Huskers’ strength coach receives honor from FootballScoop

Nebraska strength and conditioning coach Zach Duval was named the ‘Strength and Conditioning Coach of the Year’ by Football Scoop on Thursday.

UCF completed one of the most historic turnarounds in college football history, going from 0-12 in 2015 to a perfect 13-0 in 2017. They’re the only program to go from winless to undefeated in just two years.

Head coach Scott Frost told Football Scoop that the remarkable turnaround wouldn’t have been possible without the strength and training his players received under Duval.

“Zach deserves this award,” Frost said. “The transformation of our team in two years that he engineered is unbelievable. We have also been the healthiest team in the country this year because of how he’s trained our players. I can’t imagine that anyone has done a better job.”

A UNL and Lincoln Southeast alum, Duval worked on Nebraska’s strength and conditioning staff from 1994-2002 and then again in 2008.

Before joining Frost in Orlando, Duval was the director of sports performance at Wyoming in 2013 and ’14. While at Wyoming, Duval was certified as a Master Strength and Conditioning Coach by the Collegiate Strength and Conditioning Coaches Association; the highest honor given in the strength and conditioning coaching profession.

Duval was also the director of sports performance for the Buffalo Bills from 2010-2013, and director of athletics performance at Creighton in 2009. He worked in the private business from 2003-2007, where he founded the XPlosive Edge Performance Center in Omaha, and later co-owned and managed The Performance and Wellness Institute in Colorado.