ARKADELPHIA – Ouachita Baptist University Director of Athletics David Sharp has announced the promotion of Dakota "Flash" Wilson to Director of Athletic Performance.

Wilson has been on staff at Ouachita since his days as a student assistant with the Tiger football team. He lettered two seasons for the Tigers in 2014-15 as an offensive lineman, and then moved into an operations role in 2016. For the past five years, he has served as the team's strength and conditioning coach as well as operations coordinator.

The foundation for this new role has already been laid with Wilson assisting other teams on campus for the past two years in a limited role. Going forward, he and his staff will work with all 18 of Ouachita's NCAA Division II teams, encompassing strength and conditioning, nutrition, and other areas to maximize results on the field, court, track, mat, or in the pool.

"As we continue to find ways to improve the student-athlete experience and help all of our teams be as successful as possible, this new role is vital," said Sharp. "Coach Wilson has already proven himself with the way he has led the strength and conditioning program for the football team. I'm thankful to Coach (Todd) Knight for supporting this move so Flash and his staff can build similar programs with all of our teams and more than 500 student-athletes."

"First, I want to thank God for this opportunity," said Wilson. "I also want to thank President Ben Sells and Coach Sharp for believing in my vision for the athletic performance department. My vision is to grow our student-athletes both physically and mentally to achieve success not only in competition, but also preparing them for life after athletics. I am extremely excited to start this journey, and I'm blessed to continue my tenure here at Ouachita."

Wilson is originally from Sherwood, Arkansas. He earned a bachelor's degree in kinesiology from Ouachita in 2018 and later earned a master's certificate from Southern Arkansas in 2022. He is a NSCA-certified strength and conditioning specialist, and also holds certifications in reflexive performance and mental conditioning and leadership.