SoCon announces Outdoor Track & Field Specialty Awards

SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Samford earned four specialty honors; Wofford collected two, and Furman and Western Carolina each claimed one. The awards, voted on by the league’s ten outdoor coaches, were announced by the Southern Conference on Friday. 

The Samford men, led by Rod Tiffin, the Men’s Coach of the Year, earned two superlatives through Cole Grande and Chase Webb. Grande was named the Male Outstanding Track Performer, while Webb earned Male Freshman of the Year. Grande, who was also selected as the Male Most Outstanding Athlete at this year’s championship, scored 23 points, including gold‑medal performances in the men’s 400m, 4x400m, and 4x100m. Webb added two season bests to his freshman résumé, placing second in the 100m and fourth in the 200m finals. He also ran the third leg on Samford’s gold‑medal 4x100m relay. The Samford men have now won six consecutive championships under Tiffin, and this marks the sixth time since 2021 that he has earned the men’s coach superlative. 

Wofford’s Jakayla Campbell and Patrick Green earned Most Outstanding Performer honors for women’s track and men’s field, respectively. Campbell scored 21 points with gold‑medal finishes in the women’s 100m hurdles, 4x400m, and 4x100m. The junior also claimed bronze in the 200m with a personal‑best time of 24.06. Green secured gold in both the men’s long jump and triple jump, earning a personal best and a season best in the process. He became the first Terrier to win the triple jump since 2003.   

Furman’s Tessa Walter earned her third Freshman of the Year honor this academic year after finishing second in both the women’s 5,000m and 10,000m. She previously earned the award in cross country and indoor track. 

Western Carolina head coach Jesse Norman was named Women’s Coach of the Year after leading his team to a wire‑to‑wire championship finish. The Catamounts outpaced Samford by seven points to claim the women’s crown. This year marked Norman’s first Coach of the Year honor since 2019 and Western Carolina’s first women’s championship since 2018. 

  
Male Most Outstanding Track Performer  
Cole Grande, Samford 
  
Female Most Outstanding Track Performer  
JaKayla Campbell, Wofford  
  
Male Most Outstanding Field Performer  
Patrick Green, Wofford  
  
Female Most Outstanding Field Performer  
JT Shaw, Samford 
  
Male Freshman of the Year  
Chase Webb, Samford 
  
Female Freshman of the Year  
Tessa Walter, Furman 
  
Men’s Coach of the Year  
Rod Tiffin, Samford   
  
Women’s Coach of the Year  
Jesse Norman, Western Carolina