Lifetime Achievement Award
Jerry Palmieri
NFL Strength and Conditioning Coach of the Year
Ted Rath
Los Angeles Rams
The Champions Award
Josh Hingst
Philadelphia Eagles
Jerry Palmieri spent 34 years coaching athletes in strength & conditioning at the collegiate and NFL levels. Beginning his career in 1982, he had tenures at the University of North Carolina, Oklahoma State, Kansas State, and Boston College. In 1995, he became the first strength & conditioning coach for the Jacksonville Jaguars, spent one year with the New Orleans Saints, and finished the last 12 years of his coaching career with the New York Giants, where he was a part of staffs that won 2 Super Bowl Championships. Palmieri was recognized with Coach of the Year honors by the Professional Strength and Conditioning Coaches Society in 1999, and then again by Samson in 2007. Since 2011, Palmieri has been an integral part of coordinating the activities of the Professional Football Strength and Conditioning Coaches Association, along with providing educational opportunities through Gatorade. Since retiring from the NFL, Jerry volunteers for the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and teaches workshops on 3 Dimensional Coaching.
Ted Rath joined the Los Angeles Rams last year as a first time Head Strength & Conditioning Coach in the NFL. Prior to the Rams, he spent eight seasons as an assistant strength coach for the Miami Dolphins (2016) and Detroit Lions (2009-15). Prior to Detroit, Rath was an assistant director of strength and conditioning at his alma mater, Toledo, where he directed the strength and conditioning programs for all 15 of the school’s Olympic sports. He also assisted with all phases of football training, including design and implementation of its workouts. As a graduate assistant at Toledo, Rath designed strength programs for men’s basketball, baseball, track, cross country, golf and swimming. He began his professional career at Crestwood High School (Dearborn Heights, Mich.) where he served as an assistant football coach and directed the school’s speed and strength training. He is certified through the Collegiate Strength and Conditioning Coaches Association (C.S.C.C.A.), has written articles for several industry publications and speaks regularly at conferences and football camps.
Josh Hingst has been the Eagles’ strength and conditioning coach since 2013. He spent the previous season as the assistant strength and conditioning coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars. Prior to joining the Jaguars in 2012, Hingst previously spent three years (2009-11) as the director of sports nutrition at Nebraska and also spent the 2008 season with the Atlanta Falcons as the team’s nutritionist. At Nebraska, Hingst directed body composition analysis, nutrition education, performance fueling strategies and counseling for sports supplements and hydration. In addition, he coordinated menus and education at the Nebraska training table and planned meals on the road for various Nebraska teams. He is a registered dietitian and a certified strength and conditioning specialist. Before his stint in Atlanta, Hingst spent five years in strength and conditioning and sports nutrition capacities at Florida State, where he earned his master’s degree in clinical nutrition with an emphasis in sports nutrition. A native of Hooper, NE, Hingst received his bachelor’s degrees in nutritional sciences and dietetics and exercise science from Nebraska in 2001. He also served as an assistant strength and conditioning coach for the Huskers while enrolled as a student.