Brian Cortina joined the strength & conditioning staff in the spring of 2024, after serving as the head track & field coach at Florida National University for three years.
The first head coach in FNU history, he founded the program and led them in both the USCAA and the NAIA. He also put his strength & conditioning background to use, tailoring training regimes for the athletes to focus on technique development, physical strength and conditioning and mental preparation to optimize performance. His approach netted the Conquistadors several gold medals at the USCAA championships.
Prior to FNU, he worked at conference rival Nova Southeastern from 2019-21 as the associate head coach for track and cross country, while also serving as strength & conditioning coach. He developed, implemented and supervised the strength & conditioning programs for track and cross country.
He was speed coach and strength & conditioning coach at Prime Time Performance in the New Jersey metro area from 2015-18, coaching high school, college and professional athletes.
A NSCA certified strength conditioning specialist (CSCS), he also holds certifications from USATF (Level 1), USTFCCCA track & field and cross country and fitness instructor from the AFAA.
Cortina is a former All-American athlete who competed for both the University of Miami and Cornell University. After graduating from Cornell in 2009 with a bachelor's in government, with a minor in law and society, Cortina attended the University of Miami School of Law before deciding to pursue his passion in athletics and coaching.
