Coaches, please vote for your choices for the NFL Strength & Conditioning Coach of the Year below.
John Gamble was the Head Strength and Conditioning Coach at the University of Virginia for 10 years after spending three seasons as an assistant to his mentor, Bill Dunn. In 1985, Gamble was named Strength Coach of the Year by the National Strength and Conditioning Association. In 1994, he became the strength and conditioning coach for the Miami Dolphins under head coach Don Shula, and remained at the post for 12 years through 2005. In 1998, he was named the Professional Strength Coaches Society Coach of the Year. John finished his NFL career spending 3 years with the Buffalo Bills as the co-strength and conditioning coordinator, culminating a 28-year career. Gamble was also a world-renowned powerlifter and strongman. He was the top ranked powerlifter in the world in the 275-pound class from 1981 to 1983, and competed twice in the final of the World’s Strongest Man competition (1982, 1983). John played linebacker at Hampton Institute (now University), where he became a first-team Black College All-American and was honored by the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association in football and track and field.
Dan Riley began his Strength and Conditioning coaching career as the strength and conditioning coach for four years at the United States Military Academy at West Point. He then spent five years at Penn State as their strength coach. In 1982 he joined the Washington Redskins as their strength coach where he served as an integral part of three Super Bowl champions and four NFC champions. He then went on to become the Houston Texans first strength and conditioning coach in 2001 and remained there until 2007 completing 27 NFL seasons. After coaching in the NFL, he moved on to becoming the strength and conditioning educator for the Memorial Hermann Sports Medicine Institute in Texas.
Rich Tuten had a 32-year career as a strength & conditioning coach working with 3 different programs. He began his career as an assistant at the University of Florida, but was promoted to Head Strength Coach after one season. He held that position for 7 years before taking the same position at the University of North Carolina. Following a 5-year stint at UNC, Rich returned to Gainesville, where he again oversaw the physical development of the Florida Gators. In 1995, he moved to Denver, spending his entire 17-year NFL career as the strength and conditioning coach for the Denver Broncos. During his tenure, the team won Super Bowls XXXII and XXXIII. As a player, Rich was a 3-year letterman for the Clemson Tigers, where he earned his bachelor’s degree in Therapeutic Recreation.
