Joe Varga enters his third year as Assistant Athletic Director for Athlete Performance at Wagner in 2019.
Since 2011, Varga, who oversees the day-to-day supervision of a six-person staff in support of Wagner's 23-sport athletic program, has served at Marshall University as the director of strength and conditioning for the men's basketball team.
Varga is no stranger to the Northeast Conference (NEC), having graduated from Central Connecticut State in 2006 where he was a member of the Blue Devils’ football team.
"I’m excited to have Joe join the Seahawk athletic family,” said Hameline. “He’s a former Division I athlete in our conference who has gone on to develop a track record of improving the strength and overall fitness levels of student-athletes. And he’s done it at a variety of institutions while working with many different sports.”
Varga arrived at Marshall after spending three seasons at The Citadel. He served as a graduate assistant with the Bulldogs before becoming the Associate Director of Strength and Conditioning in May of 2010 where he directly oversaw the men's basketball program.
During the 2007-08 season, Varga was the assistant strength and conditioning coach at the University of Rhode Island where he worked primarily with men's and women's track and field, men's and women's tennis, women's crew, women's gymnastics and men's and women's swimming.
One of Varga's early jobs in collegiate athletics was at Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Worcester, MA where he was the strength and conditioning coach primarily in charge of women's crew. Varga also interned at the College of Holy Cross from 2006-07.
In addition to his more than 10 years of experience as a collegiate strength coach, in 2007-08, Varga served as a personal trainer at the Boroughs Family Branch YMCA in Westboro, MA. In this role, he spent time training individuals of all ages and develop challenging workouts to help clients meet their goals.
After earning a bachelor’s degree in exercise science from Central Connecticut State in 2006, he went on to earn a master's degree in health, exercise and sports science from the Citadel in 2011.
Varga is certified as a USA Weightlifting Sports Performance Coach and a Strength and Conditioning Specialist. He is also a member of USA Weightlifting and the National Strength and Conditioning Association.
