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Scottsdale, AZ—What’s it like to train as if you were preparing for the NFL draft and combine? Well, several greater Phoenix area kids will find out this Sunday as one of the country’s most well respected speed and conditioning coaches puts them through combine drills at the Football Hotbed Arizona Select All-American combine.
Bill Welle, owner of Wellefast with three locations in Minnesota, has signed on to run the combine portion of the All-American Combine in Scottsdale on this Sunday, April 26th beginning at 1:30 PM.
A 20-plus year veteran of fitness and rehab, Welle has spent much of his career helping train athletes for the NFL combines. He’s got a special connection to Arizona because of his relationship with current wide receiver, Larry Fitzgerald of the Arizona Cardinals, who he trains in the off-season.
But it was through another receiver, Chris Carter, that Welle built up his acclaim.
Carter, a Hall of Fame wide receiver and MinnesotaViking legend approached Welle (a native of the state) some 12 years ago about running a program in South Florida called ‘FAST.’ And so it was by traveling to Boca Raton, FL each off season and training several top 10 NFL draft prospects that Welle began to make a name for himself.
The roster of professional athletes that he’s worked with is tremendous: Cris Carter, Jerry Rice, Larry Fitzgerald Jr., Charles Rogers, Plaxico Burress, Greg Jennings, Lee Evans, Jamal Lewis, Ben Utecht, Matt Spaeth, and Randy Moss.
But perhaps more special and significant to Football Hotbed and those registered for our Arizona Select combine is Welle’s passion for youth and high school athletes and watching them develop and helping them to make strides that improve their overall performance on the field. As a former football player himself, Welle knows it’s the little things that can matter so much.
“I like to approach each athlete and start with strengths and then examine the areas needed for improvement and put a plan in place to work on those areas,’ Welle explained.
As the Executive Performance Coach at Velocity Sports Performance in Champlin, MN, he trained over 15,000 middle school, high school, and collegiate athletes. He’s now working with the University of Missouri’s Shane Ray who is expected to be drafted in the first round as one of the nation’s best pass rushers. Welle was seen with Ray as he was featured on ESPN’s Draft Academy that has aired on multiple networks in the lead up to next Thursday’s NFL Draft.
Overall, it’s a tremendous coup for Football Hotbed to secure Welle’s services. We’re excited about what he brings to our combine and our results are sure to be as reliable as at any combine in the country. To pre-register for the combine, CLICK HERE.
