Symposium Schedule

3:00pm – 4:10pm	SYMPOSIUMS – Presented by: Beynon Sports Surfacing
	Sprints: Dennis Shaver, LSU "Annual Planning & Implementing Women’s Sprint Hurdle Training"
	Jumps: James Thomas, Kentucky "Training Considerations for the Combined Events"
	Throws: TJ Crater, Penn State "Drills/Technical Points for Establishing Balance and Separation in Rotational Shot
	Endurance: Sean Cleary, West Virginia "Developing Distance Runners The West Virginia Way"
4:30pm – 5:40pm	SYMPOSIUMS – Presented by: Beynon Sports Surfacing
	Sprints: John Stuart, Georgia "Training for the 400"
	Jumps: Boo Schexnayder, USTFCCCA "Fixing the Triple Jump Second Phase"
	Throws: Scott Cappos, Iowa "Event Specific Training for the Throws"
	Endurance: Scott Abbott, Sacramento State "Training for the 800"
6:00pm – 7:10pm	SYMPOSIUMS – Presented by: Beynon Sports Surfacing
	Sprints: Andy Eggerth, Kennesaw State "Improved Cueing for Enhanced Skill Acquisition in the Sprints"
	Jumps: Cliff Rovelto, Kansas State "Does the Capability of Mastering a Given Motor Skill Exist?"
	Throws: Mike Maynard, UCLA "Technique, Teaching Progressions, & Drills for the Glide Shot Put"
	Endurance: Houston Franks, Mississippi State "Training for the 10,000 Meters"
7:30pm – 8:30pm	SYMPOSIUMS – Presented by: Beynon Sports Surfacing
	Sprints: Mike Young, USTFCCCA "Breaking Barriers to Sprint Speed –    Research-based and Field-Proven Methods to Improve Performance"
	Jumps: Jim VanHootegem, Texas A&M "Effective Skills Training for the Triple Jump"
	Throws: Jud Logan, Ashland "Technical Components of the Hammer Throw"
	Endurance: Boo Schexnayder, USTFCCCA "Ancillary and Speed Training for Endurance Athletes"

Tuesday, December 13

8:30am – 9:30am	SYMPOSIUMS – Presented by: Beynon Sports Surfacing
	Sprints: Randy Gillon, Michigan State "Technical Considerations for the Men’s Sprint Hurdles"
	Jumps: Nic Petersen, TCU "Pole Vault: Thinking Horizontal to Get Vertical"
	Throws: Jud Logan, Ashland "Weight Training For Throwers"
	Endurance: Jennifer Michel, Western State "Developing Steeplechasers"
9:45am – 10:45am	SYMPOSIUMS – Presented by: Beynon Sports Surfacing
	Sprints: Caryl Smith-Gilbert, UCF "Power Development For Speed"
	Jumps: Rock Light, Texas Tech "Perspectives of the Jumps 1979-2011"
	Throws: Scott Cappos, Iowa "Javelin Basics"
	Endurance: Gina Procaccio, Villanova "Training the Female Distance Runner"
1:30pm – 2:45pm	ASSISTANT COACH SEMINAR
	Boo Schexnayder, USTFCCCA: "Structuring Your Training Inventory"
2:45pm – 3:45pm	HIGH SCHOOL SESSION
	Doug Fraley, Tulane: "Pole Vault"
3:00pm – 4:15pm	ASSISTANT COACH SEMINAR
	Vern Gambetta: "Matters of Coaching and Coaching Matters"
4:00pm – 5:00pm	HIGH SCHOOL SESSION
	Rob Lasorsa, MF Athletic: "Commonalities of Rotational Shot & Discus"
4:30pm – 5:30pm	ASSISTANT COACH SEMINAR
	Jim Pennington: "Coaching Wellness – Wellness of Coaches"
5:15pm – 6:15pm	HIGH SCHOOL SESSION
	Vern Gambetta: "Elements of Speed Development"

 

Wednesday, December 14

8:30am – 9:30am	SYMPOSIUMS – Presented by: Beynon Sports Surfacing
	Sprints: Lonnie Greene, Arkansas "Coaching the Women’s 400 Meters and 4×400 Relay"
	Jumps: Steve Thomas, Mississippi State "The Mechanics of the High Jump and Their Dictates to Training"
	Throws: Jerry Clayton, Auburn "The Throws: Balance & Rhythm"
	Endurance: Gary Wilson/Sarah Hesser "Managing, Coaching, and Training A Distance Group"
9:45am – 10:45am	SYMPOSIUMS – Presented by: Beynon Sports Surfacing
	Sprints: Kebba Tolbert, Harvard "Acceleration – Philosophy, Mechanics, and Training Strategies"
	Jumps: Joe Walker, Mississippi "Training Brittany Reese in the Long Jump"
	Throws: Mike Maynard, UCLA "Factors Influencing Acceleration of the Hammer"
	Endurance: James Li, Arizona
9:45am – 10:45am	HIGH SCHOOL SESSION
	Dave Anderson, Ruston (La.) High School (ret.): "Developing Athletism in High School Distance Runners"
11:00am – 12:00pm	PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
	Grant Teaff, AFCA Executive Director
11:00am – 12:00pm	HIGH SCHOOL SESSION
	Don Helberg, Wheaton North (Ill.) High School: "Hurdle Progressions Over Four Years"

Symposium Speakers

Scott Abbott – Sacramento State
Scott Abbott is in his fifth year at Sacramento State guiding the cross country teams and the track middle distance and distance runners.  Under Abbott’s tutelage the cross country teams have experienced unprecedented success. In his five seasons, Abbott has coached the women to; five all-conference accolades (top 10 championship race finishers), seven of the Hornet all-time top 10 times and all-time top placers at the conference championship, and nine of the top 10 all-time NCAA regional championship times and five of the top 10 finishers respectively. He was voted the Big Sky Conference Cross Country Coach of the Year in 2008. The men have been very successful as well, having posted six of the all-time top ten conference championship race times and seven of the all-time NCAA regional championship times respectively. Additionally, the men have established four of the top ten Big Sky conference championship finishes and five of the top ten NCAA Regional finishes during his tenure. On the track, Abbott coached athletes that are equally impressive. In his four seasons, Abbott has coached five NCAA and one USATF Jr. All-Americans, 12 Big Sky conference champions, 30 all-conference accolades, 22 NCAA championship meet participants, 27 new school records, 94 all-time top 10 marks, two Big Sky championship meet MVPs, and three top 20 USATF marks.

