NCAA to Investigate Strength Coach Certification, Oversight

During the Big 12 Conference’s media event on Monday, league commissioner and chairman of the NCAA Division I Football Oversight Committee Bob Bowlsby said that the governing body will examine the certification of NCAA strength and conditioning coaches.

Specifically, the NCAA will look into certification processes and hiring practices, as well as subsequent oversight after hiring, according to FootballScoop.com.

“There are two strength and conditioning organizations nationally,” Bowlsby said during the press event. “Neither of them have tremendously strong certification processes. We don’t have any state certification on what happens with strength and conditioning coaches, what their academic preparation is, what their standards are, how often they have to be re-certified and the like,” he continued.

The news comes at a time when there have been high-profile mishaps at the collegiate level, including a case where three Oregon football players were hospitalized for rhabdomyolysis, a condition where muscle tissue breaks down and can cause liver damage, following an offseason workout. The strength and conditioning coach in that case was suspended for a month.

From AB: Oregon Suspends Coach Over Rhabdo Episode

“I think all it will do is, once again, make it a safer environment for student-athletes because, when you look at the catastrophic occurrences that are happening in the sport, the deaths are happening during conditioning and offseason practice,” Bowlsby said. “Very few of them are happening during the season, during contact, during regular preparation.”

From AB: Overly Aggressive Workouts Put Athletes at Risk of Rhabdomyolysis