Track and Field's Cook earns head coaching title, assistants attain promotions

ABILENE -- Abilene Christian Athletics Director Allen Ward Monday announced Jerrod Cook as the 21st head coach in the 100-year history of the Wildcats' championship track and field program.

"Jerrod's tenure with the Wildcats has been nothing short of exceptional," said Ward, "and I was more than pleased to offer him this promotion. He has been an exemplary coach and spiritual mentor to hundreds of student-athletes as a valued member of the Abilene Christian community. He's also a talented recruiter, who for decades has transformed young men and women from around the world into national and conference champions. Jerrod is a proven winner who will maintain the traditions of excellence associated with ACU Track and Field." 

"I feel incredibly grateful and blessed to be named head coach," said Cook. "It also gives me a lot of peace knowing my staff and I can keep moving forward as one group with the same goals. The team's spirit is great. They are excited. They are hungry and not content to hang their hats on the one conference titles. They want to continue winning championships, and so I look forward to leading everyone (coaches and student-athletes) in this direction. Winning is contagious."

In addition to Cook shedding his interim coach title, Kristian Dillard (sprints/multis) was promoted to associate head coach while Jarvis Jelen (distances) earned the designation of head cross country coach to go along with his assistant track coach title. Dillard has been associated with the program since 2018, while Jelen has been at ACU since 2016.

"I'm really excited for both Kristian and Jarvis to receive these promotions," said Cook. "Krisitan does a great job across the board helping all our athletes in their faith journey. He always is looking out for them mentally, physically and spiritually. He is such a talented and gifted coach. 

"I also wanted to make it clear that I'm not the cross country coach. This is a title I've been wanting to give to Jarvis, because he has more than earned it. I know cross country fits under the track and field umbrella, but I wanted this sport to be able to have its own identity and that starts with it having its own head coach. And I want Jarvis and all the assistants to be recognized for their success and to receive accolades."

Cook, who has coached 11 national champions and 30 All-Americas on The Hill since 2006, had been serving the men's and women's teams as their interim head coach since April 2020. But over the past 12 months, he and his coaching staff proved deserving of their respective promotions after directing the women's track and field team to its first Southland Conference Indoor Championship and guiding the women's cross country team to Southland runner-up honors.

Competing at the Birmingham (Ala.) Crossplex, the Wildcats' women's team showcased their depth by scoring 107 points across 13 events to edge Northwestern State (103 points) for top honors. They also brought home 10 medals (four gold, four silver, two bronze).

ACU's point distribution included 18 in the sprints, plus 29 in the jumps and 21 in the distances. The Wildcats also netted 12 points in the shot put, 13 in the heptathlon, six in the 60-meter hurdles and eight in the meet-closing 4x400-meter relay, which secured ACU's first track and field conference team championship since 2013 (Lone Star Conference Indoors).

This incredible feat was made more amazing by the fact that the Wildcats only competed at one indoor regular season meet (January) prior to the championships due to COVID-related complications and a paralyzing ice storm that hit the region in mid-February. Still ACU made the best of a shortened season and came away with 19 new additions to its all-time top-10 performers list.

Tyler Richardson, the 2020 Southland Indoor Freshman of the Year under Cook, shot up to No. 2 in the weight throw with a toss of 63 feet - 8 inches (19.42), as did Taylor Tolen in the 200-meter dash (24.16) and Megan Kirby in the 60-meter hurdles (8.69).

Additional breakthrough athletes of note from this past indoor season include freshman Jack Marshall, who earned two bronze medals at Southlands, gold-medal high jumper Zoe Spinn and silver medalist Zoe Spinn, plus multi-athlete JJ Ply and highly decorated distance runner Irene Rono, who represented ACU at NCAAs after winning the Southland XC individual championship.

Rono, Tolen and senior thrower Annina Brandenburg are all off to tremendous starts this outdoor season as evident by their consecutive Southland Athlete of the Week honors. Brandenburg won the shot put title at ACU's Wes Kittley Invitational, while Tolen reached the medal stand three times , winning the 100-meter dash (11.67) and 4x100m relay (46.08), and placing third in the 200m (24.41). Tolen is the first Wildcat to crack the school's all-time top-10 performer list in the 100m since 2007.

All three also were among the 31 Wildcats accepted to compete at Texas Relays, where Rono placed third in the 10,000-meter run (34:16.39). Her performance ranks eighth in the NCAA, third in the East Region and first in the Southland this season.

Cook began his 15th year with the Wildcats last August. He was hired in 2006 by then-head coach Don D. Hood to be the Wildcats' throwing coach following a decorated career as a student-athlete and assistant coach at McMurry ('04 B.S. Exercise and Sports Studies). He later served in a similar capacity under coaches Roosevelt Lofton (2009-13), Keith Barnier (2013-16) and Lance Bingham (2016-20). He was elevated to Associate Head Coach in May 2015, and was previously an interim head coach during the 2013 and 2016 outdoor seasons.

Cook coached Kelli Clemens to DII All-America honors in his first year at ACU, and by the end of year two both Nick Jones (discus) and Linda Brivule (javelin) were national champions in their respective events. Jones would become only the second athlete in NCAA history (regardless of division or gender) to win four national titles in the discus joining former UCLA women's great Seilala Sua, who won titles for the Bruins from 1997-2000.
 
Cook's extensive list of proteges also includes DI All-Americas Annina Brandenburg (discus) and Kayla Melgar (shot put), plus DII national champions Paige Newby (discus), Camille Vandendriessche (decathlon) and Jessica Withrow (heptathlon).

Overall, Cook's athletes have set nine (of 12) school throwing records. Brandenburg was the most recent Wildcat to add her name to the record book after she reached a shot put distance of 52 feet-3.75 inches (15.94 meters) to place first at the 2020 Ted Nelson Invitational. Her mark broke Marlene Lewis' previous record of 50-9 (15.46m) that had stood for 32 years (Dec. 1987).  

Cook was a seven-time national qualifier in the indoor weight throw and outdoor hammer. In 2003, he was a NCAA Division III All-America selection for his performance indoors in the weight throw. He won five conference titles with the McMurry Warhawks from 2001-04 throwing the hammer and the javelin. His throw of 59-5.00 set the school's record in the weight throw, while his mark of 188-11 is a record for the hammer.

Cook and his wife, Melinda, reside in Potosi with their two children: Katelyn (11) and Carter (10).