May 11, 2004

EAST LANSING, Mich. - Tommy Hoke, who served as head strength and conditioning coach at Appalachian State for the last five years, has been named associate head strength and conditioning coach at Michigan State, Spartan second-year head football coach John L. Smith announced Tuesday, May 11. Hoke, a certified strength and conditioning specialist by the National Strength and Conditioning Association, officially joined the Spartan staff on Monday, April 26, replacing former assistant strength and conditioning coach Aaron Wellman, who accepted the top position at Ball State last January.

The 36-year-old Hoke comes to Michigan State following eight seasons at Appalachian State (1996-2003), including three years as an assistant before being promoted to head strength and conditioning coach in 1999 by head football coach Jerry Moore. In his role as head strength and conditioning coach, he organized workouts for Appalachian State's 20 varsity sports.

Hoke played an integral part in helping Appalachian State football to a combined record of 67-30 (.691) from 1996-2003, including a 48-16 record (.750) in Southern Conference games. The Mountaineers made five straight appearances in the NCAA I-AA playoffs from 1998-2002. Since 2001, 13 former Appalachian State players have been invited to National Football League training camps.

"We conducted a national search for this position and without question, we found the best candidate available in Tommy Hoke," Smith said. "Tommy has been the head strength and conditioning coach at Appalachian State for the last five years, so he brings a great deal of experience to the weight room and field."

"I'm looking forward to working in a highly competitive environment like the Big Ten," Hoke said. "I'm also excited about working with John L. Smith and this football program; and I think we can accomplish a lot with the caliber student-athletes that he has attracted to Michigan State."

Prior to his second stint at Appalachian State, Hoke spent one year as assistant strength and conditioning coach at Texas Tech (1995-96) where he worked primarily with the Red Raiders' men's basketball, women's soccer, softball and track and field programs while assisting football.

Hoke first arrived on the Appalachian State campus in 1992, working for four years as assistant strength and conditioning coach (1992-95).

He began his coaching career as an assistant track and field coach at UNC Wilmington in 1991.

A native of Durham, N.C., Hoke lettered in track and field at UNC Wilmington, competing in the javelin and shot put in 1990. He also participated in soccer in 1986.

He earned his bachelor's degree in physical education from UNC Wilmington in 1990 and received a master's in exercise science from Appalachian State in 1993.