Ass't AD for Performance Enhancement, University of Maryland
In his second season as the Director of Performance Enhancement for the 31 intercollegiate sports at Penn State, Dwight Galt brings three decades of experience to the Nittany Lion nation. Galt began his career in 1984 at the University of Maryland where he worked with the Terrapins football and basketball teams while simultaneously completing his Master of Science degree in Exercise Physiology. In 1993 Galt became the Head Strength Coach for all of Maryland�¢??s 27 sports, where he worked specifically with the football program in all areas of their physical and nutritional preparation.
During his nearly 27 years at the University of Maryland, Galt was a big part of helping the Terrapins earn 10 post season bowl invitations, as well as earning a reputation of assisting with the placement of numerous Terps on NFL rosters. During his last 10 years at Maryland, the Terps traditionally had 30 plus former players on final NFL rosters every year and typically ranked in the top 10 in this category among their Division I peer institutions.
In December, 2010, Coach Galt left Maryland to join James Franklin at Vanderbilt University where he assumed the role of Director of Performance Enhancement for football. Inheriting a program that had been to only four bowl games in over 100 years, Galt hit the ground running with the installation of his aggressive program which focused on foundational strength/power training, in conjunction with an intensive speed/agility initiative. The Commodores responded with three consecutive bowl appearances and back to back 9 win seasons in 2012 and 2013.
In January, 2014, James Franklin accepted the Head Football Coach position at Penn State and Galt once again followed him, assuming the role of Director of Performance Enhancement for all 31 Nittany Lion varsity sports. With Penn State�¢??s six recently renovated intercollegiate weight training facilities and their amazing practice facilities, Galt and his staff of 14 full time strength coaches diligently prepare the Nittany Lion student-athletes in all areas of preparation. The strength staff designs and administers dynamic and diverse strength and power training, speed enhancement, flexibility, conditioning, and agility training programs to maximize each athlete�¢??s athleticism. To bridge the gap between preparation and competition, the Penn State performance enhancement staff also focuses on sport specificity, nutrition, and injury prevention to aggressively prepare each athlete for intercollegiate competition.
Coach Galt is one of a select group to be certified as a Master Strength and Conditioning Coach (MSCC) by the Collegiate Strength and Conditioning Association. A native of Silver Spring, Md, Galt earned both his bachelors, (1981) and masters, (1989) degrees from the University of Maryland. Galt and his wife Jan have been married for 36 years and have four children: Angie, 31, Teri, 30, and twin sons Dwight IV and Tommy, 27. Both daughters played intercollegiate sports: Angie as a softball catcher at Brown University, and Teri as an all-conference soccer defender at Frostburg University (Md). Dwight IV and Tommy played football at the University of Maryland from 2005 to 2009 and remain active as coaches. Dwight IV works with his father at Penn State as an Assistant Director of Performance Enhancement, and Tommy is currently the Tight End graduate assistant football coach at Penn State.