2011 was a banner year for Sac State middle distance runners. Lea Wallace and Renisha Robinson led finished first and second at the indoor conference meet and both earned All-America accolades at the NCAA indoor national championship meet. Outdoors, Wallace won the Big Sky 800m and 1500m. She then proceeded to be the only athlete in all of NCAA Div. I to participate in the championship meet and earn All–America honors in both events.

Wallace was awarded co-athlete of the year for the NCAA West Region by the USTFCCCA. Wallace finished the year ranked ninth indoor in the USA at 800m with a time of 2:03.07. Outdoor her times of 2:02.15 and 4:10.77 were 20th and 18th respectively on the USATF list. For the men, it was sophomore Nathaniel Litwiller that led Abbott’s group. Nano, placed second at the indoor championships with a school record time and backed it up with a runner-up and third place in the 1500m and 800m respectively. He then proceeded to advance to the NCAA Championships with a school record of 1:48.35 and brought home All-America honors in the 800m. For the year, Abbott coached; two USATF National championship qualifiers, five NCAA All-Americans, six NCAA championship meet participants, four conference champions, eight all-conference performers, nine new school records, 25 new all-time top ten marks, and two Big Sky Conference championship MVP’s.

Scott Cappos – Iowa
Since Cappos joined the staff in 1997, Iowa has crowned 17 All-Americans and 21 Big Ten champions in the field events, setting 17 school records. The Hawkeyes have also had at least one All-American in the throws eight of the last 11 seasons. Iowa has crowned at least one all-Big Ten performer in the hammer throw nine of the past 13 years, a Hawkeye has finished first or second in the discus in 11 of the last 14 Big Ten meets and an Iowa thrower has placed in the top three in the shot put at ten of the last 11 conference meets.

In 2010, the Hawkeyes sent eight qualifiers to the NCAA Outdoor Championships, including Tiffany Medenwaldt, who broke the Hawkeye’s school record in the discus, and freshman Matt Byers, who earned first-team conference honors after winning the javelin at the Big Ten Championships.

The Hawkeye throwers have recorded numerous team highlights under Cappos. In 2004, Iowa qualified 10 throwers for the NCAA regional, which was the most of any team in the nation. In 2005, the Hawkeyes qualified five throwers to the NCAA Indoor Championships, which tied for the most of any school in the nation. Iowa swept Big Ten titles in the shot put in 2007 and 2008, and broke the 21-year-old school discus record in 2007.

Iowa has also had success with walk-on competitors under Cappos. Former Hawkeyes Brad Daufeldt (discus and hammer) and Chris Voller (hammer) joined the team as walk-ons and left as all-Big Ten honorees. Former Hawkeye Tim Brodersen also came to Iowa as a walk-on with a personal-best 174-0 in the discus. During his Hawkeye career, Broderson won two Big Ten titles, and his collegiate-best mark of 193-6 ranks fourth all-time at Iowa.

Jerry Clayton – Auburn
With over 30 years of NCAA Division I coaching experience, Jerry Clayton enters his 14th season at Auburn University.  Clayton, one of the nation’s top field event coaches, is responsible for the throws and multi-events.

In 2011, Clayton coached redshirt freshman Stephen Saenz to a pair of SEC freshman of the year honors. Clayton coached Saenz to the second-best mark in all of NCAA Division I a season ago in shot put and the third-best mark in Auburn history with a throw of 19.82 meters (65-0) at the 2011 NCAA East Region preliminary round. The freshman also won the 2011 SEC Championship.

In total, two of Clayton’s athletes qualified for the 2011 NCAA Outdoor Championships with Saenz placing fourth overall in the shot put. Saenz was also a discus qualifier. Additionally, fellow freshman Marcus Popenfoose qualified for nationals in both the shot put and the discus.

As recently as 2008, Clayton coached six athletes that advanced to the NCAA Outdoor Championships, including Cory Martin, who won the shot put and the hammer throw while earning USTFCCCA Athlete of the Year honors. Jacob Dunkleberger also finished second in the hammer and second in the weight throw at the NCAA indoor meet. For his efforts Clayton was named the 2008 Men’s Assistant Coach of the Year by the USTFCCCA.

In 2007, his athletes won two national championships (Donald Thomas in the indoor high jump and Dunkleberger in the hammer throw), five SEC Championships (Cory Martin in the weight throw, hammer throw and outdoor shot put, Thomas in the indoor and outdoor high jump) and earned seven All-American honors.

During Clayton’s 11 previous years at Auburn, Tiger athletes in his events have won 10 NCAA individual track and field National Championships, 34 individual SEC Championships and 63 qualifiers for the NCAA Track and Field Championships have won 40 All-American honors.

 

Sean Cleary – West Virginia
Associated with the West Virginia track & field and cross country programs for over 20 years, Sean Cleary ascended from the position of graduate assistant to head coach and along the way developed one of the most competitive cross country and distance programs in the country.  A three time Mid Atlantic Region USTFCCCA Coach of the Year, Cleary has developed national level competitors in the 1500 thru 10,000 meters on a yearly basis. 

