It's easy to toot the horns of folks like Diljeet, Eyestone, the Powells, Mike Smith, Vin, and even Mouse, Floreal, etc., but a guy like Pat Tyson at Gonzaga has done a great job with as few scholarships as he has available at a school with a pretty high tuition cost! I'd almost be willing to bet that at best he has 3.5 to 4 total scholarships to work with on the men's side with a roster of about 25-30 athletes...that's some pretty thin slices of bologna to divvy up.
While I realize this board is distance focused, for NCAA Div I Track and Field, there is only one answer: Mike Holloway. Look at NCAA Championships and top 5 finishes, he is clearly #1.
A few championship highlights under Taylor among others.
Erika Birk - As a Senior in highschool was just hoping to prove to coaches she was worthy of a scholarship. Worked with Taylor after a pregnancy. 2018 XC 7th 2019 indoor 3k - 5th DMR - 2nd 2019 outdoor 3000S - 5th ( 2nd going into the final water jump and fell ) 2019 XC 6th
Whittni Orton - 5.05.23 1600 meter pr in highschool 2018 indoor Mile - 7th 2019 outdoor 1500 - 8th 2019 XC 7th Was primed for indoor championships before covid hit. 2021 XC Champ
Anna Camp - 5.07.36 1600 meter pr in highschool 2019 indoor DMR - 2nd 2019 outdoor 800 - 8th 2021 XC (covid) 11th 2021 outdoor 1500 - Champ 2021 XC 12th
Watch more Mic'd Up videos here: https://flosports.link/3uxijSEWe followed the BYU women's team at the 2022 DI NCAA Indoor Championships. Be sure to watch th...
This is so ridiculous. All the Mike Smith fans are mid 20’s and under, the Nico Young fan boys. Wetnore is very good at coaching distance runners and has been for years, he did not inherit the NCAA XC champs like Smith did, but Wetmore has won with both genders.
in reality, the best coaches in most people’s eyes are the best recruiters, not necessarily the best coaches.
Really, I was that old 35 years ago and I think coach Smith is fantastic. 5 XC titles in 6 years is hard to top. And you better get used to it, they lose no one and will add Colin Sahlman and Aidan Puffer. DYNASTY.
This guy would take any power5 distance coaches job, and in 2 years that team would better than it ever was with the previous Coach. You don’t have to be a power5 coach to be considered great, that goes against the ideology of how getting a job in the NCAA works. Remember it’s who you know not what what you know, which should explain why most P5 coaches don’t get the job done. You mean to tell me a school like Arkansas or Oklahoma st with all that distance running history can’t beat NAU a mid major in XC. Stop gassing up the old farts.
This guy would take any power5 distance coaches job, and in 2 years that team would better than it ever was with the previous Coach. You don’t have to be a power5 coach to be considered great, that goes against the ideology of how getting a job in the NCAA works. Remember it’s who you know not what what you know, which should explain why most P5 coaches don’t get the job done. You mean to tell me a school like Arkansas or Oklahoma st with all that distance running history can’t beat NAU a mid major in XC. Stop gassing up the old farts.
Again, you mid 20’s guys need to realize XC/track has been around a while in the NCAA.
BYU won a couple of NCAA XC titles around 2000, I think 3 in 4 years, they were highly competitive for years with Patrick Shane coaching them. At this point Diljeet has done well for a year and turned some heads with her clothing choices at meets. Give it a few more years.
Exactly. Shane had 4 NCAA titles in 1997, 1999, 2001 and 2002. In his 36 years coaching, the BYU women were in the top 10 a total of NINETEEN TIMES.
Diljeet is doing well but is clearly overhyped. She LOVES to be on the camera. When Wetmore wins, he doesn't want to be in any of the photos. Diljeet will shove her athletes aside to get more time on screen.
Gibby had a great run at W&M, but what has he done lately? He's bounced around between W&M, Michigan, Charlotte, and Harvard - and I don't recall anything particularly impressive from those last 3 schools.