Throws Coach Joins Chippewa Staff
8/28/2015 12:00:00 AM | MTF
Andy Sneddon, CMUChippewas.com
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. - Matt Adams has joined the Central Michigan track & field program as the Chippewas' throws coach.
Adams comes to CMU from Olivet Nazarene University, an NAIA school in Bourbonnais, Ill., where he served for five years as an assistant coach.
He holds a bachelor's degree from Oregon and a master's from William Woods University in Fulton, Mo. Adams was a graduate assistant at Williams Woods and also served as an assistant at Wisconsin-Platteville and Clarke (Iowa).
At Olivet Nazarene, Adams oversaw all throwing disciplines -- javelin, hammer, discus, shot put and weight throw -- and coached three NAIA national champions and eight All-Americans. His throwers set 28 school and 17 conference records under his tutelage.
"I think Matt brings a youthful energy along with experience gained from being an athlete in an outstanding program like Oregon along with the student-athlete successes that he's help cultivate as a coach," said Mark Guthrie, CMU Director of Track & Field/Cross Country.
"We knew we had to make a great hire here because the throws are one of the cornerstone events of our program."
The Chippewas have enjoyed significant success in throws over the past few years and their top performers, including the likes of Devene Brown, Kylee Dobbelaere, Dylan Banagis and Cole Walderzak, are all upperclassmen.
Brown and Walderzak both qualified for the NCAA Outdoor Championships - Brown in the women's discus, Walderzak in the men's hammer -- in 2015.
Adams was an NCAA West Region qualifier in the javelin while throwing for Oregon in 2005, and he helped the Ducks to the conference championship that season. He was a four-time National Junior College Athletics Association All-American in the javelin and the discus at Glendale (Calif.) Community College.
"I'm excited and happy to join the Central Michigan staff and look forward to building on the great reputation that Central's had and in helping develop the student-athletes as they strive to be the best they can be, and the best the program can be," Adams said.
Adams will work under Guthrie, who, in two years at CMU, has steered the program toward competing for Mid-American Conference championships.
"Mark has a phenomenal reputation in coaching circles," Adams said. "I'm looking forward to working with Mark and all the other coaches on staff. I think the foundation is there for Central to be very competitive going forward."
Players Mentioned
