Murray Building Tradition in Record Time
October 28, 2009 | Cross Country
Oct. 28, 2009
LUBBOCK, Texas - Texas Tech cross country coach Jon Murray is described by one of his student-athletes as "the strong, silent type." But his calm and collected demeanor is just one of the many things his athletes admire about him.
"He is a good leader," said Logan Culotta. "He demands a lot of respect because he was a runner himself, and a lot faster than us when he was in college."
Murray is in his fifth year as head coach for the cross country team and long distance runners. During his time at Texas Tech, he has coached 18 All-American student-athletes to 21 Big 12 Championships and, most recently, the 2008 Big 12 Women's Cross Country Championship.
Prior to Murray being on staff, Tech had only won two individual national championships, 10 All-American honors and 12 conference titles in cross country and long distance running.
Murray's coaching career began at Abilene Christian University, where he was the cross country and long distance coach under the then-ACU Head Track and Field Coach Wes Kittley. It wasn't long after Kittley moved and became the head track and field coach at Texas Tech that he knew he needed someone like Murray to coach his long distance teams.
"I wanted to have someone in place that really understood my philosophy," Kittley said. "He was with me at ACU and did a great job there. His experience with international student-athletes and the sport itself just fit."
Kittley said that Murray's even-tempered demeanor and understanding of the athletes is what makes him a great coach.
"I think he brings real consistency to the program, a lot of knowledge and experience," Kittley said. "If you follow a lot of programs the athletes run really well in the beginning of the season then not so well late. His program is almost getting better every week. Even with our rankings, we've been nowhere and are getting better every week."
Kittley is not the only one who sees Murray's coaching style as a building block for success. Former Texas Tech runner and nine-time NCAA champion Sally Kipyego said she benefited greatly from Murray's coaching technique.
She said his understanding of the athletes individually and what they each brought to the table are what helped create great teams.
"He took me from just an okay athlete to a good athlete in less than a year," Kipyego said. "I think he really understood my strengths and weaknesses and brought the best out of me."
Under Murray, Kipyego's performance changed dramatically. From her start at Texas Tech to her finish, her 5K time went from 16 minutes, 13 seconds to 15:09 and her 10K time went from 34:09 to 31:25.
"His training speaks for itself," Kipyego said. "Look at the athletes on paper, they progress from one year to another, it explains itself."
Junior Michelle Guzman agreed with Kipyego. She said that with the combination of his experience and his training program, everyone runs faster. Guzman said she shaved 30 or 40 seconds off her 5K and is faster in all of her races than when she arrived at Texas Tech.
But Guzman said Murray is not always calm and collected.
"When he gets really excited you know the team has done well," Guzman said. "We call those `Mur-moments.' Since he is not over the top all the time, when a `Mur-moment' happens you know you did a good job."
