A man who was on the Cowboys' staff during their last dynasty agreed to rejoin the organization Friday as the team's strength and conditioning coach. Mike Woicik, who has spent the last 11 seasons serving in a similar capacity with the New England Patriots , will return to the franchise where he earned three of his six Super Bowl rings.
Woicik, 54, will replace Joe Juraszek, who succeeded him in Dallas and remained with the club since 1997. Juraszek missed the last half of the 2010 season after receiving a medical leave of absence.
From 1990-1996, Woicik worked behind the scenes in Dallas, where he made a major impact. Before he arrived at Valley Ranch, the Cowboys had an outdoor weight room and sub-standard equipment. He pushed for renovations and upgrades, persuading owner Jerry Jones to invest the funds necessary to make them.
As former coach Jimmy Johnson attempted to reshape the Cowboys, he charged Woicik with overseeing their offseason workouts and gave him the authority to administer fines. The team, at Woicik's suggestion, also created incentives for those who performed well in the training sessions. As time passed, participation increased as players who had previously returned home after the season stayed put in Dallas.
By the end of his third season with the Cowboys, Woicik was honored by his peers when he was named the best strength and conditioning coach in the league. A year later, the Cowboys' 22 starters missed only eight games because of injuries, the fewest in the NFL in 1993. Many credited the team's overall health to Woicik, whom former Cowboys wide receiver Michael Irvin thanked in his Pro Football Hall of Fame induction speech in 2007.
