The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Track & Field / Cross Country
- Title:
- Assistant Coach (Sprints/Hurdles/Jumps)
Texas Track & Field Head Coach Edrick Flore´al announced the addition of Devin West to his coaching staff on Friday. West, who will assist with the sprints, hurdles and jumps, spent this past season at Arizona State University.
"Devin will be a great addition to our staff as the assistant sprints, hurdles and jumps coach," Flore´al said. "I am excited to welcome him to Texas. He is a tireless recruiter with an amazing eye for talent and will be a huge component to bringing top talents to the Forty Acres. He had great opportunities ahead of him at Arizona State, but this move shows his commitment to helping us build a championship Track and Field program at UT."
"I am excited and grateful for the opportunity to join Coach Flore´al and the staff at The University of Texas," West said. "I have to thank Coach Greg Kraft and Athletic Director Ray Anderson at Arizona State for the opportunities they provided me. This was an extremely difficult decision, but one that I couldn't pass up."
Prior to this past season at Arizona State, West spent two years as the recruiting coordinator and sprints coach at the University of Georgia. Throughout his 12-year career, he has coached six Olympians, 32 All-Americans, one NCAA champion, 39 conference champions and 70 school record-holders.
"I've known Coach Flore´al for years and I've always wanted to have the opportunity to work with him," West continued. "He is a tremendous mentor and a tremendous teacher. The things that I feel that I can continue to get better at in my coaching are the things that he is great at. Texas has the resources in place for success where we can recruit and develop top talent and I am thrilled to continue my coaching career at Texas under Coach Flore´al."
During the 2018 season at Arizona State, West helped Alethia Marrero run the second-fastest 800m time in Sun Devils' history. She finished second at PAC-12 Championships and was a second team All-American. The ASU women finished the year ranked No. 12 in the USTFCCCA Top 25 and had a ninth-place finish at NCAA Outdoor Championships.
At Georgia, West was part of some of the most successful seasons for the women in school history, as they finished a program-best second at both the 2017 Indoor and Outdoor Championships. Georgia finished third at both events in West's first season in Athens. He assisted in the coaching of breakout sophomore Kendal Williams, who earned first team All-American honors in the 60-meter dash.
West has a reputation as one of the best recruiters in the sport. He has signed five No. 1-ranked U.S. High School student-athletes and three No. 1-ranked World Junior student-athletes. He has also brought in four Top-10 recruiting classes throughout his career, doing so at Georgia, Texas Tech, Miami and Florida State.
In his one season at Texas Tech, West helped the Red Raiders to a second-place finish at the Men's Big 12 Championships and a third-place finish at the Women's Big 12 Championships. Both programs finished in the Top 20 that season at NCAA Outdoor Championships, highlighted by a ninth-place finish for the men.
While at Miami, West coached the men's 4x100m Relay team to its first regional appearance in four years and helped Artie Burns (currently with the Pittsburgh Steelers) win the ACC title in the men's 60-meter hurdles and earn second-team All-America honors in the same event.
As the Seminoles' sprints coach, West coached the men's 4x100m Relay team to All-America honors, as well as helped Dentarius Locke and James Harris claim NCAA Championships berths.
Air Force also thrived under West, as the men's 4X400m Relay team brought home its first Mountain West title, and Bryce Bergman won the school's first conference title in the 400m hurdles under West's guidance.
West got his collegiate coaching start at Kennesaw State in Atlanta, and was a catalyst for the Owls' dominant run, during which the men's squad won four Atlantic Sun conference titles.
West's accomplishments in the college ranks make up just some of his successes in his coaching career. He made a name for himself on the high school and international level as well, coaching nine Georgia state meet finalists while working as an assistant at Norcross High School in the Peach State. He also sent an athlete to the IAAF World Junior Championships in the 100m Hurdles in 2010. The year prior, West coached an athlete to the USTF Junior Championships in the 100.
West attended St. Mary's College where he played football and ran on the track team before he transferred to Morehouse College in Atlanta where to finish his athletic career. During his coaching tenure at Kennesaw State, he received his degree in interdisciplinary studies (2010). West is certified as a Level I coach with USA Track and Field.
