Colorado University Athletics
Football
- Title:
- Director of Speed, Strength & Conditioning
- Email:
- malcolm.blacken@colorado.edu
Malcolm Blacken is in his second year as CU's director of speed-strength and conditioning at Colorado, having joined the staff in January 2011.
He works directly on a day-to-day basis with football, while overseeing the speed, strength and conditioning needs of all 16 (soon to be 17 with the addition of women's lacrosse in 2014) CU varsity programs.
Blacken, 46, came to Colorado from the National Football League's Washington Redskins, where he was the assistant strength and conditioning coach for the 2010 season, his second stint with the club; it's where he met Jon Embree, who lured him to Colorado after he was named CU's head football coach. Embree was in his first year as an assistant with the Redskins as well.
He worked 15 years as a strength coach in the NFL, serving as the head strength and conditioning coach for the Detroit Lions for nine years (2001-09) which followed his first run as an assistant with the Redskins that covered five seasons (1996-2000).
Prior to joining the NFL ranks, he served as an assistant strength coach for the University of Virginia in 1995, which followed three years as the head strength coach at George Mason University from 1992-94. At both Virginia and George Mason, he was responsible for all of each university's varsity sports. He began his coaching career at the University of South Carolina as an assistant strength and conditioning coach from 1990-91.
He graduated from Virginia Tech in 1989 with a degree in Physical Education, while also earning a minor in Fine Arts. He lettered four times in the offensive backfield for the Hokies from 1985-88, the last two seasons as the starting fullback. He was a two-time winner of the Super Iron Hokie Award, given to the program's strongest player at each position.
A native of Mathews County, Va., he graduated from Mathews County High School, where he lettered in football, basketball and track. An All-State performer in football and track, he was the 1983 state champion in the 100-meter dash in a 10.71 time. He is married to the former Marcy Buskirk, and the couple has two children, daughter Maya (a nationally accomplished performer in the long jump as just a 13-year old), and son Bo.
Blacken is an accomplished artist and has his own website displaying his paintings (www.artbymalcolm.com), and is an avid Harley Davidson rider.
