LSU Gold

Schexnayder to Lead Strength Training for T&F

by Aaron Hyder
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Schexnayder to Lead Strength Training for T&F

Baton Rouge, La. Boo Schexnayder is back in the Purple and Gold working with the LSU track and field program. Schexnayder, who last coached at LSU in 2007, returns to Baton Rouge to head the strength and conditioning program for track and field.

“To have a chance to come back and work with this program is a great opportunity,” Schexnayder said. “I’m really looking forward to contributing. I really appreciate Coach {Dennis} Shaver and Coach {Tommy} Moffitt and the administration for trusting me with this position and bringing me back here in a different role.

“I’m just excited to be back with LSU track and field. If you look at LSU track and field historically, it’s one of the strongest sports programs in the history of the NCAA. To have a chance to rejoin and play a different role this time is just an extremely exciting thing.”

A world-renowned coach, Schexnayder has 37 years of experience in the track and field coaching realm. His 12-year stint in Baton Rouge from 1995-2007 brought an unprecedented amount of success to LSU’s field events. In 2004 alone, Schexnayder’s athletes combined to win three NCAA titles and earn 12 All-America honors. Schexnayder guided the efforts of the SEC Field Athlete of the Year, John Moffitt, who swept the NCAA Indoor and Outdoor long jump titles before claiming a silver medal in the event for Team USA at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens.

Shifting over to the weight room will be an easy, yet important transition for Schexnayder that will benefit LSU in multiple ways.

“I’ve been working in the weight room a long time as I was coaching track,” Schexnayder noted. “I’ve always employed my own strength training. I’ll be using a lot of the same techniques and philosophies that I’ve implemented over the past 30-plus years. With this position I’ll be able to give our athletes more hands on instruction and attention than they might have had before.

“I want our athletes to be motivated to get better. In the recruiting process they all knew that the weight room was going to be an important part of their program when they got here to LSU. All of them show a big degree of buy in and I just want them to continue to execute that throughout their time here. As long as the motivation is there and they understand that this is an important part of their training program they will be fine.”

Schexnayder coached athletes to 60 All-America honors during his initial 12-year stint in Baton Rouge. His athletes combined to win 19 NCAA individual titles and 43 SEC individual titles. In addition to helping the aforementioned Moffitt to silver at the 2004 Olympic Games, he also guided an LSU great, Walter Davis, to five national titles in a two-year span to go along with the 2002 SEC Male Athlete of the Year award. Davis won both the NCAA indoor and outdoor national titles in 2001 and 2002. Davis added a NCAA long jump outdoor title to his resume in 2002 as well. Davis won world titles in outdoor triple jump in 2005 and indoor triple jump in 2006.

This past spring and summer, Schexnayder worked with U20 world champion Jake Norris in the hammer throw. Norris took third at the NCAA Outdoor Championships in June with a school record heave of 73.24 meters (240-03). He then went on to claim the world U20 title in July while representing Great Britain.

A native of Vacherie, La., Schexnayder earned both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees at Nicholls State University. He graduated cum laude with a B.S. in physical education in 1983 and later added a master’s degree in administration and supervision in 1988, also earning cum laude honors.