'Vast amount of winning': Inside Bradley's award-winning strength and conditioning program

PEORIA — Bradley University has a power hitter and a power forward who have earned national honors for their work under Eddie Papis in the weight room.

Departing senior basketball player Ja'Shon Henry and departing senior baseball player Connor O'Brien have been named 2022-23 All-American Strength and Conditioning Athletes of the Year by the National Strength and Conditioning Association.

Henry finished his fifth-year senior season helping Bradley to its first Missouri Valley Conference title in 27 years.Perhaps the strongest player in the Valley, he was named the conference's Sixth Man of the Year.

O'Brien, a three-time all-MVC first-team selection and 2023 honorable mention pick, anchored first base for BU and led the team in home runs (10) and was second in slugging percentage (.567) over 33 games.

"The program here made me into a professional-caliber player," Henry said. "The strength I gained, the way the athletes are trained here it's just so huge for performance."

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Said O'Brien: "I came in at 180 and I leave at 200 pounds, and this program helped me gain mass and strength. It made me able to play at a very high level over a long season. It's a difference-maker."

O'Brien said he saw a weight-training increase in the bench from 245 to 345, and in the deadlift from 455 to 545.The athletic gains from Henry were profound, too.

"Ja'Shon has posted staggering numbers in the weight room such as 300-plus pound bench press, 25 reps at 185 pounds bench test, an over 400-pound squat and a 44-inch vertical," said Papis, Bradley's director of sports performance. "His leadership and dedication to his training is a big part of Ja'Shon's growth as a student-athlete over the past couple of years. His work has a direct correlation to his and our program's vast amount of winning."

Papis said of O'Brien: "Connor's work ethic and commitment to his training is the best in Bradley baseball I've seen here in my over a decade of experience with the program. He is always finding a way to better himself off the field whether in recovery, the weight room, or in the kitchen. It has definitely shown in his on-field production.

"The progress in his training has been tremendous with game day deadlifts exceeding 500 lbs. or squats touching up over 400 lbs., all while keeping his body composition and lean muscle mass at remarkable levels."

Getting them to believe in it

Papis has been able to get BU athletes to buy in to the strength and conditioning program, and it is supported and 100% backed from coaches like baseball manager Elvis Dominguez and men's basketball coach Brian Wardle.

Papis, a Washington native, has been involved in Bradley's strength and conditioning program for 12 years, and has served as its head coach for seven. He was around the program for an earlier stint as an assistant.

His staff includes associate directors Matt Friend and Josie Jay, and they work in a facility estimated to be about a $500,000 investment from the school in its athletes. The weight room is stocked with 10 weight racks. There is a pool therapy room, and a physical therapy room, all attached in a training complex in the belly of Renaissance Coliseum complex on the campus.

Papis directly oversees basketball, baseball and soccer strength and conditioning programs for Bradley, but he also manages the university's 15 teams and the training facility. It's a big job that has shown big gains for the athletes.

Inside the BU weight room

Strength and conditioning under Papis is not just about numbers. It's as much about culture, lifestyle and a daily commitment. It's a long-haul journey.

The NSCA award itself is not just about how much an athlete can lift. It's much more than that. It considers athletic accomplishments, in the opinion of a strength coach, reflects their dedication to strength training and conditioning and recognizes academic and personal accomplishments and integrity as student-athletes.

Papis has a nationally respected program in place at Bradley.

The numbers are fun to talk about, though, too. There have been some gifted athletes over the years in the Bradley weight room.

Papis said Henry was similar to Marcus Pollard in training, "A freak specimen of strength, size, power and speed with a work ethic to keep it up."

Going back to 2010-11, Henry stacks up almost without peer.

"J-Hen was always naturally strong," Papis said. "He was that kid who learned how harness it in the weight room. When you can go as fast and high as he does, it was important for him to work on his deceleration muscles, because landing for those guys is where injuries happen.

"He was so tough, so driven in the weight room."

In four areas of training commonly tested:

• Bench press (either max or 185 lbs rep test used in NBA combine). Henry hit a staggering 25 reps, which would rank in the top 1% all-time in the NBA combine.

• Max vertical (power): Henry has a 44-inch vertical recorded.

• Lane agility (change of direction): Henry logged :10.76.

• ¾ sprint (25 yards) speed measurement: Henry ran a :03.04 (hand timed).

All of those numbers would be elite in any NBA combine, but if compared with power forwards would be top 1%.

At Bradley, Henry had the best score in two of those categories, third in vertical and top five in lane agility.

And who's the next from the basketball program to challenge those numbers? Papis says guard Connor Hickman is closing in all four categories.

"Ja'Shon has not only grown into a great player but a great leader," Papis said. "His leadership in training sessions has been a tremendous contribution to the team. Leading by example creates a culture of hard work and tends to push his teammates to challenge their best on and off the court."

A notable list

Papis delivered this list, with some remarks, of Bradley basketball players past and present who excelled in the strength and conditioning program:

• Jashon Henry
• Marcus Pollard
• Connor Hickman: "He's gonna surpass Henry in everything but max vertical, he's close".
• Darrell Brown: "One of the greatest transformations and catalyst for our success was his buy-in."
• Antoine Pittman
• Dwayne Lautier-Ogunleye
• Joel Okafor
• Marcellus Sommerville: "Strong as hell."
• Zach Andrews: "Had many Henry attributes but missing speed I believe."
• Marcello Robinson: "I believe was well-balanced in all categories."
• Honorable mentions: Dwayne Funches, JJ Tauai ("Strength and some power") and Lawrence Wright ("Power/speed, sneaky strong").

Dave Eminian is the Journal Star sports columnist, and covers Bradley men's basketball, the Rivermen and Chiefs. He writes the Cleve In The Eve sports column for pjstar.com. He can be reached at 686-3206 or deminian@pjstar.com. Follow him on Twitter @icetimecleve.