 

TJ Crater – Penn State
Former NCAA Division II Assistant Coach of the Year T.J. Crater is in his third year on the Nittany Lion coaching staff. 2010 was a banner year for the Nittany Lion throws contingent, highlighted by All-America efforts from Joe Kovacs and Blake Eaton at the NCAA Indoor Championships, to go along with bronze-medal finishes from Eaton and Karlee McQuillen at the NCAA Outdoor Championships. Crater’s throws squad also performed well at the conference level a year ago, led by a Big Ten victory by Eaton in the shot put, as well as a pair of silver-medal efforts from Kovacs, and a runner-up finish from McQuillen.

At the NCAA level, Crater led Kovacs to a third-place finish in the shot put at the NCAA Indoor Championships – the highest finish by a Nittany Lion in the event since the 1991 season. Meanwhile, Eaton would also earn All-America honors, thanks to an eighth-place effort. Outdoors, Crater would guide Eaton to a personal-best throw of 64-2 (19.57), which earned him third place at the NCAA meet. McQuillen would also make the medal stand, thanks to a season-best throw of 171-2 (52.17) in the javelin.

Prior to his arrival at Penn State, while at Central Washington University, Crater was named the 2007 United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Division II West Region Men’s Assistant Track and Field Coach of the Year and the 2007 USTFCCCA Division II National Men’s Assistant Track and Field Coach of the Year.

 

Andy Eggerth – Kennesaw State
Andy Eggerth enters his second season as the Director of Track and Field and Cross Country at Kennesaw State University after joining the Owls in 2010. Eggerth came to Kennesaw State after four years of serving as the assistant coach for both track (mid-distance) and cross country at Kansas State.

During his first track and field season at Kennesaw State, Eggerth saw great success. The men’s track and field squad won their second straight Atlantic Sun Outdoor Conference Championship. As leader of the team, Eggerth was named the A-Sun Men’s Outdoor Coach of the Year.

Prior to his time at Kansas State, Eggerth found great success for the program at University of Alabama- Birmingham. During his three years there, the athletes under his direction were able to achieve nine school records and four freshman records. He coached one NCAA Indoor Championship provisional qualifier and six NCAA Regional Championship qualifiers during the 2005 outdoor season. Eggerth also guided his athletes to 42 indoor personal bests and 33 outdoor personal bests.

In his first season with the Blazers, he was able to coach four Southeast Region finalists and guided his athletes to four school records and three freshman records. Eggerth also helped his athletes achieve 21 personal bests during the 2004 indoor season and 25 personal bests during the outdoor season.

Eggerth worked for the National Sports Center (NSC) in Blaine, Minn. as the Track and Field Director for two years. During his time there, he managed almost 200 athletes while also organizing meets, planning the budget, hiring assistant coaches and recruiting athletes and coaching the sprinters and hurdlers at the NSC.

He served as a graduate assistant coach for sprint and hurdles at Syracuse University while obtaining his master’s in exercise physiology of which he completed in 2002.

Before his graduate work, Eggerth completed his undergraduate work at Bemidji State (Minn.) University, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in physical education as well as a Bachelor of Arts degree in sport management. Eggerth’s success went beyond the classroom as he broke 16 school records, one conference record and qualified for the NCAA Championship five times.

Eggerth holds holds a Level 2 certification from the USATF in combined events and throws and a Level 3 certification in jumps. He also has “Elite Coach” certification from the IAAF in sprints and hurdles. He is currently serving as an instructor in the USTFCCCA Track & Field Academy.

Houston Franks – Mississippi State
Mississippi State head cross country and assistant track & field coach Houston Franks was an  accomplished distance runner for MSU from 1994-98 The eighth-year as men’s cross country head coach and second as women’s head coach Franks is an integral part to the recent success of the MSU Lady Bulldog and Bulldog cross country and distance track and field programs.

During the 2011 Indoor Track and Field season, Franks guided sophomore Haley Greenwell to a third-place spot on the MSU all-time list for the 5,000-meter run, but it was during the 2011 Outdoor Track and Field season that Franks really saw Greenwell shine. The Lady Bulldog raced her way to the top of the MSU all-time list for the 10,000-meter run, while posting a 3rd place finish at the SEC Championships and a 17th place finish at the NCAA Championships. Franks’ coaching paid off at the end of the season, as Greenwell was named an honorable mention all-American.

Franks helped the Lady Bulldogs to fifth-place finishes at both the 2010 SEC Championships and the NCAA South Regional, while leading the Bulldogs to seventh and 10th place finishes in the respected events. The fifth-place finish for the Lady Bulldogs at the SEC Championships tied MSU’s best finish to date which occurred in 2006.

Also in 2010, Franks coached sophomores Renee Masterson and Greenwell on their way to earning all-SEC and all-Region accolades; along with senior Adam Lenz as he earned all-SEC honors.

In the past four seasons, Franks has tutored the MSU men’s distance squads to breaking four school records (indoor 3,000m, outdoor 10,000m, 4×1500-meter relay and 4×800-meter relay), and moving into the MSU all-time ranks in steeplechase, 10,000-, 5,000-, 3,000- and 1500-meter runs, distance medley relay.

Prior to returning to Starkville, Franks spent five years at Southwest Missouri State University (now Missouri State University). While at SMS, Franks served as head cross country coach for the Bears and won three Missouri Valley Conference women’s titles. His women’s teams finished in the top four at the
NCAA Midwest Regional’s during his last three years and his men’s squads finished in the top half of the conference during all five seasons. During the track and field season, the Bears captured three indoor and outdoor league championships on the women’s side.

