David Ballou, a former IU fullback who spent 2017 as the University of Notre Dame's co-director of football strength and conditioning, was named the head strength and conditioning coach for the IU football program on Thursday, per an IU athletics release.
Ballou's lone season at Notre Dame came after a lengthy high school coaching career that featured stops at Avon High School in Avon, Indiana, and the IMG Academy in Florida.
"David Ballou is one of the more highly-respected strength coaches in the country," IU Coach Tom Allen said in the release. "I have known him for many years and have followed his work at both the high school and collegiate levels. We are looking forward to him working with our program and helping us achieve our goals on and off the field."
From 2002-2014, Ballou was the head strength and conditioning coach at Avon. During that period, Avon won six state championships across all sports.
As the head football strength and conditioning coach at IMG, Ballou oversaw a pair of undefeated teams during the 2015 and 2016 seasons.
"It's great to come back home," Ballou said in the release. "I have loved this university and football program for as long as I can remember. It's very special to me. I could not be more excited to get a chance to work for Coach Allen, a man of high integrity and a great person. I am committed to helping this program win football games consistently, year after year, and winning a Big Ten championship."
Ballou lettered with the Hoosiers in 1997, 1998 and 1999 before graduating from IU in 2001 with a bachelor's degree in kinesiology. In 2009, Ballou earned his master's degree in human movement from A.T. Still University.
Ballou's appointment comes less than a week after Keith Caton was relieved of his duties as IU football head strength and conditioning coach.
Cameron Drummond
