In the heart of Big Ten country, champions are forged in sweat, grit, late nights, and early mornings. As the Director of Football Strength & Conditioning for the Wisconsin Badgers, Brady Collins is reshaping what it means to build resilience.
From Delaware County to Camp Randall
A native of Delaware County, Ohio, Collins played Division III college football at Otterbein University (OH). Midway through his college career, he found his calling in the weight room.
“I knew I wanted to be a strength coach my sophomore year of college because I loved what the weight room did for me physically, mentally, spiritually, emotionally,” says Coach Collins. “Exercise science was my major, so that also pushed me towards that role.”
His decision led to internships at Ohio State, graduate work at Kentucky, and then full-time roles at Mississippi State and the University of Cincinnati, where he developed a tight bond with now-Wisconsin Head Coach Luke Fickell. Their journey together began at Cincinnati in 2017, where Collins helped establish the foundation for a program turnaround. When Fickell accepted the Wisconsin job in 2022, Collins came along for the ride.
Coaching Mindset
For Collins, the pathway to leadership wasn’t built overnight. It was grounded in humility, consistency, and focusing on the present. That mindset continues to shape how he leads his programs today.
“I knew if I kept my head down and kept working, good things were going to happen,” says Coach Collins. “Because if you are firm where your feet are, and you’re not worried about the next job or what else is out there, then you’re going to give your all there and good things are going to happen.”
More Than Muscle
At the core of Collins’ training approach is progressive overload. For Collins, rep integrity is non-negotiable. The principles are rooted in science—eccentric loading, isometric holds, and time under tension. Vertical jump, broad jump, hydration status, and body comp are all tested regularly. He avoids one-rep maxes, favoring auto-regulation and smart progression.
“You want to get big and strong? You have to pause the rep,” says Coach Collins. “You have to lower it slowly. One thing I learned as a young assistant is how to be a stickler of reps. That’s one thing we always pride ourselves on. I want to make sure anything we do is coached extremely well, the kids are coaching it just as well, and the rep integrity is there because everything has a purpose. We don’t just do something to do it.”
While the fundamentals of athletic performance are at the forefront of Collins’ training, he focuses equally on the relationships. Every coach on his staff shares a piece of the program, whether it’s handling plyometrics or squatting protocols. Not only does this promote expertise but also turns interns into trusted assets of the program.
“Everything that I do is a taste of everybody I’ve ever worked for,” says Coach Collins. “More importantly, my staff, I want them to have, ‘their babies of the program.’ The more input I get from those guys, the more they feel connected to everything that we’re doing, not just loyal soldiers following the card. The workout is the last thing we’re worried about. It’s connecting with our young men. It’s building their hearts and their minds.”
A Year in the Weight Room
Whether it’s freshmen stepping into bigger roles or new transfers learning the ropes, the offseason provides a clean slate. The early weeks are gritty and old-school, focusing on squatting, pressing, carrying, building capacity. Only later does training layer in speed, change of direction, and position-specific conditioning.
Incoming freshmen and transfers go through thorough evaluations—movement screens, verticals, reach, body comp—not to compare, but to establish a baseline. Spring ball allows for re-evaluation, while summer brings a return to high-volume strength work before gradually transitioning into more football-specific preparation. By late July, the intensity doesn’t stop.
“I always tell this to the freshman, “I don’t want you to impress me. I want you to impress the older guys. Anything that you do is not going to impress me. I want you to impress them. And the way you can do that is by listening with your eyes and your ears, giving great effort. Nobody’s gonna care if you’re benching 500 and that guy’s benching 300. It’s your intent, your passion, your purpose, and why you do it.”
In-season lifts are individualized, routine-driven, and based on listening to both the athlete and to the body. Coach Collins emphasizes the importance of training the neck muscles, especially for high schoolers, who are at greater risk of concussions.
“We do more pulling movements than pressing movements,” says Coach Collins. “We always do extra shrugs, extra neck exercises, extra shoulder exercises, all that stuff to protect the armor for when we go play the most physical, violent game there is. “
Building Bigger, Stronger Badgers
One of Collins’ standout accomplishments has been the body transformation of the roster. Players have added 15 to 20 pounds of functional mass without compromising speed or mobility. His approach combines smart tweaks to sets and reps with an emphasis on recovery, individualized exercise selection, and simple nutrition advice.
“I’m old school even when it comes to gaining weight,” says Coach Collins. “The old school ways still stand true, like eat PB&J, drink milk, and keep eating. It’s hard because when you’re full, you’re like, ‘Oh, I just can’t.’ Okay, well, how passionate and how important is it to you?”
Toughness as a Culture
In Collins’ weight room, toughness is about how you respond. He instills that through competition, challenge, and shared adversity. The weight room isn’t just about building bodies. It’s about building a brotherhood.
“Can we mimic a fourth and one on the goal line against Ohio State? No, says Coach Collins. “But we try to, metaphorically, by the way that we train, the intensity, the passion, the effort that it takes. What is toughness? Is toughness getting punched and punching right back? No. It’s easy to say that, but no. Being tough is when bad things happen, responding the right way. Or when things don’t go your way, fighting through. Why is the game of football so special? Because it’s just like life. You can’t do it alone.”
The Future of Badger Sports
Collins is also helping design Wisconsin’s new facility. From layout to flow to aesthetics, he’s leveraging lessons from every step in his career to create a space that supports the way he trains. The indoor facility is slated for completion in early 2026, with the weight room to follow.
“The biggest thing was reaching out to colleagues and asking, ‘When you built your new facility, what do you wish you would have done differently? What do you wish you didn’t do? All the equipment, the flooring, the functional flow, what do you want inside the weight room?’ I’m not big on, ‘We have to have 40 racks in there.’ But, it will be nice to have a big open space with all the bells and whistles, which we already have. I always say, it’s not what you have, it’s why you do it, and more importantly, who you do it with.”
A Foundation Beyond Football
Coach Brady Collins is crafting a program rooted in resilience, relationships, and growth on and off the field. For Wisconsin Football, performance isn’t measured in pounds lifted. It’s measured in progress made. And under Collins’ guidance, the Badgers are setting themselves up for a successful season.
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