Clete McLeod was named head strength and conditioning coach at USD in early 2018. He joins the pack with nearly 20 years of experience in the field. He spent the two years prior working as associate head strength and conditioning coach for Nebraska Cornhusker football, and spent the previous five years as the head strength coach at his alma mater, Southern Illinois. He totaled five more years from Oregon State, Southeast Missouri State and Northern Illinois, and has been coaching high-level athletes since 2001.

McLeod has proven knowledge in the science and practice of power-athlete development and injury management, and a deep understanding of sports nutrition and recovery. He has coached in the Ohio Valley, Missouri Valley, MAC, Pac-12, and, most recently, the Big Ten Conferences. He has developed and implemented multi-year training programs for future NFL, NBA, MLB and Olympic athletes.

McLeod grew up in Assumption, Illinois, where we began working on his family’s farm at an early age. He was a multi-sport athlete in high school, and joined the Army upon graduation. He served three years as an Airborne Infantryman in Georgia before starting school at Southern Illinois. There, he earned bachelor’s degrees in exercise science as well as food & nutrition, and a master’s degree in physical education, studying exercise physiology.

McLeod is a National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) certified strength and conditioning specialist *Distinguished, a USA Weightlifting certified club coach, and USA Track & Field Level 1 coach.