany Vu of Texas took silver (490 total) and Tiffany Leung of San Jose State took bronze (479).

 

Women’s 103 –pound class

Allegra Hudson was LSU’s first gold medal.  With a 688-total, Hudson forced Texas to take another silver medal (Bryanna Ybarra with 661). Rounding out the field was Penn State’s Sarah Cruz Ortiz with a 440 total.

Women’s 114 –pound class

This class proved to be the most critical of the meet. It was soon obvious that Northeastern and LSU were the teams that were in contention for the team title. As always, the team title almost always goes to the team that can secure the most gold medals.  I predicted that Emily Leibert would take gold for Northeastern, but LSU surprised everyone with a talented freshman named Kayli Alphonso. When the dust had settled, LSU had another gold (744 total for Alphonso) and Leibert was in second with 716. Rachel Boldry of Virginia Military Institute claimed the bronze with 660.

 

Women’s 125 –pound class

This was a clash of the independent lifters. Dawn Owens of the University of Miami took the bronze with her 848 total, Erin Stevenson benched a whopping 231 pounds on her way to totaling 947 for the silver, and returning for her second gold medal in two years was the amazing Michelle Van Dusen! She earned her gold by kicking things off with a mind-boggling 424 squat and then she sealed the casket on her competitors with a 385 deadlift for a 986 total.

Women’s 138 –pound class

At 138, Jackie Victoriano (LSU) and Alesia Levine (Texas) gave everything they had as they tried to bring home another gold medal for their teams, but in the end they just couldn’t manage to take down Quest Nutrition’s Beverly Crawford (Auburn University).  LSU grabbed bronze, Texas took silver, and Beverly Crawford came away with an easy victory via her 942 total.

Women’s 158 –pound class

We all knew that this class was going to be a legendary showdown! With the restructuring of the IPF weight classes, 3 of last year’s gold medalists were now going head to head! Shaina Petit (Northeastern) took gold at 148 last year, Olivia Harrington (Texas A&M) gold at 165 last year, and Alex Jackson (University of Louisiana) took gold at 181 last year! In 2013, only one could be champion of the new 158-pound class!

Jackson kicked things off early with a huge 424 squat, before losing her balance with an American record attempt of 440. The game wasn’t over yet though, as Petit surged back with an American record bench press of 275! Jackson did her very best to pull her way back into contention, but Petit was just too much to handle this year! Petit scored Northeastern’s first gold medal of the meet (1100 total), Jackson took silver (1047), and Harrington took Bronze (1019).

 

Women’s 185—pound class

Last year, LSU’s legendary Ariel Parker shocked us all with a bomb-out that ultimately led to the University of Louisiana passing up LSU in the final day of the competition. That crucial bomb-out is what led to LSU losing the team title to their rival school from 40 miles down the road last year… and for a brief second, it looked like Ariel was going to let it happen again. Her opening squat of 529 looked heavy and after a shaky set-up, she failed to rise with the weight. Just when we thought it was going to happen to LSU again, Ariel came out and grinded out the weight with determination and intensity. The noise was deafening and when the lights shined bright for Ariel, we all knew it was over. Ariel would go on to win the gold medal and LSU would return to their throne in 2013. Ariel finished the day with a monstrous 1212 total and a gold medal that she’d waited an entire year to get back. Texas A&M freshman Ashleigh Andrews took silver (1168) and the University of Wisconsin’s Mariah Hamm took bronze (1140).

Women’s SHW  class

By the time the SHW ladies were competing, it was all over. The team title would be back in the hands of LSU after a dominant performance and the 2012 champions, the University of Louisiana’s Ragin Cajuns, would be bumped down to 4^th place. Texas A&M had also been known for their dominant female teams and just when it looked like they’d go the whole 2013 meet with no gold medals, Aggie Jennifer Moran lowered her horns and leveled her competition with a solid 1113 total. Marcia Darbouze of Nova Southeastern University took silver with 1047 and the University of Houston made their 2013 awards debut thanks to Jacqueline Higgins and her bronze medal total of 986.

Team Results

 

1. Louisiana State University—they deserved this. They were the best team there and they performed like champions.
2. Northeastern University—Look out, the north is coming hard next year. They have so many unpolished diamonds on their roster that it’s hard to imagine a more dangerous team next season.
3. The University of Texas—There’s a name we haven’t heard much from on the women’s side of the meet. Well, don’t overlook them anymore. They were GREAT!
4. The University of Louisiana—After taking first in 2012, they dropped to fourth this year with almost the same squad of girls. We are talking about some of the most determined girls I’ve ever met in my life. I suspect that the distasteful flavor of fourth with have them back in contention in 2014.
5. Texas A&M—Much like UL, the Aggies are used to finishing near the top. It won’t be long before they’re back in the gym with a fire in their eye and another championship on their minds.

Special Thanks

Special thanks to meet director Johnny Graham, his amazingly efficient meet staff, and all the referees  that traveled on their own dime and worked tirelessly to make this wonderful event happen. From all  of us in collegiate powerlifting….THANK YOU!

