Liberty Athletics Hall of Fame
Bill Gillespie
- Induction:
- 2024
- Class:
- 1983
Men’s Track & Field/Football/Strength Coach: 1978-83; 1983-91; 2005-18
Bill Gillespie’s impact on Liberty Athletics spans four different decades as a national champion in track & field, a football player and a strength and conditioning coach who helped train Champions for Christ at his alma mater.
The native of Tacoma, Wash. quickly found Liberty Mountain as his second home as he was the 1980 and 1981 NCCAA shot put national champion as a freshman and sophomore. He also helped the track & field program capture the NCCAA team national title in 1981.
Gillespie was a four-time All-American in the shot put (NCCAA – 1980 and 1981; NAIA – 1982 and 1983) who owned the Liberty outdoor men's shot put record (55-8.5) for 24 years after graduation in 1983. Also a two-time letterwinner on the Flames’ football team (1978-79), Gillespie was named the 1983 Rock Royer/Mac Rivera Award winner, garnering the highest honor bestowed upon a Liberty student-athlete.
Gillespie served as an assistant strength and conditioning coach at Liberty from 1983-91, an assistant track & field coach in 1983-85 and 1987-91 and the head track & field coach in 1986. After an 11-year career at Washington, that included a national championship in 1991, Gillespie returned to the Mountain where he served as Head Football Strength and Conditioning Coach from 2005-18, helping Liberty move from winning FCS conference titles to the FBS ranks.
Outside the collegiate space where he was a CSCCA Master Strength Coach, Gillespie was also a world-renowned weightlifter where he was a 133-time world record holder and is the all-time world record holder with a 1129-pound bench press at the age of 62.
Bill Gillespie’s impact on Liberty Athletics spans four different decades as a national champion in track & field, a football player and a strength and conditioning coach who helped train Champions for Christ at his alma mater.
The native of Tacoma, Wash. quickly found Liberty Mountain as his second home as he was the 1980 and 1981 NCCAA shot put national champion as a freshman and sophomore. He also helped the track & field program capture the NCCAA team national title in 1981.
Gillespie was a four-time All-American in the shot put (NCCAA – 1980 and 1981; NAIA – 1982 and 1983) who owned the Liberty outdoor men's shot put record (55-8.5) for 24 years after graduation in 1983. Also a two-time letterwinner on the Flames’ football team (1978-79), Gillespie was named the 1983 Rock Royer/Mac Rivera Award winner, garnering the highest honor bestowed upon a Liberty student-athlete.
Gillespie served as an assistant strength and conditioning coach at Liberty from 1983-91, an assistant track & field coach in 1983-85 and 1987-91 and the head track & field coach in 1986. After an 11-year career at Washington, that included a national championship in 1991, Gillespie returned to the Mountain where he served as Head Football Strength and Conditioning Coach from 2005-18, helping Liberty move from winning FCS conference titles to the FBS ranks.
Outside the collegiate space where he was a CSCCA Master Strength Coach, Gillespie was also a world-renowned weightlifter where he was a 133-time world record holder and is the all-time world record holder with a 1129-pound bench press at the age of 62.
Monday, June 15
Monday, June 15
Friday, June 12
Thursday, June 11
