Throwers are working it out

Northrup begins the hiring process for a new throwing coach by submitting a job proposal but the position is estimated to remain vacant for a month or longer.

Ethan Rich, former assistant track and field coach, officially finished his time at Chadron State Sept. 10, after resigning on Sept. 1.

“We preach team here; we preach family first,” Rich said. “We preach it to our kids (student-athletes). If they have something going on family wise, we want them to be there. We want them to support their family.”

Rich is stepping down from the throwing coach position due to family issues and he’s going home to help his family.

“I love CSC, I love the kids.” Rich said. “They’re a great group of kids and I wish them the best and I know they’re going to do a great job this year. But I got to do what’s best for my family, unfortunately.”

Currently, the coaching position remains vacant, but Head Track and Field Coach Riley Northrup has started the steps to hire for the position by submitting a job proposal as soon as he could.

The department will still hire for another full-time throwing coach, but the process will take some time.

“That’s what I’m trying to get them (student-athletes) to understand, this is out of our hands,” Northrup said. “I’m going to try to do it as fast as I possibly can, but also we want to get somebody good so we’re going to do it the right way.”

The process starts with the job description proposal going through a series of approvals from Northrup’s supervisor and the administrative line. Once approved, the job can be posted but must remain online for 10 days before interview scheduling can begin.

Interviews are set up to accommodate where applicants are coming from and how long it’ll take them to get to Chadron, and after the interviews each applicant is evaluated. Northrup will submit a recommendation for hire and when the job is accepted, the person is given a reasonable amount of time to pack and move into town before beginning their job.

“In a really good scenario, it’s probably realistically a month,” Northrup said. “It’s going to take me a month probably before I can get somebody here.”

Colorado Mesa University and Black Hills State University are also advertising for similar positions, but it’s not just at CSC or in the RMAC. On the U.S. Track & Field and Cross-Country Coach Association (USTFCCCA) website, there is a number of jobs posted that need to be filled.

“Unfortunately, what happens is the snowball starts rolling at the top of the hill,” Northrup said.

He explained that if a coach at a highly coveted school decides to leave in May, people will move from one location to another. That trickle down process ends up extending into the fall before people actually stop moving around.

Northrup said he’s reassuring his athletes that they have plenty of time, even if they’re worried about practicing on their own for a month, they have months before competing starts. They should be training and throwing but there shouldn’t be too much pressure put onto the situation.

“We have good leadership that has been in the program,” Northrup said. “They’re experienced. They know the process of training and getting prepared to throw things far, follow them. Let them guide you (freshman) through the next month until we get someone in here that can actually organize everything.”

Northrup isn’t worried about the situation, but he thinks the most important piece is to be receptive and respectful to what the new coach says and does because there’s going to be things that student-athletes are going to like, dislike and be neutral to.

Northrup said that younger student-athletes, specifically freshman, will likely watch how the upperclassmen respond to the new coach and if they are rude or just negative, it’ll trickle down and the feelings will be shared.

“That’s just what we’re trying to avoid happening,” he said. “Trust that I went through my process to hire somebody that I know would do a good job in coaching you guys.”