Dan Ridenour enters his fifth season with the Minnesota Vikings in 2026 and second as assistant strength coach/head of applied sport science. He previously served as the team's sports science coordinator/assistant performance coach from (2022-24).
In his first four seasons in Minnesota (2022-25), Ridenour helped the Vikings achieve a 43-25 (.632) regular-season record, including a 14-3 mark and playoff appearance in 2024, the second-most wins in team history. He was a part of the 2022 Vikings team that finished 13-4 and claimed the NFC North title.
In 2025, Ridenour helped plan and execute a 10-day international road trip to Dublin, Ireland, and London, England, as the Vikings became the first NFL team to play back-to-back games in two different countries. Alongside the player health and performance team, Ridenour helped successfully transition football operations overseas, maintaining the standards of care and support players received during a typical game week.
Ridenour played a key role in the Vikings strength staff receiving a resounding stamp of approval when the NFL Players Association released the results of its "free agency report cards" during each of the past three offseasons (2023-25). The staff earned an A+ grade in 2023, tying for the top spot among all strength staffs league wide. In 2024, Ridenour was part of the NFL's highest-ranked staff, earning an A, and in 2025, Minnesota's strength coaches were second out of all 32 teams, also receiving an A. The 2025 report card stated, "100% of players report that they get an individualized training plan from their strength coaching staff, one of just three teams in the league with a perfect score."
Prior to arriving in Minnesota, Ridenour served as the assistant director of the Nebraska Athletic Performance Lab at the University of Nebraska from 2020-22. During his time as assistant director, Ridenour assisted with the overall management of Nebraska Sports Science by working with coaching and support staffs on the integration of technologies, training strategies and rehabilitation processes to promote athlete development, health and training efficiency. Ridenour did two stints at Nebraska, serving as an assistant strength coach for Nebraska from July 2015 to October 2018, working with track and field, women's gymnastics and men's and women's tennis
Prior to returning to Nebraska, Ridenour worked for Wilmington College as the school's first Director of Athletic Performance, overseeing the training of 13 teams and the department's internship program.
From 2012-15, Ridenour was a graduate assistant at St. John's University (2015), conditioning intern with the University of Memphis football program (2014) and interned with the University of Minnesota football program (2012-13). He also served as the Director of Athletic Training and Program Development, Spark Athletic, in Kuwait City, Kuwait during that time span.
Ridenour is a graduate of Luther College, earning degrees in physical education and communications studies. He received his master's in exercise science from the University of Nebraska-Omaha and is working towards his professional doctorate in human performance innovation at the University of Limerick.
