Dana LeDuc

The oral history of Dana LeDuc is now captured and chronicled for Longhorn posterity

military discipline, strength, power, a shot put, a discus, and the rhythm of music inspired young Dana Leduc to excellence.

In Dana’s spirit, words, and deeds, he proclaims that athletic disciplines are an essential building block to a productive and fulfilling life.

As he states in his oral history, Dana played other sports in high school, but he excelled at the shot put. Good enough to receive a scholarship to the University of Kansas in 1971. At Kansas, Dana learned quickly that throwing the shot put takes much more than arm strength; it takes a powerful explosive lower-body push from the legs to increase the shot put’s distance. Blessed with strong legs from birth, he still knew that his legs must get stronger to win at the highest levels. 

Dana as a Horn

DKR hires Longhorn Coach Dana LeDuc in August of 1977

After graduating, Charlie Craven convinced Athletic Director DKR to hire Dana LeDuc as the first full-time strength and conditioning coach. He was a perfect choice combining his personal experience in weight lifting, Olympic training, and what he learned from Eastern European and Russian masters of bodybuilding to revolutionize full-body training at Texas. LeDuc focused on “unitizing strength and flexibility exercises to combat joint injuries.” He brought state-of-the-art equipment to Texas and used it to develop customized workouts tailored to the needs of each athlete. Focusing his coaching instruction around anaerobic movements requiring “quick bursts of speed over shorter distances” compared to the “lap after lap” of long-distance runs. In addition, he focused on Olympic lifting movements, particularly the clean and jerk and the snatch, to mimic the physiological demands of football.  

LeDuc stated, “I really believe there is no type of athlete that weight training and strength work can’t help.” Herkie Walls agrees. In Walls, oral history @ https://www.texaslsn.org/herkie-walls, he credits Dana’s workouts for increasing his speed and strength. 

Tony DeGrate states that weight training has definitely enhanced his ability. “When I got here, I wasn’t that strong,” recalls DeGrate. Coach LeDuc remembers, “When Tony first got here, he was not projected to be a great player. Without his willingness to work hard in the weight room, Tony DeGrate would not be near the player he is today. “Tony was only an Honorable Mention All-State player in high school.” Tony responds by stating, “I had a dismal senior season. In fact, I was more known in baseball. As a pitcher [was clocked at 96 MPH.”

We wish to thank Tony DeGrate for being the special individual he is and the inspiration he has been, and we thank Coach Dana LeDuc for his leadership in all that he does at the University of Texas.

Dana as a Longhorn was:

• Inducted into the Hall of Honor in 1997;

• National Champion in the shot-put in 1976;

• Track All-American from 1974-76;

• SWC indoor and outdoor shot champ from 1974-76;

• Inducted into the Texas Track & Field Hall of Fame in 2019.

By the time he left Texas in 1993 for the University of Miami, LeDuc’s Texas football teams had compiled a 123-62-2 regular-season record with 11 bowl appearances.

In 1995, the Seattle Seahawks hired him as strength and conditioning coach, and in 1999 the 2000 Super Bowl Champion St. Louis Rams hired LeDuc as their head strength coach.

A Montage of Dana’s college and professional career

 The Art of Giving back.

After retiring in 2008, Dana chose to live a full and active life raising funds for charitable organizations. As he did in his professional life, Dana mastered new skills combining philanthropy and sports as a means of giving back. He understood that sports personalities attending charity events opens pocketbooks to uplift communities.

He has helped coaches at Hoquiam High School, and he has conducted free football camps, assisted by Super Bowl ring holders, raising funds for local youth development programs.

Ocean Shores Charity Golf Tournament

LeDuc brings NFLers to youth football camps.

Dana LeDuc and Ocean Shores Golf Course raise money for the community and various athletic projects at several area schools. In addition, this venue offers the attendees the chance to play, chat, and mingle with current and former NFL and college coaches and players and current area high school coaches.

With fundraising paying the bills, the day after the golf tournament, Dana offers a free football camp at Hoquiam High School Stadium, open to all area students who are entering grades 7-12.

The program has grown from 50 kids the first year to 220 in 2018, including four girls.

LeDuc is thrilled to talk about how his friends help to make these projects possible. Dana says, “Last year, 18 of the 32 coaches were current or former NFL players or coaches, and they wore 15 different Super Bowl rings. “These coaches donate their time for this camp, and many who have to fly into Washington do so at their own expense.”

He added that, in addition to just “coaching on the field,” they also “coach life skills. Each coach tells personal stories of how they overcame obstacles to get to where they are now, gives advice on being successful students, athletes, and community members, and provides suggestions to develop skills that will be useful throughout their lives.

Guest attendees at these events include:

• Kenneth Sims, the first pick in the 1982 NFL draft, will speak at the dinner about his journey from Kosse, TX, population 550, to NFL stardom with the New England Patriots,

• Fellow Rams Super Bowl coaches John Ramsdell, QB coach for Kurt Warner, Phillip Rivers and Cam Newton, and Jim Hanifan, offensive line guru currently up for HOF membership,

• Rob Smith, “one of greatest players ever out of Hoquiam,” former head coach at Western Washington University and longtime head coach at Humboldt State University in Arcata, CA.,

• Art Plunkett, a new Ocean Shores resident who played for the Patriots in the Super Bowl against the Chicago Bears,

• Craig Puki, a University of Tennessee two-time All American who played for the San Francisco 49ers when they won Super Bowl XV, and

• Doug English is an NFL veteran and college football HOF member.

LeDuc also revealed that “several guys will be reunited here that haven’t seen each other in 20-30 years. I love to see these guys reunited and tell stories; they have so many things in common. We all have a lot of fun!”

The gentlemen below attended the Gray Harbor Football Camp, and they are all Longhorns, and all are champions honored in various Hall of Fames or Halls of Honor.