Franks was a three-time MVC Coach of the Year in women’s cross country. During the 2002-03 season, he was also a part of the first SMS squad since 1993-94 to win the league’s coveted Triple Crown championships in cross country and both indoor and outdoor track and field.

Franks has served as a USATF Level 2 Endurance instructor and currently serves as an instructor for the USTFCCCA Track and Field Academy.

Vern Gambetta – Gambetta Training Systems
Gambetta, an internationally recognized expert in functional sports training, is one of the founding fathers of the USATF Coaching Education Program.  A former high school and collegiate track & field coach, Gambetta has also worked extensively with various teams in Major League Baseball, the NBA, the NHL, the NFL and MLS.  He has served in product development for Nike & Converse.  In recent years, Gambetta worked as a consultant for the Nike Oregon Project.  A publisher of several books and instructional videos, Gambetta was formally the editor of Track Technique and Associate editor of the IAAF technical journal, New Studies in Athletics.   Gambetta currently serves on the Editorial Board of the USTFCCCA technical journal techniques.

Caryl Smith Gilbert – UCF

Now in her fifth season at the helm of the Central Florida track and field and cross country programs, Caryl Smith Gilbert has lead the Knights to three-straight C-USA titles.

In 2011, UCF swept the indoor and outdoor track and field championship titles one year removed from winning its first ever C-USA Championship in outdoor track. The Knights boasted five First Team All Americans, including C-USA Track Athlete of the Year and UCF’s first two-time All-America first team honoree Jackie Coward. Between the 2011 indoor and outdoor seasons, 16 school records and seven freshman records were broken on numerous occasions under Smith Gilbert’s guidance.

The Knights sent a school-record 12 student-athletes to the NCAA East Preliminary Round, including a nation-leading 15 entries into the sprints and hurdles events. Smith-Gilbert also witnessed results in the classroom as five student-athletes were named to the 2011 Division I All-Academic Track and Field team, more than any other school in Conference USA.

In the spring of 2010, Smith Gilbert helped lead her team to a dramatic come-from behind finish to claim the C-USA Championship in outdoor track. The Knights took the lead with three events remaining and held off a late-surge by UTEP to claim the conference title. In a championship that had 21 total events, UCF athletes had 32 separate season-best and 22 personal-best performances in the four-day meet.  In her first two seasons at the helm of the program, her athletes broke 30 of the school’s indoor and outdoor school records.

In August of 2009, Smith Gilbert served as the jumps and multi events coach of Team USA at the 2009 IAAF World Outdoor Championships in Berlin, Germany.

Prior to coming to UCF, Smith Gilbert was an assistant coach at the University of Tennessee, where she was responsible for coaching sprints, hurdles and jumps. During her tenure with the Lady Vols, her athletes won three NCAA titles and seven Southeastern Conference championships and earned 53 NCAA Division I All-America honors. They also established 19 school records.

In 2005, Smith Gilbert was named U.S. Track Coaches Association National and Mideast Region Assistant Coach of the Year for sprints and hurdles. Smith Gilbert was responsible for the development of Dee Dee Trotter, the 2007 USA Indoor and Outdoor Champion and a 2004 gold medalist in the 4×400-meter relay. She ranked among the top six in the world each of the past four years. She also coached Tianna Madison to the 2005 world championship in the long jump.

Caryl has also worked as an assistant coach at the University of Alabama and Penn State where she coached a number of All Americans and NCAA qualifiers.

Randy Gillon – Michigan State
Randy Gillon is in his 8th season with Michigan State, overseeing the sprinters and hurdlers.

The MSU sprint / hurdles group has enjoyed tremendous success under Gillon’s guidance in recent years. In 2009 Jeremy Orr, ran to a third-place finish at the NCAA Mideast Regional Championships, posting a time of 45.78. Also joining Orr as a regional qualifier was Yuri Ratomski, qualifying in the 200m with a time of 21.31 and Shane Wells, in the 110m with a time of 13.91. Indoor season saw the Spartan sprinters and hurdlers leave their mark in history by breaking three school records. Orr would once again break his own school record in the 400m with a strong time of 46.41. En route to claiming the silver medal in the 60m hurdles at the Indoor Big Ten Championships, sophomore Shane Wells broke his own record (7.93) with a time of 7.88. The 4X400 tandem, led by Jeremy Orr, and also included Keith Hewlett, Yury Ratomski and Michael Smoot, broke the 16 year old record (3:10.20) with a time of 3:09.59.

In 2008, Gillon coached Jeremy Orr to a second place finish in the 400m and third place finish in the 200m at the Big Ten Indoor Track and Field Championships. Orr also broke his own Spartan record of 46.79 in the 400m running a nationally ranked time of 46.73 at the Iowa State Classic. During the outdoor season, Gillon qualified four athletes in three events; the women’s 4X100m relay, 100m hurdles and 100m into the NCAA Mideast Regional Championships. At the championships, the Spartan sprinters and hurdlers, under Coach Gillon’s leadership, displayed steady growth and improvement. Senior Jackie Walton ran her 2nd best time of 13.48 in the 100m hurdles finishing 15th and freshman Erica Mann ran a team and personal best time of 11.57 in the 100m, finishing 12th in the region. At the 2008 Big Ten Outdoor Track and Field Championships Walton etched her name into Spartan history running a time of 13.46 erasing the 23 year-old record previously held by Joanne Childress (13.66).

