Rusty Whitt - Football Coach - Troy University Athletics

Rusty Whitt

Title:
Football Strength & Conditioning Head Coach
Email:
jmorgan@Troy.edu
Phone:
3682

Rusty Whitt begins his fourth season as Troy's head football strength and conditioning coach following one season at Army and three years at Texas Tech.

In 2022, the Trojans finished the season ranked in a major poll for the first time in program history, checking in at No. 19 in the AP Top 25 and No. 20 in the USA Today/Coaches Poll. Additionally, Troy's appearance in the Coaches Poll and College Football Playoff Poll after its Sun Belt Championship Game victory were also firsts for the program.

Troy hosted and appeared in the Sun Belt Championship Game for the first time, reached the 12-win mark at the FBS level for the first time and hosted Army in front of a Veterans Memorial Stadium record crowd of more than 31,000 fans.

Whitt spent the 2019 season as the assistant football strength and conditioning coach at Army following three seasons as the head strength and conditioning coach for the Texas Tech football program from 2016-18.

Whitt oversaw a staff of three full-time assistants as well as a graduate assistant. Whitt’s staff also worked closely with the Texas Tech athletic training and nutrition programs.

In addition to his expertise in the weight room, Whitt comes to Troy following a decorated career as a Special Forces Sergeant in the United States Army. He served as a Senior Special Forces Communication Sergeant in the 10th Special Forces Group and was a member of the U.S. Army from August 2003 to January 2009 where he was deployed to Iraq as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) V and VI.

Whitt developed and initiated a comprehensive pre-deployment conditioning program for his Special Forces Team prior to and during OIF V and VI. He received a combat infantry badge, two Iraqi campaign medals and an Army commendation medal with valor.

Prior to his arrival at Texas Tech, Whitt spent six seasons as the head strength and conditioning coach at Louisiana. The Ragin’ Cajuns won the 2013 Sun Belt Conference title and four straight New Orleans Bowls during his tenure.

Whitt was hired at Louisiana following a year-long stint as an assistant strength and conditioning coach at Rice where he designed and implemented year-round strength, speed, mobility, cardiovascular conditioning and injury rehabilitation programs for football, baseball, swimming as well as track and field.

Prior to joining the US Army, Whitt was the head strength and conditioning coach at Sam Houston State where he served as an instructor in the kinesiology department and assisted in the design of a new weight facility. He started his tenure at Sam Houston State in December 1998.

Whitt began his strength and conditioning career with graduate assistantships at Midwestern State and Texas. He also performed an internship in the strength and conditioning department at the U.S. Olympic Training Center.

Whitt earned his bachelor’s degree in police science and administration from Abilene Christian in 1994 and his master’s degree in kinesiology from Texas in 1997. He was a four-year letterman and three-year starter in football at Abilene Christian and is a certified strength and conditioning specialist through the National Strength and Conditioning Association.