Matt Gildersleeve on instilling culture, summer conditioning, leadership council

Director of Sports Performance Matt Gildersleeve oversees Kansas’ strength and conditioning staff, yet his duties also include helping maintain the culture that Kansas has built under Lance Leipold. Gildersleeve spoke to the media during fall camp, discussing the process of developing the culture with a primarily new roster, the progress made during a shorter summer conditioning program, and how members of the leadership council have impacted the program.

‘Our culture is our X-factor’

Kansas has built a strong culture under Leipold and staff, with players and staff passing it down to newcomers. Gildersleeve said that culture is the most important aspect of the program, and he “couldn’t be more pleased” with how the newcomers are fitting in.

“Our culture is our X-factor. It’s our competitive advantage. It’s always going to be. That’s never going to change for us,” Gildersleeve said. “So the biggest thing we’ve had to emphasize, not just now but this entire offseason, has been our culture and getting those 50 new guys really fit into it.”

The returners have an important role in passing down the culture to the newcomers. Gildersleeve mentioned Daniel Hishaw, who’s entering his sixth season at Kansas, as the player who has most stepped up into that role.

“You see a lot of guys that have really stepped up,” Gildersleeve said. “I couldn’t move forward without talking about Daniel Hishaw and just how impressed and proud I think all of us are for him. He’s in the best physical, mental, and spiritual shape of his entire life.”

Kansas was intentional in its recruiting strategy. Gildersleeve said the staff guaranteed one thing, opportunity, and wanted to get the player that would fit best in Kansas’ system. He’s been pleased with the competitive edge so far.

“They’ve all embraced the competitive nature of the program,” Gildersleeve said. “If there’s one thing that’s palpable, it’s that edge—that chip on the shoulder. We operate better that way.”

Kansas able to accomplish a lot through shorter summer conditioning program

The Jayhawks were able to accomplish a lot through their six week summer conditioning program, the shortest of Matt Gildersleeve’s career. While Gildersleeve said he was as wowed by the development as he’s ever been, what the team accomplished off the field was just as impressive.

“You talk about little things like academics,” Gildersleeve said. “Four years ago, we had 36 missed academic appointments. Three years ago, we had 22. Two years ago, we had 13. We had zero this summer.”

Gildersleeve also mentioned this team’s dedication to community service, tallying over 500 hours in six weeks. He said the strong numbers in academics and community service show you how bought in the team is culturally.

“This team has had more hours of community service than any team we’ve ever had here before, and that’s saying a lot because we’ve always taken that very seriously,” Gildersleeve said. “So we had the least amount of time we’ve ever had in the summer, and we have the most community service. What’s that tell you about where the culture is and where these guys are bought in? I think that’s as important as anything else you’ll talk about.”

The Kansas staff challenged the team during the summer, and they responded well. Gildersleeve said the team was mentally tough in a way that past teams haven’t been.

“It was a short six weeks, but very effective. Some teams in the past, if you’d put them through what we put these guys through mentally this offseason—they wouldn’t have come together the way this group has,” Gildersleeve said. “But again, it comes back to that competitive edge. These guys want to win, and they want to do what it takes.”

Leadership council ‘as impactful as anyone we’ve ever had’

Kansas has a leadership council that assists with fostering the culture of the program. Gildersleeve praised their efforts over summer conditioning.

“Our leadership council is as impactful as anyone we’ve ever had,” Gildersleeve said. “And what I mean by that is when they want to get something done, they get it done. That’s why we’ve had such a good summer getting these guys into things. So really outstanding job by our leaders.”

One transfer, Justice Finkley, has already found his way onto the leadership council. Leipold and other coaches have lauded his leadership skills, and Gildersleeve said it’s all about Finkley’s action.

“He is as actionable a human being as you’re going to meet. When you watch him, he just exudes everything we want in this program—from the way he goes about it, his strain, how he brings others along with him,” Gildersleeve said. “To come in and be on a leadership council in a program you’ve been part of for four or five months—that says a lot about your character as a man. He’s been a tremendous asset.”

Calvin Clements is another player on Kansas’ leadership council. The redshirt sophomore has quickly developed both on and off the field, growing into a more vocal leader.

“His approach has totally changed,” Gildersleeve said. “He was a quiet guy when he got here. You could barely get two words out of him. Now he’s on the leadership council, confronting guys when they’re not meeting the standard, uplifting teammates, being vocal. Just the way he operates on a day-to-day basis—he’s had as much growth as anyone.”