In Gillon’s first year, the Spartan sprinters and hurdlers delivered some of the Big Ten’s top times along with school record breaking performances. Jeremy Orr finished second in both the 200m and 400m at the Big Ten Indoor Track and Field Championships. Earlier that season Michigan State saw Orr break the 24 year old 400m record of 47.05 held by Spartan great Eliot Tabron, replacing it with a time of 46.79. Orr also took down his own record in the 60m, sprinting to a time of 6.71. At the Notre Dame Invitational John Childress sped to a time of 7.94 in the 60m hurdle, etching his name into the Spartan record books and eclipsing the record of 7.98 held by E.J. Martin. Additionally, Gillon qualified five athletes in four events; the women’s 4X100m relay and 100m hurdles, and the men’s 110m hurdles, into the NCAA Mideast Regional Championships.

Lonnie Greene – Arkansas
Associate head coach Rolando Greene is in his 16th season at the University of Arkansas where he coaches the sprints, hurdles, horizontal jumps and combined events. During his 20-plus years of coaching on the collegiate level, Greene has guided 82 All-Americans, six Olympians and three student-athletes who have competed at the World Championships. During Greene’s 15-year tenure at Arkansas, he has coached four student-athletes to five NCAA event titles, five Olympians, 11 SEC Champions, 24 athletes who have earned 68 All-America honors in 11 different events, two SEC Runners of the Year and an SEC co-Freshman Runner of the Year and two U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches’ Association (USTFCCCA) South Central Region Runners of the Year.

Additionally, his student-athletes have competed at the World Junior Championships, the World University Games, the Pan Am Games, the NACAC U-23 Championships and the Senior Central American Championships. He has served on the coaching staffs for the Central American Championships and the NACAC U-23 Championships.

Among the many notable athletes that Greene has guided are Veronica Campbell-Brown, La’Shaunte’a Moore, Gi-Gi Miller, Aneita Denton and most recently Shelise Williams.

Greene has been recognized by his peers with the 2004 U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches’ Association (USTFCCCA) National Assistant Coach of the Year award. He was also named the USTFCCCA’s Mideast Region Sprint Coach of the Year in 2007.

 

Rock Light – Texas Tech
A highly-regarded coach at the collegiate, U.S. and international levels for three decades, Rock Light is in his sixth season with the Texas Tech Red Raiders and coaches all of the jumps as well as the javelin and combined events. Throughout his career, Light has assembled nationally-ranked athletes in each of the jumping events on an annual basis.  Pole vaulters Shade Wegyandt and Kyal Meyers are the latest in a long line of successful Light coached athletes in that event.  Prior to his arrival in Lubbock, Light guided the Oregon Ducks’ combined events and jumps programs for two seasons, but is best known for his time spent coaching those events at LSU where he was part of a coaching staff that guided the Tigers and Lady Tigers to multiple NCAA Championships.  Light has also experienced great success coaching on the international level, guiding Charles Austin to an Olympic Gold medal in the high jump.  Light is a veteran of the coaching education world as well, having spent a number of years as the chair of the USATF Coaching Education Combined Events program.

 

Jud Logan – Ashland
Regarded as one of the top throws in the country, Jud Logan will be entering is sixth season as head coach at Ashland University this spring. Logan, a four-time Olympian in the hammer throw and former American record holder in the event, had a tremendous 2010 season at the helm at Ashland. In addition to producing five individual NCAA Division II Champions last season, Ashland’s women was the indoor national runner-up at the D-II Championships. Logan is a multiple-time winner of the USTFCCCA’s Midwest Region Coach of the Year award.

 

Mike Maynard – UCLA
Mike Maynard enters his third season as head coach for the men’s team and throws coach for both the men’s and women’s squads. Prior to coming to UCLA, Maynard was head coach/throws coach at Boise State for the previous nine years.

In his nine years as the head coach at Boise State, Maynard led a program which produced several historic events – back-to-back (2004 and 2005) national championships by Gabe Wallin in the men’s javelin, over 50 new school record performances and 30 All-American accolades.

Outside the collegiate world, Maynard has coached a World Champion, five different Olympians, a Pan American gold medalist, five USA Track and Field Champions and three American Junior Champions. One of Maynard’s former athletes Tony Washington (1990-96), won the World Championship in the discus in 1999. Washington also won the gold medal in the discus at the 1991 Pan American Games along with five USA National Championships.

 

Jennifer Michel – Western State
As the distance coach for the Mountaineer track and field program, Jennifer Michel coached David Goodman to the 2011 NCAA Division II national championship in the steeplechase, Tyler Pennel to the runner up spot in the 5K and Lauren Kleppin to the runner up spot in the 10K. These 2011 performances were preceded by  two national runner-ups in the NCAA Outdoor Championships in 2009 (Tyler Pennel – 5,000-meter run; Lisa Thomas – 3,000-meter steeplechase) and another runner-up performer in 2010 (Sean Brown – 10,000-meter run)

As an athlete, Michel earned eight All-American honors in track and field and cross country. In track and field, Michel won Division II titles in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, 3,000-meter run and indoor mile, and held the national championship steeplechase record until 2008. She was a six-time RMAC champion and a five-time W Mountain Run winner. She set the women’s W Mountain record in 2002 which still stands today.

Michel earned RMAC All-Century honors in women’s track and field as part of the conference centennial celebration in 2008-09. She was also a member of the NCAA 25th Anniversary Team for Women’s Track and Field and the 1999 NCAA Cross Country Runner of the Year.

After her collegiate career, she finished fifth at the US Track and Field Championships in the steeplechase in 2002.

 

Cliff Rovelto – Kansas State
An internationally recognized authority in combined events, Rovelto is one of two coaches in the U.S. to coach multiple combined event athletes to over 8,000 points in the decathlon and 6,000 points in the heptathlon.

Rovelto has also coached some of the nation’s top jumpers and helped establish K-State as one of the elite high jumping schools in the nation with five NCAA Champions in his tenure as head coach. While at Kansas State, he has coached 42 All-Americans and 24 conference champion high jumpers, while leading 19 All-Americans and 17 conference champs in the long and triple jump. In the pole vault, he has coached a two-time NCAA runner-up and a two-time NCAA third-place finisher.

