As a coach and a father of three collegiate athletes—Elle (Mississippi State Soccer), Kelton (North Dakota State Football), and Bodey (Iowa Football)—I have a unique perspective on the demands of high-performance athletics. Having watched my own children navigate recruiting, training, recovery, and the relentless pursuit of excellence, I’ve seen firsthand how small daily habits make the biggest difference.

With 22 years of college football coaching experience, and 30 years overall, I have worked at nearly every level of the game, holding roles from Graduate Assistant to Head Coach. My love for the game started with my father and was further shaped by two great coaches—Jim Keen, my high school coach, and Dan Kratzer, my college coach. My father built the foundation and their influence helped define my coaching philosophy, which grew to be centered on discipline, awareness, and connection—principles that now guide XA Score’s mission.

Most of my career was spent on the Defensive side of the ball, including 10 years as a Defensive Coordinator in four different programs. I was part of the most successful era in the 99-year history of the University of Nebraska Omaha football program, helping the team win six conference championships and coaching multiple athletes who went on to professional careers. 

My time at UNO also connected me with Lance Leipold, now the head coach at Kansas. I spent ten years coaching with him, first as assistants together at UNO, then later in a variety of roles under Coach Leipold at the University at Buffalo. Leipold’s success as the fastest coach in NCAA history to reach 100 wins is no accident—his program-building philosophy created the most successful three-year period in Buffalo history and has now completely transformed the KU Football program.

After UNO abruptly dropped its football program, I went on to coach at Drake University and then Eastern Michigan University. Both as the Defensive Coordinator. While Drake was a continuation of success, winning a Pioneer League Conference Championship in our first season there, Eastern Michigan was the most challenging period of my coaching career. We took on a program that had been the losingest football program in NCAA Division I FBS. Winning just three games in two years significantly impacted both on and off the field. It was a defining moment—one that reshaped my approach to coaching, leadership, and trust. The lessons I took from that experience changed not only how I worked within a team but how I approached the game itself.

What followed was our two seasons at Buffalo, a season as the Head Coach at Benedictine University, and eventually coaching at St. Charles East High School where all three of my kids attended AND played football. While I did not coach Elle in Football, I did get the opportunity to do so for two years with Kelton and Bodey. This brought everything full circle—emphasizing that our impact on athletes extends far beyond the game itself.

Each stop along the way reinforced the power of culture, discipline, and long-term development—whether it was building on success at UNO and Drake, navigating the steep climb at Eastern Michigan, or being part of a transformative shift at Buffalo. Coaching at Benedictine and later at St. Charles East, where I had the unique opportunity to coach two of my sons, brought everything full circle—reminding me that the impact we make on athletes extends far beyond the game itself.

Through my coaching career and personal experiences, one thing became clear: elite training alone is not enough. At the highest levels of competition, sleep, recovery, nutrition, and hydration are just as important as skill and strength—but most athletes and programs lack a system to track and improve these critical areas. That’s why I built XA Score—to bridge the gap between daily habits and high performance.

We are not just collecting data; we are creating behavior change. Readiness tracking should be seamless and simple, something an athlete can do in seconds yet provide meaningful insights to coaches who need to optimize training and performance. A system to improve. A system to develop habits that last.