LA Rams name Justin Lovett as new “get back” coach

The LA Rams find a new “Get Back coach!” in hiring new strength and conditioning coach Justin Lovett

The LA Rams have finally filled their most important vacancy of the coaching staff. Justin Lovett, former Purdue Boilermakers’ Director of Strength and Conditioning, will assume the role vacated by Ted Rath.  Besides filling the vacated role of Director of Strength Training and Performance, Lovett will also likely be expected to keep head coach Sean McVay out of the path of side judges during NFL games.

That role has been affectionately named the “Get Back, Coach!” role. And that responsibility will now fall to Coach Lovett.

The Rams have big plans for Lovett and his team already laid out.  Player injuries have been linked to the performance of strength and conditioning staff on NFL teams. After several years of below-average numbers of team injuries, the Rams paid the overdue price with an onslaught of injuries, many of which affected the offensive line.  Preventing injuries, getting young players into NFL shape, and coordinating with the positional coaches to ensure players are training to maximize their roles on the team, will all likely be on Lovett’s plate almost instantly.

Lovett has great pride in what he does and is clear about what he can do, and can’t do, with athletes.  He doesn’t see his job as making players the strongest or the fastest, but most importantly, the most durable:

"“In Year 2, we didn’t have as many injuries. I think we tapped into something where we knew what we had more in our players and they adapted nicely. We adapted our systems to them, and those changes we made in terms of the speed and power and on the field, position-specific work, and conditioning, those changes put these players in position to be durable. We were thin at spots all season long, but we were durable.” – John Lovett per Brian Neubert of GoldandBlack.com"

That’s the greatest responsibility for this role for 2020. But he is also a specialist in developing raw players into the athletes needed to perform on the field. With the Rams fettered with less available cap space than some NFL teams, that is another excellent reason to bring him onboard the Rams.

Lovett has enjoyed a robust career in football so far. He is leaving his role with the Purdue Boilermakers where he was hired on in 2016.  Lovett was also part of the University of Georgia coaching staff during running back Todd Gurley’s time as a Bulldog.

His NFL experience came with the Denver Broncos, where he served as both an intern and later as an assistant coach from 2009-2012. Lovett has earned credentials with the  Collegiate Strength and Conditioning Coaches Association (Strength and Conditioning Coach Certified), the National Strength and Conditioning Association (Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist) and the National Academy of Sports Medicine (Performance Enhancement Specialist and Corrective Exercise Specialist).