Since becoming the head coach in November of 1992, the men’s and women’s cross country, indoor and outdoor track and field programs have earned 156 All-American certificates and 116 individual conference championships. Over his 21 seasons at K-State, Rovelto has personally directed 44 individuals to 102 NCAA All-America certificates, as well as 49 individuals to 70 conference event championships.

 

Nic Petersen – TCU
Nic Petersen joined the TCU coaching staff as an assistant coach on Aug. 7, 2009 and serves as the jumps and multi-events coach for the Horned Frogs. Petersen came to TCU from the University of Nebraska, where he served the 2009 season as an assistant coach for the Huskers. In Lincoln, Petersen worked in the jumps area learning under legendary head coach Gary Pepin.

Petersen has made his mark on the TCU program since stepping onto campus prior to the 2010 season, leading his athletes to earn six All-America honors and snapping the school records for both the long jump and triple jump on the women’s side. Overall, his coaching career boasts 18 All-Americans, six Mountain West Conference champions, four Big 12 champions, two World Championship team members, an NCAA Champion and an Olympian.

In 2011, Petersen guided junior long jumper Whitney Gipson to soar 21 feet, 11 1/2 inches at the historic Penn Relays to claim championship accolades, marking the longest leap hit by a female in the 117 years of the Penn Relays and at Franklin Field. The Newark, Texas product also highlighted her junior season by claiming the Mountain West Conference long jump titles at both the indoor and outdoor championships. She proved she was one of the best long jumpers in the nation after earning sixth place honors at the NCAA Indoor Championships and fourth-place accolades at the NCAA Outdoor Championships. By placing fourth overall, Gipson recorded the highest finish in program history in the women’s long jump at nationals.

 

Gina Procaccio – Villanova
Gina Procaccio is in her tenth season at the helm and was instrumental in bringing the program back into the national spotlight.

She was named the 2009 & 2010 Division I National Women’s Cross Country Coach of the year by the USTFCCCA . Procaccio was bestowed these prestigious honors after leading her team through an undefeated season which included winning the Big East Championships for the second straight year, as well as winning the Mid-Atlantic Regional championships and NCAA titles in both seasons.
Most recently, Procaccio guided Sheila Reid to the 2011 NCAA title in the 1500 meters at the outdoor championship meet.

During her 15 years as both an assistant and head coach at ‘Nova, Procaccio has guided her athletes to 10 individual NCAA titles, 60 plus All-American honors and 50 plus individual Big East titles. In the classroom, her cross country team was awarded the highest team GPA among sports at Villanova four out of the last five years. The team has also garnered numerous All- Academic honors, both individually and as a team.

After her All American career at Florida & Villanova , Procaccio ran successfully in national and international competition. She has participated in three World Championships and qualified for the final in the 5000m at the 1995 World Championships.

 

Boo Schexnayder – USTFCCCA Track & Field Academy
Most noted for the 12 years he spent as a member of the Track and Field coaching staff at LSU, Boo Schexnayder, who coached collegiately at Louisiana-Lafayette and Blinn Junior College prior to arriving at LSU, placed quite an imprint on the collegiate track and field scene. Regarded as one of the worlds premier field event coaches, he was the guiding hand behind 19 NCAA Champions during his collegiate coaching career. He was a key component of 12 NCAA Championship teams and a pair of JUCO National titles, as well as developing a host of conference champions and All-Americans.

Schexnayder has also been a prominent figure on the international scene, having coached triple jumper Walter Davis to multiple World Championships, and long jumper John Moffitt to a silver medal at the 2004 Olympics in Athens. He has coached 10 Olympians, and has served on coaching staffs for Team USA to the 2003 Pan Am Games in Santo Domingo, the 2006 World Junior Championships in Beijing, and was the Jumps Coach for Team USA at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.

A truly gifted clinician, Schexnayder currently serves as the Chair of the USTFCCCA Track & Field Academy Advisory Board and has been instrumental in the development of the curriculum and instruction of the TFA since its inception in late 2010.    

 

Dennis Shaver – LSU
Widely considered one of the premier sprints and hurdles coaches in all of track and field, LSU’s athletes flourished under Shaver since his arrival in Baton Rouge in 1995.  The list of Shaver coached sprint standouts is lengthy and includes the likes of 2008 Olympic 100-meter Silver Medalist Richard Thompson, two-time indoor 60-meter hurdles world champion Lolo Jones, multi-time Olympian Muna Lee, NCAA Champions Trindon Holiday, Kelly Baptiste and Kickiesha Wilson and Xavier Carter who won four NCAA titles at the 2006 NCAA Outdoor Championships, joining the legendary Jesse Owens of Ohio State in 1935 and 1936 as the only athletes in history to accomplish the feat.

In all, Shaver has coached 18 Olympians, four Olympic Medalists, 28 NCAA Champion athletes winning 40 NCAA titles and 16 NCAA Champion relay teams. His athletes have earned an astounding 323 All-America honors during his 28 years of coaching.

 

Scott Simmons – Queens (N.C.)
Scott Simmons is in his fourth year as the head coach of Queens University of Charlotte’s men’s and women’s cross-country & track teams. Simmons guided the men’s program to a record high 7th-place finish at the 2008 NCAA DII National Cross Country Championships as well as coaching four NCAA DII individual national champions in Daniel Kanyaruhuru (Indoor 5,000-meters, 2008), Michael Crouch (Indoor 5,000-meters and Outdoor 1500-meter, 2009) and Tanya Zeferjahn (Outdoor 10,000-meters, 2009).

