The Two Man Game – September 24, 2026 – Preventing offseason burnout, Langston update and more! The season is almost here!

The first official practice of the college basketball season is determined by a “mathematical formula”: 42 days before the first game, minus 12 mandatory off days. That leaves exactly 30 practices, scrimmages, or exhibition games before the season opener. For University of Northern Colorado head coach Steve Smiley, that math landed on September 21st, 2026. But by the time his team hit the court for practice number one, they had already logged 45 full team workouts over the summer and fall. The season is close enough to feel, but far enough that Smiley is already thinking hard about how to keep his players from burning out before November.

The Burnout Math: 45 Practices Before Practice

Smiley walks through the arithmetic with host Brady Hall. Over the summer, the Bears held 31 constricted workouts. Then they added 3 of a possible 10 “four-inter” practices (Smiley deliberately kept the number low). Another 11 full fall workouts brought the total to 45 before official practice even began. “If you don’t love this, you’re not going to make it,” Smiley says, but even players who love it need breaks. He gave the team four days off over Labor Day weekend. Sundays are a non-negotiable off day—“I really believe in trying to take Sundays off and getting some structure in all of our lives.” He also builds in midweek off days, like Wednesday of the first official practice week. The log