Lifetime Achievement
John Gamble
The Champions Award
Barry Rubin
Kansas City Chiefs
NFL Strength and Conditioning Coach of the Year
Ted Rath
Philadelphia Eagles
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.
Barry Rubin enters his 10th season as the Chiefs strength and conditioning coach in 2022. Rubin has played a critical role during his previous nine seasons with the club, implementing and maintaining a strength and conditioning program throughout the year that prepared the team for nine-consecutive winning seasons, including a franchise-best 14-2 record in 2020, earning the club six-consecutive AFC West Division Championships, two-consecutive AFC Championship titles and the first back-to-back Super Bowl appearances in franchise history. He joined the Chiefs after serving the previous three seasons in the same capacity with the Philadelphia Eagles (2010-12). Prior to being promoted to the Eagles Head Strength and Conditioning Coach in 2010, he was an assistant for two years (2008-09). Before his move to Philadelphia, he spent seven years as the head strength and conditioning coach (1999-2005) and four years as an assistant for the Green Bay Packers (1995-98). During his tenure in Green Bay, the Packers earned six division titles, two NFC championship titles and a Super Bowl XXXI victory under Head Coach Mike Holmgren. He also served as a strength coach at Northeast Louisiana (1982-83, 1987-90 and 1994) and LSU (1984-85).
Ted Rath originally joined the Philadelphia Eagles as the team's director of sports performance during the 2020 offseason and was promoted to vice president of player performance in 2021. Prior to coming to Philadelphia, Rath spent three seasons (2017-19) with the Los Angeles Rams. He began his stint with the Rams as the head strength and conditioning coach before being named director of strength training and performance in 2018. In 2017, Rath was named the Strength Coach of the Year by the Professional Football Strength and Conditioning Coaches Association, an award voted on by the league's strength and conditioning coaches. According to Football Outsiders, Los Angeles finished as the healthiest team in the NFL based on adjusted games lost due to injury. Before his stint with the Rams, Rath spent one season as the assistant strength and conditioning coach for the Miami Dolphins (2016) and seven seasons in the same role with the Detroit Lions (2009-15). Rath played linebacker at the University of Toledo from 2003-06 and went on to be the assistant director of strength and conditioning at his alma mater in 2008 before entering the NFL.