Simmons, a native of Fort Walton Beach, Fla., is no stranger to national collegiate success. He joined the Royals after three years at Virginia Intermont College where he led the men’s team to three back-to-back-to-back National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) national cross-country championship titles (2004-2006) right on the heels of two national team titles while at Minot State University in Minot, N.D. in 2002 and 2003.

His list of achievements during his 18-year coaching career is impressive. Simmons is a two-time USA National Team Leader, has been honored with six NAIA National Coach of the Year Awards and coached numerous individuals to US national titles and onto US National teams including Fernando Cabada, who broke the American record for 25k while a collegian and ran 2:12 for the marathon, the seventh fastest debut by an American.

In addition to serving as a coach, Simmons has penned a handful of books on the sport as well, including “Take the Lead: A Revolutionary Approach to Coaching Cross Country” and USA Track & Field’s “Post Collegiate Distance Runners’ Survival Guide.”

 

Jon Stuart – Georgia
Jon Stuart, a 1992 graduate of Georgia, enters his 12th year directing Georgia men’s sprinters and hurdlers. Under his guidance during the last four seasons, the Bulldog sprinters/hurdlers tallied five Southeastern Conference individual titles, an impressive 10 All-American certificates and one NCAA title.

In just his second season under Stuart’s tutelage, the electrifying Torrin Lawrence won an NCAA title, an SEC title and was named the 2010 USTFCCCA National Male Track Athlete of the Year. Lawrence clocked the third-fastest 400-meter dash collegiate indoor time in history (45.03) followed with an SEC meet record time of 45.10 to clinch his conference crown.
Stuart has also been instrumental in the development of 2010 freshman sprinter Eric Harris. After a year of developments in the UGA program, Harris won a Gold medal with his 4×100 relay teammates representing Team USA at the IAAF World Junior Championships in Moncton, Canada, during the 2010 summer. Harris also clocked a 21.22 and was the only American collegiate runner to advance to the 200 semifinals at the World Championships.

Stuart led New Jersey native Justin Gaymon, who completed his eligibility in 2009, to three SEC championships as well as six All-America certificates combined in the 400, 400 hurdles and 4×400 relay during his career. Gaymon finished atop Georgia’s all-time lists in the indoor 400 (45.94), 400 hurdles (48.46) and the indoor 4×400 relay (3:07.45). He also joined David Dickens, Brian Etelman and Michael Proctor as they clocked the second-best outdoor time in school history in the 4×400 relay at the 2007 NCAA Outdoor Championships to finish fifth (3:04.13) and earn All-American distinction. Thanks in part to Stuart’s crew, the Georgia have men eight top-20 NCAA finishes since 2000.

 

James Thomas – Kentucky
Entering his sixth season with Kentucky, UK assistant coach James Thomas has built Kentucky into a league and national competitor in jumps, vaults and multi-events. Bringing in top athletes from across the country, Thomas’ group has had five record-breaking years in a row, earning Southeastern Conference championships and All-American honors.

During his time at UK, Thomas has coached 2 individual SEC champions, 4 USTFCCCA All Americans and 10 additions to the UK All Time Top 10 list. Additionally, Thomas has guided 7 school record holders including  Precious Nwokey  (Indoor 4,185 points and outdoor 5,543 points). Precious was also the 2011 SEC indoor pentathlon champion and is three-time All-American.

Other notables include Ashley Trimble – 2009 SEC pentathlon champion; Indoor All-American; Finished 7th at 2011 USA indoor pentathlon; Holds an indoor pentathlon PR of 4,102 points, and an outdoor heptathlon PR of 5,530 points and Danielle Sampley – Current indoor (3,704 points) and outdoor (5377 points) UK freshman record holder; NCAA outdoor heptathlon qualifier; 2008 USA World Junior team member; Named All-SEC twice; 2008 SEC All-Freshman team.

 

Steve Thomas – Mississippi State
Steve Thomas made his return to MSU track and field in 2011 as the new assistant coach for jumps. In his first year back at MSU, Thomas had quite the successful year as he coached a SEC Champion who was also named the SEC Freshman Field Event Athlete of the Year, placed two on the All-American lists and placed an athlete on the second team All-SEC list. Under the direction of Thomas, Rochelle Farquharson single-handedly placed Lady Bulldog jumps on the map with her performance at the 2011 SEC Outdoor Championships

The freshman jumped a personal best 21-3¼ to claim the SEC Championship in the long jump, an honor that would also make her a member of the 2011 All-SEC Outdoor Track and Field First Team and All-Freshman squads, while also nabbing her the honor of being named the 2011 SEC Freshman Field Event Athlete of the Year.

On the men’s side of things, Thomas had the pleasure of coaching James Harris and Marcus Jackson, two freshmen that also had pretty impressive years. Jackson made his claim for fame at the 2011 Outdoor SEC Championships as he finished second in the high jump to claim second team All-SEC honors and find a spot on the SEC All-Freshman list. Jackson also put on quite the show at the NCAA Championships as he jumped 6-10 ¾ to earn second-team All-American honors.

Thomas joined the staff after spending the previous three seasons in the high school ranks at St. Patrick Catholic H.S. Prior to that, he was at the University of Kentucky for two yearsWhile at the University of Kentucky, Thomas made his mark coaching a six-time all-America honoree in the shot put and helping the female throwers produce impressive marks in their quest for championships.

Prior to his work at Kentucky, Thomas served as an assistant coach at the University of Florida where he built upon his already impressive resume by coaching nine All-Americans, six Southeastern Conference champions and a pair of NCAA East Region champions. In his career, he has tutored individuals who have won nearly 40 conference championship titles.

As head coach of both the men’s and women’s cross country and track and field programs at University of South Alabama from 1992 to 1998, he received four Sun Belt Conference Coach-of-the-Year awards.

