Jack Hoyt Hired To Lead Track & Field

7/24/2017 2:30:00 PM

By: Joe Reinsch

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AZUSA, Calif. -- Jack Hoyt has been hired to lead the Azusa Pacific track and field program, joining the Cougars with nearly 30 years of collegiate coaching experience including the past five years as associate head coach at UCLA.
"Jack has a breadth of knowledge in a wide range of disciplines, and throughout his experience he has built connections throughout the track and field community," said Azusa Pacific director of athletics Gary Pine. "It became clear to me that Jack was the right person to lead Azusa Pacific track and field, and his vision and philosophy show how well he will fit this university. Jack will be a great leader for our program and an outstanding representative of the university, and he will keep Azusa Pacific at the forefront of collegiate track and field."
Hoyt coached the jumps and multi-events at UCLA, and his previous coaching experience includes seven years at Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo and over a decade of coaching at his alma mater Seattle Pacific with the last six (2000-05) as head coach, giving him over 20 total years of coaching experience across two divisions of NCAA competition (Division I & II).

Jack Hoyt, Head Coach
Azusa Pacific Track & Field

Hoyt inherits a program which claimed 30 National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) national titles and produced 14 Olympians before Azusa Pacific's transition to NCAA Division II membership. In the first three years of the program's NCAA era, the Cougars have produced eight individual national champions and 26 All-Americans in track and field and cross country, along with four top-10 team finishes at NCAA national championship meets.
"I've known about Azusa Pacific for a long time and have long considered it a home away from home," Hoyt said. "Seeing what previous coaches have done here showed me an experience I wanted to have. It's exciting to see a Christian university which values track and field at such a high level, and it's clear to me that Azusa Pacific is serious about the ministry of a great track and field and cross country program. While I want to develop Olympians from this team, I also want to know that we're impacting lives, which is even more important."
In addition to his collegiate coaching experience, Hoyt has served as the World University Games head coach for Team USA in 2015. He is the coach of two-time Olympian Sharon Day-Monroe, who competed at Cal Poly-SLO and went on to win six U.S. national championships (three heptathlon, three pentathlon). Day-Monroe set the American indoor record in the pentathlon (4,805 points) in 2014, claiming her third consecutive U.S. championship in the event.
Hoyt was an All-American decathlete at Seattle Pacific, and he competed in the decathlon at the 1992 U.S. Olympic trials. In 1990, he broke the American record for the decathlon high jump, clearing 2.20 meters (7-feet, 2.75-inches), and he still owns Seattle Pacific's school record in the high jump. While coaching at Seattle Pacific, Hoyt led the Falcons to five Great Northwest Athletic Conference women's titles (three indoor, two outdoor) and was a three-time GNAC Coach of the Year.
Hoyt will begin his duties at Azusa Pacific on August 16.
In their words:
Bryan Clay (2002 Azusa Pacific graduate & 2008 Olympic decathlon gold medalist)
"With Kevin Reid and Mike Barnett leaving, that left a huge gap, not just in terms of leadership of the track and field team but within the fabric of Azusa Pacific. It's a surprise for a lot of people, and I was among those who were concerned with how well somebody could fill that gap. If there's somebody I feel comfortable with taking the reins, it would be a person like Jack. I've had the opportunity to see him work, and I've never met anyone with something bad to say about Jack. He has the character, values, and morals to guide students on a day-to-day basis, and that means more than national championships at Azusa Pacific. He has the skills to transform athletes into what they're capable of becoming, but he can also guide them on a spiritual, faith-based level, too. That's exciting for me, and I'm looking forward to being a part of Azusa Pacific track and field on the new path that's being forged. I expect amazing things from him, and I believe he will be able to take Azusa Pacific track and field to new heights and new levels while maintaining and adding to the legacy that Kevin and Mike are leaving behind."
Jack Nance (1988 Azusa Pacific graduate & seven-time NAIA All-American)
"Knowing Jack Hoyt for the last 30-plus years as a competitor, coach, and friend, I am excited about what he brings to Azusa Pacific track and field. He has seen firsthand the tradition of athletic and academic excellence while being a Christ-centered program, and he has an incredible resume which includes successful coaching at the international and NCAA Division I levels of competition. The most important thing for me is his heart for the athletes and his devotion to helping them become a better person before they leave his program. He has a heart for Christ and helping athletes to know Christ, and Azusa Pacific is blessed to have him take over a program built by Terry Franson, Kevin Reid, and Mike Barnett."