MONROE, La. – First-year ULM cross country head coach Jacob Poyner has only been with the program for less than a month, but he already feels at home.
"I've really enjoyed the team, the other coaches on staff and the athletic department," Poyner said. "I feel like I'm acclimating well and I'm ready for the season to start."
Poyner spent the last four seasons in the same position at Grace College in Winona Lake, Indiana. There, he was named the NCCAA Men's and Women's Cross Country Coach of the Year in 2021 and 2022. In those two years, he led Grace College to two NCCAA National Championships. He also was named the 2023 United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association Regional Assistant Coach of the Year for indoor track and won the same award the year before with outdoor track.
"The biggest thing has been recruiting the right individuals into the team and preserving our culture every day," Poyner said. "Everything we do and the way we talk to each other is immensely important."
He believes that having a good culture can build a better program.
"Once you get a group of like-minded individuals bought into the same gameplan, a lot of really special things can happen," Poyner said. "It's important to make sure everybody knows that they play a profound role in the operation."
The first-year coach also wants his runners to excel not only on the course, but off it too. He believes that this can lead to better performance in meets.
"It starts with what we want to be about outside of race day from practice, class, in the community and in the way we take care of ourselves and our teammates." Poyner said. "Who you are on race day needs to be the best version of yourself."
Poyner inherits a program which experienced positive results last season. In 2022, the Warhawks competed in the Mississippi College Opener and the ULM Invitational where the men's team finished third and second while the women finished third and first. In the Sun Belt Conference Championship, the men placed sixth and the women placed eighth. The women's team placed one spot outside of the top 15 at the NCAA South Central Regional.
"They turned a lot of heads last year, and we're going to do the same thing this year. A top half finish on both sides in the Sun Belt is the goal," Poyner said. "We want to prove people wrong and continue to grow the program."
Poyner expects a continuation of last year, but his long-term goals entail something bigger.
"I feel that in the next few years we are going to see a lot of growth," Poyner said. "I believe that down the line we can compete for a Sun Belt championship."
While a transition from Grace College to NCAA Division I cross country may seem like a lot, Poyner isn't threated by the new league.
"I actually don't expect much of a difference," Poyner said. "Competitively, structurally and how we run a team, it's not different by any stretch."
Poyner will get a first real look at his team in the Mississippi College Opener this weekend.
"I'm curious to get a baseline of where they're at," Poyner said. "I want to learn where people are at competitively.
"I also want to see how they respond and digest the race themselves," Poyner said. "How they are processing it and thinking it through."
Poyner wants to bring structure and game plans for his team in meets throughout the season.
"The game plan for the first race will be fine-tuned and specific." Poyner said. "Later in the season, the plan will be more around the runner and having them learn if the mindset they enter a race with will work or not."
Coach Poyner and the Warhawks travel to Clinton, Mississippi, on Friday. The meet will start at 5:30 p.m.
