Feb. 2—GRAND FORKS — UND has hired Derek Stein as the Director of Strength and Conditioning, the school announced Friday afternoon.
Stein fills the role vacated by longtime UND strength coach
Nate Baukol, who didn't have his contract renewed following the 2023 football season.
"Derek brings a wealth of experience to our department and we are looking forward to the guidance he will provide our student-athletes," said UND Head of Sports Medicine Steve Westereng.
Stein joins the Fighting Hawks after spending the past three seasons as the Director of Football Performance at Eastern Illinois.
He also spent time as a strength and conditioning graduate assistant with the Panthers from 2017 to 2019, primarily working with baseball, men's soccer and the track and field throwers, while assisting with the football and track and field teams.
As the Director of Football Performance, Stein worked closely with the head coach to develop and adjust practice plan structure and phases and implement performance training plans that were position-specific to individual needs, according to a UND release.
Stein also worked hand-in-hand with the athletic training staff to develop comprehensive return-to-play protocols for injured athletes. Using different forms of training such as Enode Pro Velocity Based Training and Titan GPS Technology, Stein was able to track and monitor athlete's strength, power and speed data to ensure targeted adaptations were taking place. Stein also assisted with Panther football recruiting visits with presentations on the EIU Football Performance Program.
In between his stints at Eastern Illinois, Stein spent time with Louisiana Tech and Northwestern State University as an assistant strength and conditioning coach. Over those two years, he gained experience working with several teams including women's basketball, volleyball, women's soccer, golf, tennis, bowling and softball. He was also responsible for the hiring process of strength and conditioning interns at Louisiana Tech, and as the internship coordinator at Northwestern State he created the curriculum in conjunction with the NSU director of strength and conditioning.
Stein holds certifications and memberships as an NSCA Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist and is AHA Heartsaver CPR and AED certified.
Stein earned his master's degree in kinesiology and sports studies with a sports administration concentration. He holds a bachelor's degree in health, fitness and recreation resources with a kinesiology concentration from George Mason University.
The Fairfax, Va., native played four years of club football at George Mason and served as a football and wrestling coach at local schools as an undergraduate at GMU.