St. Andrew's Hires Former NFL Head Strength Coach Ray Wright to be Director of Sport Performance

Previously, Wright served as the Head Strength and Conditioning Coach for the San Francisco 49ers for two seasons. Prior to that, he held the same position for five seasons for what is now known as the Washington Football Team. Before heading to the nation’s capital, Wright spent eight years with the Houston Texans. For the first seven seasons, he was an Assistant Strength and Conditioning Coach, before being promoted to the role of Head Strength and Conditioning Coach of the Texans in his final season in the Space City.

 

“We are delighted to welcome Ray Wright to our school family, and look forward to our student-athletes benefiting from the expertise, experience, and positivity that infuse his work,” Grubb shared. “He will be a wonderful asset to our program.”

 

Most recently, Wright has worked for the D1 Training Center in Cedar Park since January of 2020, working with elementary, middle, and high school student-athletes, as well as adults. While doing so, Wright created proper nutrition plans, rest, and overall training.

 

Before moving to the Austin area, Wright worked one season as the Head Strength and Conditioning Coach for the Houston Roughnecks of the XFL.

 

“We are so ecstatic that Ray has accepted our offer to join the St. Andrew’s family,” McCrary remarked. “Needless to say, Ray’s resume speaks for itself. He’s worked with some of the best athletes in the world.”

 

"However, Ray is incredibly humble and very relational as well,” McCrary continued. “When he worked with our kids during his interview, he had an instant rapport with them. To a person, our students’ feedback was simple: ‘hire him.’ Ray will play an integral part as we take the next step as an athletics’ program. His knowledge and passion, combined with a terrific vision for the development of Highlander student-athletes, were all things that made this a perfect match.”

 

A graduate of Duke University, Wright started his professional career working in different scouting and coaching positions with the (now) Washington Football Team, Cornell University, Chicago Bears, and University of Maryland. Some of the athletes that Wright has trained include George Kittle, Brian Orakpo, Trent Williams, Andre Johnson, and Arian Foster.

 

“​​I am so excited to be given this opportunity to join the amazing team at St. Andrew's,” Wright commented. “After meeting with Melissa Grubb, Jeff McCrary and the passionate coaching staff, as well as some of the engaging students, I know that this is a perfect fit for me to share my talents. I was most impressed by the dedication of the team and how much the students enjoyed attending this school. In today's world, it is so vital that well-rounded students are developed. I am very much looking forward to beginning this journey.”