Thomas is known on the international stage for his instruction skills, conducting clinics in Australia, Belgium, England, Germany, Mexico and Switzerland, as well as a two-week clinic in China in 1994.

 

Kebba Tolbert – Harvard
Tolbert began his coaching career at Iowa Wesleyan and produced 21 All-Americans and the school’s first national champions. During his tenure, his athletes set 25 school records, 21 conference records and broke two national marks.
Tolbert spent two season at Mckendree as associate Coach, helping the team to 3 National Titles and coached athletes to 18 national championships.

After his stint at Mckendree, Tolbert joined Syracuse’s program as an assistant coach. During his time with the Orange, Tolbert added two NCAA qualifiers, one USATF qualifier and an all-American along with several school records to his coaching resume.

In 2003 Tolbert joined Portland State as head coach of the track and field and cross country teams. Tolbert found great success with the Vikings as his teams consistently had top finishes in the Big Sky conference indoor and outdoor championships and the highest point totals in school history. Athletes would once again find great success under Tolbert. producing eight PSU Athletes of the Year, 22 Big Sky Champions and 79 All-Big Sky honors recipients.

Tolbert joined UTEP in 2008 and made an immediate impact on the Miner’s squad, finishing his coaching career there with two athletes qualifying for the NCAA championships. Under his tutelage the program saw four NCAA title and seven All-American awards. He also helped coach UTEP’s first women’s individual All-Americans in the sprints since 1999 and the first women’s NCAA Champions since 2001.

A seasoned clinician, Tolbert has served as a USATFA Level 2 instructor in the Jumps. He is  graduate of Colby College where he earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy, Tolbert earned his Master of Arts degree in exercise science in 1996 from Smith.

 

Jim VanHootegem – Texas A&M
One of the nation’s most versatile assistant coaches, Jim VanHootegem earned the NCAA Division I Men’s National Assistant Coach of the Year honor in 2009, awarded by USTFCCCA, for his work with the Texas A&M jumpers and multi-event competitors. In 2010, VanHootegem was named South Central Region Men’s Assistant Coach of the Year following region honors he received in 2005, 2006 and 2007.

Now in his seventh season with the Aggies, VanHootegem is responsible for coaching athletes in the jumps and combined events. During his 21 years of collegiate coaching, VanHootegem has been successful at every stop. Most recently he was part of the Aggie staff that won four NCAA Outdoor Championships in the past two seasons, two each for the men and women.  In total, VanHootegem has been a member of coaching staffs that have won nine NCAA Championship team titles and 21 conference crowns.  VanHootegem was a seven time All-American at North Central College from 1987-90. In 1989 he helped lead North Central College to the NCAA Division III indoor and outdoor national championships. A seasoned educator, VanHootegem served for many years as a Level II lead instructor in the USATF Coaching Education Program.

 

Joe Walker – Mississippi
One of the most well-respected coaches in the country, Joe Walker is in his third decade as head coach of the Ole Miss track and field team. A veteran with over forty years of coaching experience, Walker has routinely produced SEC champions, NCAA champions and Olympians throughout his coaching career. It is that attitude of excellence that Walker exudes that has lifted Ole Miss among the elite track and field teams across the country.  Most recently, Walker has guided Brittany Reese to three consecutive World Championship long jump titles (’09 Outdoor, ’10 Indoor, ’11 Outdoor).  Reese has also claimed four consecutive U.S. titles in the event.

Other notable Walker coached long jump champions include four time Olympian Larry Myricks, three time NCAA champion and Olympian Savante’ Stringfellow and current Auburn University Head Track & Field Coach Ralph Spry who was the first ever NCAA Champion in track & field for Ole Miss.

Mike Young – USTFCCCA
Mike Young is the Director of Sports Performance at HPC Sport located in Cary, NC. In his role as the Director of Sports Performance, Mike serves as the strength and speed coach and primary biomechanist for Athletic Lab. Mike brings the unique qualities of being a nationally recognized researcher, coach, and educator. His depth of knowledge and experience in the field of athletic development is evidenced by his stays at all three U.S. Olympic Training Centers as an athlete (Lake Placid), sport scientist (Colorado Springs & Chula Vista), and coach (Colorado Springs).

Mike has an undergraduate degree in Exercise Physiology, a Master of Science degree in Athletic Administration and a PhD in Kinesiology with an emphasis in Biomechanics. He has studied extensively in anatomy, physiology, sport psychology, motor learning, training theory and biomechanics. Mike is an NSCA Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist, a certified USA Weightlifting Club Coach, a Crossfit Level 1 Certified Trainer, USA Track & Field (USATF) Level 3 USATF Level 2 in 3 event areas.

He has developed training plans for sports ranging from dragon boating, to soccer, to swimming and has helped prepare numerous players for the NFL combine, most notably Bradie James (Dallas Cowboys) and Super Bowl Champion Marquise Hill (New England Patriots). In the sport of Track & Field he coached or assisted multiple Olympians, National Champions, and Collegiate National Champions. Currently, Mike serves as the coach for the HPC Elite team, which is a team of internationally competitive track and field athletes. Previously, Mike served as a jumps and multi-events coach at Ohio University where his athletes set 2 school records. Following OU, Mike moved to Baton Rouge where he mentored under legendary track and field coach, "Boo" Schexnayder for 4 years. While at LSU, Mike was on the staff of 6 National Championship teams. Following his time at LSU, Mike became the sprints and multi-events coach for Army Track & Field. In his short 3 years at Army, Mike’s athletes rewrote the record books with 9 school records, 54 All-Time Top Ten performances, 24 Conference Championships.

Mike serves on the USTFCCCA Track and Field Academy Advisory Board and as an instructor in the program.

Subject to change. Speakers listed in alphabetical order.