Episode #153: Matt Rodriguez

Matt Rodriguez is the Associate Head Strength & Conditioning Coach at Sacred Heart University. He returned to SHU in 2022 where he directly oversees all aspects of sports performance for both men’s basketball and men’s lacrosse, and assists with the football program. Rodriguez first served as a graduate assistant strength coach at Sacred Heart from 2016-2018 where his responsibilities included baseball, women’s rugby, track and field throwers, bowling, equestrian, and cheerleading as well as assisting with football and men’s basketball. Before returning to SHU, Rodriguez was the Associate Director of Strength & Conditioning and Head of Baseball Sports Performance at Campbell University from 2018-2022 where he helped propel the CU baseball team to reach three Big South Conference Championships that led to three straight NCAA Regional appearances, in addition to having trained 11 MLB draft picks including three first-rounders. He also coached the Camels track and field throwers and assisted with the football program. Rodriguez got his start coaching at Top Speed Performance School in Pennsylvania in 2012 while completing his undergrad degree. He spent four years coaching in the private sector before stepping into the collegiate space as an intern at the University of Pennsylvania from 2015-2016.

A former college athlete, Rodriguez was as an infielder on the Montclair State University baseball team. Rodriguez is still very active himself in the weight room and trains 5-6x per week while balancing the rigors of the collegiate coaching schedule. He is an avid lifter and enjoys traveling with his wife when he is not training in the weight room. He has previously competed in Olympic weightlifting.