Clemson’s Rick Hill Earns NSCA All-American Strength & Conditioning Award

April 13, 2004

CLEMSON, SC – Clemson men’s track and field stand-out Rick Hill was named a 2004 NSCA All-American Strength and Conditioning Athlete of the Year. The NSCA All-American Strength and Conditioning Athletes of the Year program recognizes those collegiate athletes, whose athletic accomplishments, in the opinion of their strength coach, reflect their dedication to strength training and conditioning. These athletes are also recognized for their academic and personal accomplishments and their integrity as student athletes. Hill is the first men’s track and field student athlete at Clemson to earn this accolade.

Hill, a graduate student from Chapel Hill, NC, is the Tigers’ all-time leader in the heptathlon indoor and is fourth on Clemson’s all-time list in the decathlon outdoor. Hill captured the inaugural ACC heptathlon title at the conference meet in 2004, after winning the decathlon title at the ACC Outdoor Championships in 2003. Hill advanced to the NCAA Championships in the heptathlon this season, and competed at the NCAA Outdoor Championships in the decathlon a year ago. He made his first appearance at the national meet in 2002 as a member of the Tigers’ 4x400m relay team. Hill also earned All-ACC honors in the decathlon that year, finishing second in the event.

Tanna Burge, a strength and conditioning coach for the Tigers said the following of Hill: “Rick has had an incredible career at Clemson. He walked on the team his freshman year as an average athlete and through his dedication and hard work has become one of the top decathletes in the nation. Rick won the 2002 ACC Championship in the decathlon and has competed at Nationals for the last three years. The two time team captain earned his degree in Marketing with a 3.6 GPA and has been selected as an Academic All-American three straight years. Rick is now working towards his graduate degree and another ACC Championship. Rick is proof that hard work in the weight room can make you a better athlete.”

Hill’s personal bests in the weight room include 295 pounds in the bench press, 370 pounds in the squat, a vertical jump of 30.5″ and a time of 4.5 in the 40-yard dash.