 

2013 Collegiate Nationals Preview!

The 2013 USAPL Collegiate National Championships is less than two weeks away and the excitement is building. With classes that can be 40+ competitors deep, large crowds, and ear-piercing cheering, Collegiate Nationals is the most electric powerlifting meet that you are likely to encounter. Teams from around the nation train all year for this weekend, and 2013 looks to be another great event.  Let’s take a look at the contenders!

Women’s Favorite—The University of Louisiana

The current defending champions, UL’s Ragin Cajuns, bring another stacked roster this year. Defending champion and world team member, Dana Wallace, looks like the heavy favorite to repeat at 94-pounds. UL also returns National champion, Alex Jackson (158) and her monstrous squat, and a host of other potential All-Americans. Though it certainly isn’t a lock, the Ragin Cajuns appear to be the favorite for another national championship in 2013.

 

Women’s Contender—Louisiana State University

LSU has been a powerhouse in the women’s division over the past decade, but slipped to 4^th place in 2012. With a chip on their shoulder and a stronger roster in 2013, the Tigers could very well be back at the top of their game. Led by the dominant champion Ariel Parker at 185, LSU also has the potential to take gold at 103 with Allegra Hudson.

 

Women’s Contender—Texas A&M

Coach Cort Spellman continues to put together strong female rosters each year and 2013 is no exception.  With defending National Champion, Olivia Harrington, leading the way and Jennifer Moran seeded first at SHW, it would be unwise to rule the Aggies out as a contender for the title!

 

Women’s Contender—Northeastern University

In just five short years, Boston has exploded onto the collegiate powerlifting scene. With a huge roster and an all-star coaching staff, we are within a few years of the North claiming their first national championship in many years. Led by defending National Champion, Shaina Petit, and top-seeded Emily Leibert at 114, Northeastern has a very good chance of leaving Texas with the coveted team title in 2013.

 

Other Notable Female Lifters

• Erin Stevenson (Boise State) is seeded first at 125 with a 915 pound total.
• Quest Nutrition’s Beverly Crawford (Auburn University) looks like the heavy favorite in the 138-class.
• Mariah Hamm (University of Wisconsin) has a great shot at the gold medal at 185.

 

 

Men’s Favorite—The University of Texas

Wow, wow, wow! The University of Texas is loaded with talent in 2013! With powerlifting legends Ian Bell (205) and Preston Turner (264) leading the way, the Longhorns have other potential gold medalists at 116 (Mario Leos) and 130 (Austin DeShane). The only team that is capable of defeating Texas in 2013 is….Texas! Those of us that have been involved with collegiate powerlifting for a number of years have seen other dominant teams let championships slip through their fingers, so let’s not hand over that team title until the dust has settled.

 

Men’s Contender—Louisiana State University

Defending champions, LSU, return another All-star roster.  If Malcolm Richard (231) and William Everhardt (182) both manage to secure a gold medal, we could be looking at another team title for the Tigers. They have the supporting cast of potential All-Americans to secure the remainder of the points, but the question is whether or not they will secure at least two individual gold medals, which have historically been necessary in winning a team title.

 

Men’s Contender—Louisiana Tech

After 30 years of domination, the Bulldogs of Louisiana Tech, had started to drift off of the radar following the retirement of legendary Coach Dr. Billy Jack Talton. Then, just as many teams had begun to write them off, we’ve seen resurgence in recent years. Led by the amazing Jordan Dunn at 163, Louisiana Tech also has a great chance of gold at 130 pounds (Garth Sullivan). With a growing roster and talent in several other classes, Louisiana Tech is back with a vengeance!

 

Men’s Contender—The University of Louisiana

After dominating the Men’s division in 2009 and 2011, the Ragin Cajun men slipped to 4^th place as they went through a rebuilding year in 2012. Led by multi-national champion and 800+ squatter Kyle Ramsey (231 class), UL also has a shot at gold in the 182 class (Josh Thibeaux and Pat Labat). Although a long shot for the men’s team title, UL is known for making their attempts on meet day. If the other schools make mistakes, UL will be right there in the mix for another men’s title.

 

Other Notable Male Lifters

• Quest Nutrition’s James Vang (The University of Georgia) is the heavy favorite at 145.
• World team member, John Rivas, of Virginia Military Institute has a 1962 total at 231.
• Chris Vickery could very well ride a big subtotal to a gold medal at 231 for Sam Houston State.
• Returning champion, Arron Gonzales, has a 903 squat and will likely win gold for Sam Houston State at SHW.

 

 

 

Day 5!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cE_yISM3-oA&feature=youtu.be

Day #4 Video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XrGM_bbrmtk&feature=youtu.be

Day #3 Video!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dTbSaT-4zjw&feature=youtu.be

Day #2 Video!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LC8hxyKw5tQ&feature=youtu.be

Hang Cleans and Deadlifts!