Marshall University Athletics
Marshall Announces Leadership Change for Track & Field
5/31/2023 4:20:00 PM | Track and Field
Spears says national search coming for new T&F coach
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – Marshall University Director of Athletics Christian Spears announced today a head coaching change for the Marshall Track and Field program, previously led by Jeff Small.
"On behalf of the entire Marshall Athletics department, I want to express my sincere appreciation to Coach Small for his tremendous dedication and for the experiences he provided student-athletes in our program," Spears said. "We wish Jeff the best in all his future endeavors. We will conduct a national search for our next head coach as soon as possible. We expect this position will attract some outstanding candidates, given our history and the return of Men's Track and Field."
Coach Small, who served as head track and field coach since July 1995, saw his tenure span four different conference affiliations for the Thundering Herd – Southern Conference, 1995-97; Mid-American Conference, 1997-2005; Conference USA, 2005-22; Sun Belt Conference, 2022-23.
Small saw many highlights throughout his 28-year career, which culminated with the return of the men's track program in 2023 and five individuals advancing to the 2023 NCAA Outdoor Prelims (four women's track, one men's track), which wrapped up this past weekend in Florida.
Among those advancing to the NCAA Outdoor Prelims in 2023 were a pair of Sun Belt champions: Macie Majoy (pole vault) and Mikah Alleyne (400 hurdles).
The 2023 season was one of several highlights during Small's career at Marshall. Another involved the 2013 season when Marshall sent a school-record eight women's track athletes to the NCAA Prelims.
During that 2013 season, Marshall's women's track and field team took home three individual Conference USA titles while producing a pair of All-Americans in Crystal Walker (long jump) and Vanessa Jules (heptathlon), whom each finished in the top-6 nationally.
In 1997, Small led Marshall's men's track team to its first Southern Conference Indoor Championship and was named Southern Conference Indoor Coach of the Year for his efforts. That season featured future NFL Hall of Famer Randy Moss, who won the 55-meter and 200-meter dashes while setting four school records in four races.
In cross country, Small oversaw five runners who earned All-Conference USA honors in multiple seasons and he also coached Matt Schiffbauer in 2011 as Schiffbauer became the first runner since 1979 to qualify for the NCAA National Championship meet.
Small also coached cross country runner Caleb Bowen, who later became an assistant for Small before taking over as the head cross country coach in 2022.
The track inside Chris Cline Indoor Athletic Complex is named in Small's honor.
Small came to Marshall after serving as the assistant men's and women's track and field coach, as well as head cross country coach, for South Carolina from 1989-95.
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