Track & Field
- Title:
- Multis/Horizontal Jumps
- Email:
- rmccown@sfasu.edu
- Phone:
- 468-4012
Now in his 17th season as an assistant coach with SFA track and field, Ron McCown has been there every step of the away through the programs unprecedented run of success of 33 Conference Championships. McCown has proven himself as a versatile coach during his time at SFA working with the horizontal jumps and the multi-events. McCown's athletes have recorded 37 individual conference titles, 25 NCAA 1st round qualifying marks and 12 school records.
McCown has coached eight NCAA final qualifiers in the Heptathlon, Decathlon, men's and women's long jump and men's and women's pole vault. In the 2017 season, he guided five decathletes to top eight finishers, highlighted by Hunter Key claiming the conference championship in the decathlon and Isaiah Pittman claiming the long jump titles in both the indoor and outdoor championships.
In 2016, McCown coached the women's heptathlon champion, and from 2014-15, McCown guided his athletes to titles in both the jumps and multi-events. Beginning in 2014, the 'Jacks secured the Indoor and Outdoor champions in the men and women's multi, as well as the indoor champion in the women's high jump. In 2015, McCown guided the 'Jacks to a 1st and 2nd place finish in the women's Outdoor high jump, as well as the Indoor high jump champion for the women and the outdoor decathlon champion.
In 2013, his multi-event athletes finished out the season placing three decathletes in the top eight and two heptathletes in the top eight in the Southland Conference Championships. Cody Rhodes (decathlon) and Shambrail Woods (heptathlon) finished in the runner-up position, to earn All-Conference honors. Kelli Hermes was the SLC individual champion in the triple jump and Jamal Peden qualified for the first round of the NCAA championships in the long Jump and triple Jump.
McCown's athletes have also produced on a national level. In 2013, Peden posted the 18th best performance mark in the country in the long jump with a jump of 7.77 meters (25'6''). In 2012, Jamal posted marks of 25'8.75'' (7.84m) and 52'6''(16.00m), which ranked ranked 13th in Division I. In 2011, Chris Jones posted a mark of 7,380 points in the decathlon at the Texas Relays. The mark ranked Jones at number 28 in Division I. The 2008 season saw Aaron Harlan qualify for the NCAA Championships in the decathlon, with a personal best of 7,319 points. Aaron is also the school record holder in the heptathlon. In 2007, former Ladyjack Leah Matthews, a converted hurdler, became one of the school's top long jumpers and multi-event athletes under McCown's guidance. Matthews also became one of the country's top long jumpers. Already the SFA record holder, Matthews shattered her old mark by jumping 20-8.00 to finish second at the regional meet, earning all-region honors and advancing to the NCAA Championships. That same season, McCown worked with the men's and women's high jumpers, who closed out the year recording six regional qualifying marks and winning two league individual titles. The groups also added a third all-conference honor during the '07 outdoor campaign. In 2006, former Ladyjack Crystal Chang dominated the SLC by winning the league's heptathlon individual title and advancing to the NCAA Championships in both the indoor and outdoor seasons. Chang just missed All-America honors, finishing 12th in the pentathlon at the indoor championships. In the outdoor season, Chang returned to the championships and recorded a personal-best of 5,266 points in the heptathlon.
McCown has coached school record holders for the pentathlon, indoor heptathlon, women's indoor and outdoor high jump, women's indoor triple jump, and women's outdoor long jump. He has helped five decathletes reach marks over 7000 points.
McCown is a 1996 SFA graduate. He is a two-time NCAA Division I National qualifier in the decathlon with a personal best of 7,564 points. He was selected to participate in the 1995 U.S. Olympic Festival. McCown also competed in the 1995 Team USA vs. Canada Decathlon competition. He placed seventh at the NCAA Championships in 1994 to earn All-American honors, and was an NJCAA All-American for Odessa College in 1992. McCown was honored as one of the best athletes in SFA history when he was inducted into the SFA Athletics Hall of Fame in October 2010.
Continuing his dedication to the craft, McCown received a USTFCCA Strength and Conditioning Certification in 2016.
McCown received his master's degree in kinesiology from Sam Houston State in 2002. He received his bachelor's degree from SFA in 1996. McCown and his wife, Tracy, have a son, Sheldon.
The McCown Résumé
• 37 SLC Individual Champions
• 8 NCAA Qualifiers
• 12 School Records
• 27 NCAA First Round Qualifiers
• 79 All-SLC Performers
