Winter Conditioning Sounds Like The Worst Thing Ever

It's that time of year for college football players. Last season is over and done with, their bodies have recovered and it's now time to go through the wringer. It's a bad time of year, with nothing but darkness, cold weather, and a punishing beginning and end to the day.

At Washington State, players are doing Mike Leach's Midnight Maneuvers, which is basically the same as the typical early-morning offseason workout, just done in the middle of the night. Then they go to bed, wake up, lift and do it all over again. For football programs, winter is the time to build the base. For Leach and Washington State, it's a time to hammer home the key points of the new regime, as well.

Michael Felder played his college ball at UNC and knows a thing or two about winter conditioning (he also knows just about everything there is to know about bad TV and is a must-follow on Twitter at @InTheBleachers). His winter conditioning primer, if you will, is absolutely a must-read. A few highlights:

Winter is also a bitch. Plain and simple, that's what it is; a bitch.

Then you're back up again. Back to diving out. More seat rolls. Then he'll mix it up and get you doing monkey rolls. Please don't screw this up.

It's their first step towards being champions. Their first step towards a bowl game. Their first step in the next season's fire. The boys are out there getting after it, wish them luck.

Oh, and they still have to go to weightlifting, that never stops.

Just go read the whole thing. Watch the video of Georgia's mat drills at the top. I laughed, I cried, I applauded Felder's work. Every college football fan should check it out for an inside look at what the offseason is really like.