THE ROB WAGNER FILE: Power personified

Athletes say he is a major factor in the success of Penn sports teams. The American Drug-Free Powerlifting Association says he's the world's best. The short, bald and very muscular strength coach who spends every day of the week in the depths of Franklin Field's varsity weight room commands respect from his athletes. And he gets it. Strength coach Rob Wagner practices what he preaches. He conditions varsity athletes, making them lift and sweat many times a week. But he can be seen lifting by himself on Sundays, and when he lifts, he lifts a lot. Wagner is the current national powerlifting champion, and holds the American and world records for the squat lift. While these honors are just a few on a laundry list of awards, Wagner said he does not often brag about his accomplishments. "When I took the job here, I never mentioned it," he said. "It was more important to prove myself as a strength coach than as an athlete." The squat lift is performed by carrying a weight bar on the back, bending the knees to a point "breaking parallel," and then coming back up on one's own. The sport tests the strength of a lifter's quadriceps, hamstrings, buttocks and lower back area. Wagner's 1992 national record lift was 799 pounds, almost four times his own weight. He also holds a world record and has been named "Best Lightweight Lifter" on both national and world levels. When he lifts, his face, body and bald head explode into a deep red color. Wagner got his start in lifting from watching his father, who "was an avid lifter," but did not compete. He trained at home, and then started working out in a gym. "The first day in the gym, the guy told me I should definitely be competing," Wagner said. "I listened to him and followed through." And in 1982, a young Wagner participated in his first meet and came in second. "From that point in time I loved the sport," he said. "I was playing baseball in high school, and I actually found that I would miss practice to go lift." In college, Wagner shifted from baseball to football while attending Salisbury State. As captain of the football team for two years, Wagner led it to the national championship game in 1986. At one point, his love for football even outweighed his love for lifting. "The year that we went to the national championships, I was offered an opportunity to compete on the junior world team?in New Delhi, India," Wagner said. "It was a tough decision between the two, [but] luckily I chose to stay with the football and we ended up having an outrageous season." "To this day I don't know how many people ever get the opportunity to compete in two different national championships in the same year, so it was very exciting," he added. The question Wagner is asked most often is why he has never participated in the Olympics. Wagner explained that Olympic weightlifting is much different from powerlifting. "The difference is that in Olympic lifting, two lifts are involved -- the snatch and the clean and jerk?[which] are more athletic than the power lifts," he said. "If you're off by a quarter of an inch in Olympic lifting, you've missed the lift. If you're off a quarter of an inch in powerlifting you can usually get it. You can usually muscle through the technique aspect of it." Wagner pointed out, though, that powerlifting also requires a lot of technique. As a lifter's technique improves in the three powerlifting moves -- the squat, bench press and deadlift -- his strength increases with it. As for his job in Penn's brand-new, state-of-the-art varsity weight room, Wagner said he likes working with athletes who are dedicated to strength, speed and agility. "These kids, when they come in here, have a very serious goal in mind," he said. "They're not training to go to Spring Break, they aren't just geared toward looking better. They want to make themselves better in their sport." Wagner added that before he came to Penn, he had the popular perception that sports in the Ivy League were not competitive. He has since learned otherwise. "I think our kids in general are as competitive if not more so because not only are they doing this for the true love of the sport, they're not getting paid to do it?and they have to take time out of [an academic] schedule," he said. While the varsity athletes sometimes do not look forward to the heavy workload coach "Wags" imposes on them, they continue to be inspired by his personal accomplishments. "His ability speaks for itself," said Gabe Capodanno, a junior noseguard on the football team. "It gives us inspiration to lift ourselves?.I think he's a great teacher. That's why we became as good as we are. I think he's a major factor in our winning." Wagner, who still lifts every Sunday, recently appeared on the cover of Powerlifting Today. He said all of his clothing, vitamins and travel expenses are paid for by corporate sponsors. He also trains students for powerlifting and Olympic weightlifting competitions, and was recently a judge in the first annual Penn bodybuilding contest. Sophomore linebacker Jon Freeman said Wagner's experience helps him to be a better coach. "It's good to know that he practices what he preaches," Freeman said. "I don't like coaches that tell us to do things that they can't do themselves."