Craig Fitzgerald leaves Florida Gators join Bill O'Brien's staff at Boston College
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The Florida Gators’ new director of football performance Craig Fitzgerald is leaving Gainesville for the strength and conditioning job at Boston College. Boston College just hired Bill O’Brien, who has a long history with Fitzgerald.
“It is with a heavy heart that I announce my decision to leave the University of Florida Football program. After much thought, I have decided to join my decade-long coaching friend Bill O’Brien at Boston College,” Fitzgerald said in a statement to Gators Online. “Bill and I have worked together for almost 10 years. Although it excites me to rejoin him, it pains me to leave a program with such a bright future made up of hard-working, committed, and fine young men and staff. The culture of competitiveness, professionalism, and dedication inside this building was evident in my short time here. I am grateful to Coach Napier for this opportunity and I wish the Gators the best moving forward.”
Craig Fitzgerald and Bill O’Brien first worked together at Maryland. When O’Brien became the head coach at Penn State, he tapped Fitzgerald to be his Director of Strength and Conditioning. Fitzgerald spent two years with O’Brien at Penn State before O’Brien became the head coach of the Houston Texans. He once again tapped Fitzgerald to run his strength and conditioning program. The relationship between the two is what led O’Brien, who was hired at Boston College on February 9.
The Gators just finished their foundation phase of the offseason, which Fitzgerald led over the last five weeks.
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“I want to thank Fitz for doing a great job during the five weeks he’s been at Florida,” Billy Napier said in a statement. “He’s a very professional and well-respected individual and has been a great resource for our players and our organization. We understand that these decisions are part of the profession and we all have been put in these dynamics at one point or another. As I’ve said before, this game is about relationships and Coach O’Brien and Coach Fitz’s relationship goes way back. We have a ton of respect for Fitz and are thankful for what he did for our team. We also have a great group of strength assistants and sports science staff that I have a lot confidence in. We’ll regroup and we’ll evaluate the situation and make another great decision for our team. We’re fortunate to be at the University of Florida and are able to attract the very best in the country.”
In his first season, Napier called the first half of phase two the most difficult and challenging thing the players will do the entire year from a mental and physical toughness standpoint.
“What I would describe it as is designed difficulty,” Napier said. “We’re trying to present adversity to the players in a lot of different forms. We know that growth comes from struggle. We want to introduce adversity. Designed difficulty. That’s what we do. I’m hopeful that we’ll create and equip the players with some tools and intangibles that help down the road. Not only when we compete in the fall but also in life.”
