Build Above the noise
James Acree
I’m building a system for high performance = one that connects, data, discipline and resilience across, sport, science and life. I’m an athlete, analyst and creator working at the edge of endurance, adaptation and mindset. This is the start.
- ABOUT -
Hi — I'm James. Thanks for stopping by.I’m 14 and building something a little different. By day, I’m a student, footballer, field goal kicker, and endurance athlete. By night (and early morning), I’m a sports science researcher, Substack writer, tactical analyst, and founder of two global performance projects: Tactical Thermals and Common Pitch. I also hold an HTML & CSS Coding Specialist certification — a small but important step in building the platforms I now prototype for Tactical Thermals and Common Pitch.My current research, Tactical Thermals, is a data-driven project built for submission to the MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference. It models how heat, altitude, and air quality affect tactics, performance, injury risk, and betting markets in elite football — using over 2,500 matches and a new metric suite I designed myself.But not everything I do is about data.I’m also building Common Pitch — a global football and community initiative rooted in access, connection, and shared opportunity. It’s built on the belief that talent is everywhere, but opportunity isn’t. We’re creating ways to bring elite training, open science insights, and new voices to under-resourced communities. That means running youth-led combines, publishing multilingual content, and eventually launching a DAO-backed ecosystem that gives power back to the next generation of players and coaches — not the federations.Some fun facts about me:I'm striving to hit 75-yard American football kickoffs with either foot.I’m chasing a sub-5:00 mile, a 320-yard golf drive, and 20 reps of 225 on bench.I’ve trained at Ajax, walked the fairways at Pebble Beach and sailed Lake Como.I use WHOOP, Garmin and STATSports to track recovery, sprint output and environmental load.I’ve read Inverting the Pyramid, Heart of Darkness, and The Book of Five Rings — and I’m writing a book of my own: Blood, Sweat and Boots.I believe in grit over hype, data over ego, and building over waiting.This is just the start. I’m not here to chase clout — I’m here to outwork it.Journey So Far:
A living record of what I’m building — and where it’s taken me:2025
▪ Selected for the highly competitive Harvard International Relations Scholars Program — one of the youngest participants — deepening my understanding of diplomacy, power, and global systems
▪ Completed the Harvard AI Bootcamp, a selective program focused on applying machine learning and AI tools to real-world problems
▪ Leveled up via DeepLearning.AI’s Prompt Engineering for Developers — now teaching LLMs to talk tactics and build smarter, faster workflows
▪ Earned the CFA Investment Foundations® Certificate — building a foundation in financial systems that’s shaping how I approach funding for Common Pitch and market analysis in Tactical Thermals.
▪ Earned a Palantir Foundry certification, gaining hands-on experience modeling and analyzing complex datasets for high-stakes decision-making
▪ Completed Y Combinator’s Startup School, gaining practical startup insights that are actively shaping how I build and scale Tactical Thermals and Common Pitch.
▪ Took the first step in my coaching journey with the EE Playermaker by England Football course, refining how I interpret and optimize player performance data
▪ Won the Weston Cup — beating top national competition, including a standout victory against a premier Jamaican side
▪ Earned my soccer referee license, stepping into a leadership and decision-making role on the pitch2024
▪ Helped win the Florida State Cup (U13) — scoring the game-winner in the semifinal and converting in both shootouts2023 & Earlier
▪ Trained at Ajax’s De Toekomst Academy in 2022 and 2023 — one of the world’s most respected development environments for young footballers