Originally hailing from Dothan, Alabama, Brad Carn has joined the STH Athletics Department as Head Athletic Performance Coach. In his first months of working for the school, he has brought new technologies and training tactics to each sports team, creating stronger and more resilient student-athletes, both on and off the field.

“The addition of an athletic performance coach to our team is going to pay dividends for our student-athletes for years to come,” Athletic Director Mike Netzel said.

Carn earned a Bachelor’s degree from Auburn University and holds a Master’s in Exercise Science from Southern Illinois University, Carbondale.

He discovered his dream career while in grade school.

“As a kid, I saw a 60 Minute special on Scott Cochran, the strength and conditioning coach at Alabama, and I realized that’s something I’d love to do,” he said. “But, I pictured it as a Power 5 or NFL job. I wasn’t sure it was something I could have the opportunity to do.”

At the end of his sophomore year, his high school hired their first coach dedicated to strength and conditioning.

“I didn’t really grow up in a big town, so I figured if we hired a guy just to be a strength and conditioning coach—he wasn’t a teacher or a sports coach or anything else—that’s when I realized this could be a career I could choose,” he said.

While at Auburn, Carn earned his personal training certification and spent his free time creating workout plans for friends, other students, and college professors. Following his time at Auburn, Carn briefly worked at Angelo State University, where he ran the court sports training programs, before transferring to Southern Illinois.

In Carbondale, Carn worked with the swim and dive, track and field, women’s soccer, and football teams.

“That’s really where I grew,” he said. “The leadership there really let me do my thing and helped me out a lot.”

Through his experience at Southern Illinois, Carn developed a three-pronged training philosophy that focuses on creating purpose, boosting performance, and emphasizing athlete longevity. It was this well-rounded perspective and his wide array of training experiences that ultimately brought Carn to St. Thomas.

“We interviewed some outstanding people for this role,” Netzel said. “What we were able to find with Brad Carn was not only the technical knowledge, but the progressive approach we were looking for. He has already added much to our athletic programs and we’re excited to see the impact he is going to make in the years ahead.”

Thanks to Carn’s forward-thinking approach, the weight room is now stocked with brand new resistance bands, medicine balls, and touchscreen tablets at each gym machine. The tablets are loaded with each student-athlete’s workout plan and overall workout statistics. This new technology allows for Carn, players, and sports coaches to track their fitness goals throughout a sports season, referencing their performance in the weight room when assessing their performance on the field.

As Carn looks forward to the rest of the school year, gratitude and excitement for what is to come are at the forefront of his perspective.

“All the people that I work with are awesome,” he said. “The coaches enjoy their work and are good at what they do. Not many jobs allow you to have an impact on kids’ lives like this. I hope the kids really buy into the conditioning program and take advantage of the opportunities to learn and stay healthy.”

Article by Sarah Jane Lasley