There’s an open-door policy at the Aaron Donald Performance Center, otherwise known as Pitt Iron Works, so anyone in the building can search out the sound of weights being tossed around.
Those who follow the clanging of the weights — shouts of encouragement and cries of exhilaration following soon after — will usually find head strength and conditioning coach Michael Stacchiotti in the middle of it all. Coach Stacc, as he’s referred to, is the man behind the scenes.
Pitt Iron Works is well-regarded by those in the know, but after Pitt’s strong showing at the NFL Combine in Indianapolis earlier this month, Stacchiotti’s work earned some national recognition in the process.
Calijah Kancey blew NFL teams out of the water with a record-setting 4.67 40-yard dash, overshadowing Habakkuk Baldonado’s all-around stellar performance in on-field drills, and Brandon Hill followed up with a positional-best 4.43 40 of his own.
Despite an electric showing from Pitt’s contingent in Indy, Stacchiotti didn’t want to take too much credit for himself.
“Those guys woke up like that, man,” Stacchiotti said Tuesday on the South Side. “It goes down to recruiting, they came in with great attributes and all we’re doing is accentuating those things or giving them tools for their toolbox. I’m proud as hell of all those guys that went down to the combine.”
Stacchiotti, who is entering his fourth season as Pitt’s head strength and conditioning coach, is excited about the opportunity for Pitt’s NFL hopefuls to once again showcase their hard work, which has been honed with him, but he’s also laser-focused on the task at hand when it comes to the 2023 squad.
There’s not a strength coach in the country that would say his squad had a bad — or even an OK — offseason, but Stacchiotti saw how his players came ready to work, worked their tails off when given the chance and now have themselves in a position to take a step forward.
It’s his job now to hone the potential he’s seen — and the coaches have seen — into tangible results in the weight room. And then the field, by extension.
There’s an emphasis now as spring ball kicks off, with the first of 15 practices now in the books, is to get everyone familiar with their roles, whether that be offensive, defensive or special teams.
“You just look at the tactical elements of the position, seeing where guys are lacking in their movement skills, strength in certain elements on the offensive and defensive lines, but just picking little things here and there,” Stacchiotti said.Â
It’s more so making small tweaks to certain areas of a player’s game, recognizing the traits that Pitt’s coaching staff saw in any individual player and — as he did with guys like Kancey, Baldonado and Hill — finding ways to take those identifiable traits to the next level.
That emphasis manifests itself well when it comes to training position groups like the linebackers. It’s a group with a wide range of responsibilities, a wide range of athletes, and he tries to just blend the mix of size and speed. It’s a case of give and take when it comes to pushing a safety who runs a 4.4 40 to pack on a few more pounds, maybe lose a bit of speed in the process, but be able to fulfill his duties better.Â
He’s able to meet recruits during visits, of course, but his spinel only carries so much weight. He can promote the brand of Pitt Iron Works as much as he wants, hammer home the idea of building a monster over four years, but it takes a team to get the message across. Stacchiotti feels fortunate to have a veteran core that helps promote the program.
And it helps that when Pitt’s coaching staff brings in newcomers, whether it’s early enrollee freshmen or hardened transfers, they’re almost always Pitt men through and through. However, there’s still a learning curve for even the most eager arrival.Â
“When guys come in, you gotta humble them a little bit so they get ready for what they can expect on the field,” Stacchiotti said. “It’s just a little fun, you know? We try to have good rapport with those guys, develop those relationships, build those relationships and have — the reality is that they’re 17, 18-year-old kids, some may be 19, but you’re gonna have a 22-year-old man trying to kick your ass, so you gotta get them ready for that.”
The adjustment period is difficult no matter the situation, but it’s also just new. It’s different. There’s a lot going on, and Stacchiotti recognizes that the spring ball period is a huge opportunity to set the stage for the season.
“It’s the first time they’re seeing this type of speed, probably getting a lot thrown at them in the film room, so they have a lot to analyze,” Stacchiotti said. “We just gotta make sure they’re picking things up, don’t get paralysis by analysis. Training-wise, we’re developing these guys. Even throughout the spring, we’re looking at them, they’re going all out with football work, but we still need to develop them in terms of their strength and size, so it’s all-encompassing in the spring.”
He’s excited about the opportunity to showcase more speed and power at Pitt’s Pro Day later this month, excited for the players themselves, but it’s also just business as usual at the Pitt Iron Works this spring, too.
There’s an expectation when it comes to Pitt football, to be faster and stronger every step of the way, and Stacchiotti’s goal is to maximize every player in every position group to the fullest extent possible.
