For the first time ever, the Wayne State athletic program has a specialized strength and conditioning coach.

Grant Darnell received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Recreation, Tourism and Sports Management at Lindsey Wilson College in Kentucky in May 2013 and obtained a Master’s Degree in Exercise Science and Sport Management from Louisiana Monroe in August 2015.

Prior to coming to Wayne State, Darnell was the assistant strength and conditioning coach at Kent State University.

“I came to Wayne State for the opportunity to be a head coach,” Darnell said. “I come from a small college and I understand the impact I can make. I work with 10 percent of the students here on a regular basis.”

Darnell is from Mt. Sterling, Ky., near Lexington. He played football and basketball in high school. He was selected to the All-State football team as a defensive end and went on to play defensive end at Lindsay Wilson College.

Darnell has been the assistant strength and conditioning coach at four Division I colleges—Murray State, Western Kentucky, Louisiana-Monroe and Kent State.

“Coach Darnell has the quality of experience,” said Wayne State Athletic Director Mike Powicki. “He is very knowledgeable about the technical aspect of strength and conditioning and understands the physiology. He is up to speed on current techniques and has the ability to work with all sorts of sports, both men and women.”

A representative hiring committee of Wayne State coaches and administration was responsible for choosing Darnell.

“The specific skills and knowledge of a strength and conditioning coach are something you can’t replace with other coaches,” Powicki said.

Along with hiring a strength and conditioning coach, Wayne State added new equipment to its weight lifting facility.

“We have a top notch weight room,” Darnell said. “We did a better job replacing and adding equipment than a Division I college I was at.”

The weight room for Wayne State athletic teams is located below the football grand stands. Weight lifting and conditioning are important aspects for all sports and every team uses the weight room on a regular basis.

“The two main goals of weight lifting are injury prevention and greater power output,” Darnell said.

Darnell sees his position not only as a job to build stronger and faster athletes, but also to motivate them.

“I work with people–weights are just a tool,” Darnell said. “I want to make men and women better people. My job is to motivate.”