Jim Radcliffe: The Man Who Makes Oregon Go

Henry Swift Men of Oregon: Players and Coaches

All programs have them and they are often overlooked by the fans. They are the people who transform incoming freshmen into future stars.

These unsung heroes are the strength and conditioning coaches, and they are just as important to the program as each position coach. Without them, no amount of scouting or play calling would help the team win.  Fans of Oregon have grown accustomed to seeing players run the offense at breakneck speeds.

However, without the strength and conditioning coaches, Oregon would be just as slow as Stanford. While all sports at Oregon are assigned a specific conditioning coach, the man most responsible for the speed at Oregon is Jim Radcliffe.

There is a reason why teams break down when they play the Oregon offense. It is true that positions at Oregon run two and even three players deep.

But the main reason is that Radcliffe has conditioned the players to be able to run at a high tempo on offense.

If you just look around the country, whenever a team comes to play Oregon, they try to cram in as much conditioning as possible in preparation for the tempo. Most of the time they end up failing to be prepared for one reason — we have Radcliffe and they don’t. This has led teams to take desperate measures — particularly Cal, as they have been caught faking injuries to slow Oregon down.

If there was one word to describe Oregon, it would be speed – and Radcliffe is directly responsible for it. For the past 29 years he has been leading Oregon by making athletes bigger, stronger and faster. Not only has he been in charge of building up the football team, but he cares for the track & field and the baseball teams, as well. Since he has been the head strength and  conditioning coach, Oregon has won seven Pac-10/12 titles, two Rose Bowls, and two Fiesta Bowls. As for track & field, his program has led to 11 men’s and women’s national championships, as well as an astounding 23 Pac-10/12 conference championships.

In the rain with no jacket he intimidates foes with a glare

In the rain with no jacket he intimidates foes with a glare.

Under his lead, the football and track and field programs have thrived, leading to some crossover athletes. We all know of the exploits of Devon Allen, but he is just the latest of a long line. De’anthony Thomas, Lamichael James, Kenjon Barner and Jordan Kent have all had success in both sports, thanks in big part to Radcliffe’s training regimen.

As shown below, colleges and athletes hold a great deal of respect for Radcliffe, not only because he produces results, but because he is also one of the most intimidating people you will ever meet.

Still unconvinced as to how integral Radcliffe is to the success at Oregon? Get a copy of the Mighty Oregon DVD. Follow how Oregon has changed from a Pac-10 doormat into the class of the conference. This DVD is all the proof anyone will ever need to appreciate the work Radcliffe has done, and what he means to Oregon.

There is a reason why Oregon has been able to maintain a high level of success over the past six years.  We have lost all-time greats such as Marcus Mariota, Josh Huff and Ifo Ekpre-Olomu.

Radcliffe, however, has been able to develop players to be not only as good as, but often better than, their predecessors. As long as Radcliffe continues to be a part of the Oregon program we will continue to be the fastest school in the country.

 

Featured Photo by Ryan Kang

Article Inspiration Mighty Oregon DVD

For more on Oregon’s rise to a Pac-12 power at  http://www.mightyoregondvd.com/

Mighty Oregon

New 2024 FishDuck Publishing Schedule….

During the off-season the FishDuck.com publishing schedule will consist of articles on Mondays and Tuesdays. Do keep checking as new articles could be published during the week when a writer has something to say.

In mid-August of 2024, we will go back to the seven-days-a-week of articles during the football season as we did in the football season of 2023.

The Our Beloved Ducks Forum (OBD) is where we we discuss the article above and many more topics, as it is so much easier in a message board format over there.  At the free OBD forum we will be posting Oregon Sports article links, the daily Press Releases from the Athletic Department and the news coming out every day.

Our 33 rules at the free OBD Forum can be summarized to this: 1) be polite and respectful, 2) do not tell anyone what to think, feel or write, and 3) no reference of any kind to politics. Easy-peasy!

OBD Forum members….we got your back.  No Trolls Allowed!