By Training camp week one. The sophomore quarterback — I need to start calling him by name, which is Marco, though he goes by Marco to distinguish him from my son Marco, so the team calls him QB Marco or just QB — had the kind of camp week that happens once in a coaching career if you're lucky. He was operating at a level in the first padded practice that I've only seen in players who go on to play at the next level. I told my offensive coordinator after practice: "We have something here." He said, "You're not wrong." We didn't say anything else about it because the season hasn't started yet.
I started the team meetings this week with a longer opening than usual. I talked about what happened last year with the grief conversations, about how I'd come to believe that the ability to show up fully in football requires you to show up fully in life, and that showing up fully in life means not leaving the hard things in the parking lot while you come in and pretend. A few of the guys who'd been through last year were nodding. The new freshmen were still figuring out the room. By Friday's practice, the room had a different quality — a readiness that's hard to describe but unmistakable to a coach who's been in football rooms for fifteen years. Something was there.
Made green chile cheeseburgers for the coaching staff Friday after practice. This is a training camp tradition I've maintained since I got to this school. Bring the food, feed the staff, remind everyone that we're in this together and the work is worth it. The burgers are always good. The company is always right. Football is a team sport in more ways than the obvious ones.
Friday after practice, feeding the staff is less about the food itself and more about the signal it sends — that we slow down, we sit together, and we acknowledge what we’re building. This week especially, after a room that found its readiness and a quarterback who reminded me why I got into coaching, I wanted something hearty and unfussy that matched the mood: no pretense, just good food shared by people who earned it. These BBQ Hot Dog & Potato Packs are exactly that — throw them together, let the heat do the work, and sit down with your people.
BBQ Hot Dog & Potato Packs
Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 30 min | Total Time: 45 min | Servings: 6
Ingredients
- 6 beef hot dogs, sliced into 1/2-inch rounds
- 1 1/2 lbs baby potatoes, halved
- 1 medium yellow onion, sliced
- 1 medium green bell pepper, chopped
- 1/2 cup BBQ sauce
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- Heavy-duty aluminum foil
Instructions
- Preheat. Preheat your grill to medium-high heat (about 400°F), or preheat your oven to 400°F if cooking indoors.
- Par-cook the potatoes. Place the halved baby potatoes in a microwave-safe bowl with 2 tablespoons of water. Cover and microwave for 4–5 minutes until just slightly tender but not fully cooked. Drain and set aside.
- Mix the filling. In a large bowl, combine the sliced hot dogs, par-cooked potatoes, onion, and bell pepper. Drizzle with olive oil and BBQ sauce. Season with garlic powder, smoked paprika, salt, and pepper. Toss until everything is evenly coated.
- Build the packs. Cut 6 large sheets of heavy-duty foil, each about 18 inches long. Divide the hot dog and potato mixture evenly among the foil sheets, piling it in the center of each. Fold the sides up and over, then crimp the edges tightly to seal each pack completely.
- Cook. Place the foil packs on the grill or on a baking sheet in the oven. Cook for 25–30 minutes, flipping once at the halfway point if grilling, until the potatoes are fully tender and the edges are beginning to caramelize.
- Serve. Carefully open each pack (steam will escape — open away from your face). Serve directly in the foil with extra BBQ sauce on the side if desired.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 370 | Protein: 11g | Fat: 20g | Carbs: 36g | Fiber: 3g | Sodium: 820mg