The Seahawks announced a handful of hires for their coaching and support staffs on Friday.
The team hired Ivan Lewis as their new head strength and conditioning coach with Jamie Yanchar, Mark Philipp, Thomas Garcia and Grant Steen as assistants. David Stricklin has also been named the head trainer after serving as an assistant on staff since 2010.
Additionally, Austin Davis has joined the staff as an offensive assistant and Brad Idzik as an assistant wide receivers coach. Steve Shimko moves to assistant quarterbacks coach after serving in the offensive assistant role last season.
Lewis replaces Chris Carlisle as the team's head strength and conditioning coach. Carlisle was fired by the team in January along with assistant Mondray Gee. KJR reported that Yanchar was also among the departures from the strength staff, but Yanchar is remaining as a part of Lewis' staff after all. Stricklin replaces Donald Rich as the team's head trainer.
Lewis spent the last five seasons as USC’s head strength and conditioning coach. Before that he held that same position at the University of Washington from 2009-2013 on Steve Sarkisian's staff. Lewis got his start in strength coaching while working as a teacher at Mount Si High School in Snoqualmie, Wash.
Davis spent the 2017 season as the backup quarterback for the Seahawks behind Russell Wilson. Davis remained with the team through training camp last year before being released. He spent time with the Tennessee Titans before being released earlier this month.
Idzik, a Mercer Island High School graduate, is the son of former New York Jets G.M. and Seahawks V.P. of Football Administration John Idzik. He played receiver at Wake Forest University before serving as an offensive graduate assistant at Stanford.
Philipp was an assistant strength and conditioning coach at USC last year after serving as Nebraska’s head football strength coach from 2015 to 2017 under head coach Mike Riley. Philipp also worked with Riley as an assistant strength and conditioning coach at Oregon State from 2009-2013. Philipp moved to USC in 2013 where he served as an assistant strength and conditioning coach.
Steen, a former standout linebacker at the University of Iowa, also worked with Lewis at USC, and has also spent time at the University of Washington, Stanford University and the University of Minnesota. Garcia has been with the Seahawks’ sport science department since 2013.
Carlisle first joined a Pete Carroll coaching staff at USC in 2001 when Pete Carroll was hired as head coach of the Trojans. After nine seasons at USC, Carroll came to Seattle in 2010. Carlisle followed and has served in the role throughout Carroll’s tenure in Seattle.Gee came to Seattle after spending two seasons with the Green Bay Packers alongside Seahawks G.M. John Schneider in 2008-09. Rich had been with the Seahawks for all but one season since 2003 when he joined the team as an intern. He became an assistant athletic trainer in 2005 under Mike Holmgren and was promoted to the head role in 2012.
Photo Credit: SEATTLE, WA - AUGUST 30: Austin Davis #6 of the Seattle Seahawks looks to throw the ball in the first quarter against the Oakland Raiders during their preseason game at CenturyLink Field on August 30, 2018 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images)