Sources: Oklahoma shaking up strength staff

Longtime Oklahoma strength coach Jerry Schmidt is shifting to a role as Elite Performance Liaison, sources confirmed to OUInsider.com on Friday. OUInsider.com’s Brandon Drumm apprised members of the news earlier Friday afternoon.

OUInsider.com had previously reported in late December that Schmidt was unlikely to return to his role as strength coach, and that assistant strength coach James Dobson was likely to replace him. In his second stint with Oklahoma, Schmidt had served as the Sooners’ director of sports performance since the 2022 season.

The 63-year-old was one of the first hires that Brent Venables made upon taking over as Oklahoma’s head football coach in December of 2021. Schmidt had previously been Oklahoma’s strength coach from 1999-2017, but after Lincoln Riley chose to replace him with Bennie Wylie prior to the 2018 campaign, he took a job on staff at Texas A&M. There, Schmidt worked as the Aggie football program’s strength coach from 2018-21.

A native of Harvard, Neb., Schmidt had previously worked on strength and conditioning staffs at Oklahoma State, Notre Dame and Florida. He was the strength coach for the Irish from 1989-94, then worked the same role with the Gators from 1995-98, where he overlapped with Bob Stoops. He followed Stoops to Oklahoma in 1999 and became a revered figure in the OU football realm in the ensuing years, as his intense workouts proved integral to Oklahoma’s sustained gridiron success throughout the 2000’s. The term “Schmitty Built” became a widely circulated catchphrase among players that improved their individual performances via his grueling regimen.

In confirmation of OUInsider.com’s original report, sources also indicate that OU will promote Dobson to succeed Schmidt. He’s been on Oklahoma’s strength staff since 2022 as Schmidt’s right-hand man, and his official title is Associate Director of Sport Enhancement. Prior to joining the OU staff, Dobson previously served as the head strength coach at Nebraska (2008-14) and Vanderbilt (2015-20). He’s a graduate of Central Michigan University.

CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story indicated that Schmidt’s title would be Chief of Staff; a university spokesperson clarified that his title will be Elite Performance Liaison.

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