(Oklahoma State University Athletic Media Relations contributed to this story.)
STILLWATER – I’m not suprised at all that the Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame is awarding the Merv Johnson Integrity in College Coaching Award to Oklahoma State’s Rob Glass. The Assistant Athletic Director for Athlete Performance at Oklahoma State, the first million dollar strength coach in college athletics, Glass was responsible as anybody other than maybe Mike Gundy and/or Boone Pickens for Oklahoma State’s near 20-year run as a top 15 program in college football.
This year, in the transition from Mike Gundy to Eric Morris as head coach of Oklahoma State football has been difficult for Glass. He is a football guy. Morris had his own strength coach he wanted to bring with him. With class and without any drama, Glass has stepped aside and helped with other sports in Oklahoma State athletics including women’s soccer.
Glass does his job, does it well and does it with humility.
“Rob was my first hire and he is as responsible as anybody, as important as anybody in building the program including myself,” Gundy has told me. “We couldn’t have done it without Rob Glass.
As a young assistant strength coach, fresh from being a baseball student-athlete, Glass was training Heisman Trophy winning running back Barry Sanders. He trained another Heisman winner at Florida in quarterback Danny Wuerffel. Name a player, like Russell Okung on the College Football Hall of Fame ballot that came out this week, Glass trained them.
He trained a Golden Spikes Award winner (Robin Ventura), a Doak Walker Award winner (Ollie Gordon II), a Thorpe Award winner (Lawrence Wright), three Biletnikoff Award winners (Justin Blackmon twice and James Washington) a Lou Groza Award winner (Dan Bailey) a Ray Guy Award winner (Matt Fodge) and a Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award winner (Mason Rudolph) in addition to 19 first-round NFL draft picks and three first-round NBA draft picks as well as countless All-Americans and Olympians.
He has also worked directly with six coaches who are in their sports' respective halls of fame, including Eddie Sutton, Bill Self, Billy Donovan, Steve Spurrier, Bob Stoops and Gary Ward.
Glass’ success is his intelligence and ability to make athletes understand what he is giving, what he is teaching, what he is preaching is what they need. The other aspect of Glass, ask any former Oklahoma State players what they talk about when they get together at reunions, at home games, at tailgates, anytime they see each other. Yes, they talk about games, they talk about times in the locker room, but most of all they talk about workouts in the weight room and on the field with Rob Glass. Oklahoma State football teams bonded by supporting each other and working through the tough early mornings year round and late afternoons in the summer with Glass and his staff.
Glass is not the first coach with Oklahoma State connections to win the award that bares the name of Merv Johnson, a great University of Oklahoma, Notre Dame University, and University of Missouri assistant coach. Former Oklahoma State assistants Calvin Miller (while at Langston) and Denver Johnson (while at Tulsa) won the award. Former Oklahoma State director of football operations Mack Butler won the award. Former Oklahoma State player that Rob Glass trained, Zach Allen won the Merv Johnson Award while head coach at NEO A&M Junior College.
