Vols name Gullickson director of strength and conditioning

Published Jan. 10, 2017 4:49 p.m. ET

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) Tennessee has hired former NFL strength coach Rock Gullickson as its director of strength and conditioning.

Vols coach Butch Jones said In a release Tuesday that he has ''personally known Rock for more than 20 years and know what he stands for as a coach and a person.''

Gullickson said their history goes back to 1990 at Rutgers, where he was working as head strength coach while Jones was a graduate assistant. Gullickson was part of Jones' wedding party.

''I want to help him achieve his goals, the University of Tennessee football's goals and help these kids win a championship,'' Gullickson said.

In addition to his football duties, Gullickson will oversee strength and conditioning for all 20 of the school's sports programs. Gullickson, 61, agreed to terms on a two-year contract worth $375,000 annually.

Gullickson most recently was head strength coach of the Los Angeles Rams, a position he held for eight years dating to when the franchise was in St. Louis.

He also worked for the New Orleans Saints (2000-05) and Green Bay Packers (2006-08). Gullickson has spent 22 seasons with college programs, including stints at Rutgers (1990-92), Texas (1993-97) and Louisville (1998-99).

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AP college football website: www.collegefootball.ap.org