Eyestone gets creative in building competitive BYU track program
BYU track coach Ed Eyestone, center, watches his athletes perform at the NCAA West Regionals in Sacramento, Calif., on May 23, 2019.
BYU athletes compete in the steeplechase during the West Regionals in Sacramento, Calif.., on May 23, 2019.
BYU athletes compete at the NCAA West Regionals in Sacramento, Calif., on May 23, 2019.
Two summers ago, BYU track coach Ed Eyestone was sitting in his office with his Director of Operations, Isaac Wood. Eyestone took a phone call from the mother of a track athlete who was attending EFY (Especially for Youth) on the BYU campus.
Was there any way Eyestone could open the track for her son to do a workout?
Insert eye roll.
But Eyestone agreed and Wood started researching the athlete’s background on his computer. Turns out the kid was a cross country runner at College Place High School near Walla Walla, Washington, and had won a number of 1A (small school) state championships.
“We immediately told her we can make sure he got on the track,” Eyestone recalled, “and asked for his phone number.”
The athlete turned out to be Kenneth Rooks, who is now a freshman and won his preliminary heat in the steeplechase at the West Regional. He will be one of four BYU steeplechasers in the national finals this week in Austin, Texas.
Recruiting in college track isn’t nearly as refined and scrutinized as football or men’s basketball, but Eyestone and his staff has made the process work pretty well. The Cougar men’s team is ranked No. 4 in the country heading into nationals, the women No. 15. The men have qualified 16 entries for the finals and the women will send six.
Both teams are an eclectic mixture of highly recruited athletes, local standouts and anonymous walk-ons.
“For one, we live in a great environment here in Utah and a unique recruiting pool,” Eyestone said. “A church school and the honor code is not the right fit for some people. Utah produces more than its share of amazing athletes, particularly in distance and middle distance runners. Many times, I just have to go into my own back yard. Many of the kids that are making the trek to Austin as from as far away as American Fork, Logan and Herriman, exotic places like that.”
At any given time, there are 130 to 150 athletes on the BYU men’s and women’s track rosters, and even more runners, jumpers and throwers working out on their own for an opportunity to wear the blue and white. With just 12.6 scholarships for men and 18 for women, Eyestone and his staff have to be creative in building a successful program.
Eyestone said since he’s been in charge there hasn’t been a single full-ride scholarship athlete on the roster. Many athletes get a piece.
“Each university has its own hook that they’ll go with in recruiting,” Eyestone said. “So many people want to come to BYU. It’s a great institution. They’ll get a great education and an expensive education. That’s a great hook for us.”
That’s not just Eyestone selling the program. The athletes back him up. Connor Weaver is a junior from Parker, Colorado. He is one of six Cougars to earn a spot in the 10,000-meter final at nationals, an NCAA record for number of athletes to qualify in one event.
“Honestly, there are a lot of people that just really want to run for BYU,” Weaver said. “The guys trying to make the roster, we call them the ‘farm team.’ I just feel like there’s a big group of people that just want to be a part of this because they know it could be something special. They’re willing to work just to get that BYU logo on their chest.”
Connor McMillan is a senior from American Fork who will also run in the 10K final. Even though he was local, he wasn’t sold on attending BYU, finding it a little square for his tastes. But he had former teammates who ran at BYU (Clayton Young, Brayden McClellan) and the idea started to grow in him.
“It starts with a good setup,” McMillan said. “We have good coaches and everything we need. We have great facilities. We’re well taken care of here.”
Eyestone has five other full-time coaches, a director of operations, a full-time secretary, a supportive athletic administration and an army of athletic trainers to help him handle the enormous number of athletes under his care.
BYU has one of the larger rosters in the country, and many of them will do whatever it takes to get on the track.
“The quality of the walk-on athlete here at BYU is probably second to none,” Eyestone said.
Which leads to another great recruiting story.
Back in the winter of 2003, a recently returned missionary to Thailand sat in Eyestone’s office.
“He was 20-25 pounds overweight,” Eyestone said. “He looked like he’d eaten more than his share of bad Thai food. He wanted to try out of the team. He wasn’t super tall, but his times from high school were good enough where we told him we’d take a look. There was just something in the way he moved. He started working out with the steeplechasers. I saw him go over a hurdle and I immediately told him, ‘You’ve got a spot on the team.'”
That was the beginning of the career for Josh McAdams. He went on to win two NCAA steeplechase championships, ran for the US Olympic team and participated in two world championships.
Eyestone’s focus right now is on preparing his athletes for the national championships, which begin Wednesday. The last six NCAA meets have been held in Eugene, Oregon, but Hayward Field is undergoing a renovation. The temperature in Austin this week is expected to be in the low 90’s, though it will likely be cooler in the evening when most of the races are being staged.
“We’ve talked strategies for pace,” Eyestone said. “We’ve not been blessed with many warm days this spring. Our guys have been wearing multiple layers and long-sleeve shirts during workouts. Guys have spent some quality time in the sauna as well. The bottom line is to get as fit as you can. The fitter guys are generally going to do better in the tough conditions. We work it from all of those angles.”