Hope College’s Justin Fairfield has been chosen a 2018 National Strength and Conditioning All-American Athlete of the Year.
A member of the Flying Dutchmen football team, Fairfield is recognized for his athletic
accomplishments and his dedication to strength and conditioning. He was one of 44
student-athletes across all levels of college football.
The senior offensive lineman from North Muskegon, Michigan (North Muskegon HS) was
nominated by Hope’s strength and conditioning coach, Dan Margritz.
Fairfield proved his dedication to others and himself quickly after Margritz began
working at Hope.
"When I first arrived to Hope College in 2016, Justin immediately stood out to me
based on his relentless, team-first work ethic in the weightroom,” Margritz said.
“He continued to push himself to get stronger throughout the 2016 season while becoming
one of the best offensive linemen in all of D-III college football. The offseason
before Justin was a senior, I have never seen somebody buy into the system of strength
and conditioning like Justin did. He attacked every training session like it was a
conference championship game, and it paid off making him the strongest he has ever
been going into his final season in 2017.
“There was nobody else that came to mind besides Justin Fairfield for me to nominate
to the NSCA for the All-American athlete of the year award. I'm extremely proud of
Justin for being a leader, and an animal in the weightroom the past two years."
Fairfield was a D3football.com Second-Team All-American last fall for the Flying Dutchmen.
He helped Hope achieve an 8-2 overall record while setting school records this season
with 377 points and 2,810 yards rushing.
The National Strength and Conditioning Association is an international nonprofit professional
association founded in 1978 and is dedicated to advancing the strength and conditioning
profession around the world.
“We are proud to have Dan Margritz join the NSCA to ensure athlete safety and improve
athletic performance,” said Coach Scott Caulfield, the NSCA’s Head Strength and Conditioning
Coach, “Supporting NSCA-certified coaches and student-athletes like Justin is the
foundation the NSCA is built on.”