from the Cal Poly Website:
"SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. -- Terry Crawford announced today (August 12) that she would step down as Director of Track and Field and Cross Country at Cal Poly after 18 seasons to accept a position with USA Track and Field as Director of Coaching.
“I have been part of the Cal Poly program for a long time, so this was a difficult decision to make, but an opportunity I could not pass up,” said Crawford. “The program is in good shape and I look forward to following the team’s success.
“I am very excited about this next phase in my career,” Crawford added. “To be able to elevate USATF’s service to coaches, and by extension, to athletes, is something I could not pass up. I am looking forward to being part of this new era.”
“This is a great opportunity for Terry to work with the USATF,” said Alison Cone, Cal Poly Director of Athletics. “We wish her the best as she moves into her new position.
“I would like to thank Terry for her 18 years of dedicated service to the track and field program, the Athletics Department and the Cal Poly community,” Cone added. “She has been a part of the Cal Poly family for many years and will be missed.”
Under her tenure as Director of Track and Field and Cross Country, the Cal Poly squad captured seven men’s Big West Conference titles and two women’s titles while the overall program continued to make steady progress in becoming one of the top programs in the state of California and the West. The program has established itself as a year-in and year-out contender in the Big West Conference and has regularly produced All-Americans at the national level.
Most recently, the Mustangs produced their ninth national champion in 2005 as Sharon Day won that honor in the high jump. Maggie Vessey (800) and Ben Bruce (3,000 steeplechase) also excelled in 2005, both placing in the top 10 nationally.
In 2003, Crawford saw senior standout thrower Stephanie Brown finish second in the country in the women’s discus. Brown would go on to compete in the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens and won a gold medal at the Beijing Olympics in 2008. Brown earned a U.S. National Championship in 2009. Day would also compete in Beijing for the United States in 2008.
Crawford came to Cal Poly with a long string of successes accumulated over a 20-year career as head coach of the University of Tennessee and the University of Texas, where her teams dominated their conferences and won national titles a total of six times.
Crawford’s 1986 Texas women’s team is the only team in the history of women’s Division I track and field which has won the Triple Crown after capturing national titles in cross country, indoor track, and outdoor track, all in the same year.
In 2007, Crawford was selected to the Longhorns’ Hall of Fame. A talented coaching staff, a balanced team concept and an ability to inspire and motivate her athletes have always been Crawford’s forte.
Her involvement as an international coach has put her at the pinnacle of her profession and has been an advantage to her athletes who strive to reach the highest levels of track and field. For her accomplishments, Crawford was selected by the track and field community as the Head Olympic Coach for the 1988 women’s team, which was one of the most successful teams in the history of the Olympics.
Within the United States Track and Field Governing Board for the United States Olympic Committee, Crawford has served on the board of directors. She also has been the coordinator of Olympic development for women’s middle distance running and has served as the chairperson for the Coaches Advisory Committee.
A former standout athlete at the University of Tennessee, where she was the 800-meter national champion, Crawford also competed at the international level. She was a member of the 1971 World University Games team and participated in the Pan American Games that same year. She was also a finalist at the 1968 and 1972 U.S. Olympic Trials. In her over-20-year tenure as a head coach, Crawford has coached 12 Olympians and over 125 All-Americans.
In 1996, she was inducted into the USA Track and Field Coaches’ Hall of Fame.
This past year the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) announced the creation of the award in the name of Terry Crawford, to honor the “all-around” success that the former Tennessee, Texas and Cal Poly coach has achieved. The Terry Crawford Program of the Year Award is presented annually to the most outstanding NCAA Division I women’s cross country and track and field program.
Crawford will begin her new position with USATF on Sept. 18.
Cone added that a national search for a new head coach will begin immediately.
Highlights of Crawford’s Career
• In her over-20-year tenure as a head coach, Crawford has coached 12 Olympians and over 125 All-Americans
• Inducted into USA Track & Field Coaches’ Hall of Fame in 1996
• Held coaching positions for USA Track and Field at World University Games, Pan American Games, World Championships for track & field and cross country and the 1988 Olympics
• Coached Tennessee women’s track & field squad to a national championship in 1981
• Inducted into Tennessee Lady Vols Hall of Fame in 2002
• President of the United States Track Coaches’ Association 2001-2004
• Selected as first-ever President of the Women’s College Cross Country Association
• Four-time Big West cross country coach of the year."