For the first year since 1990, the Southwest Minnesota State University Mustangs will be back in action on the Division II cross country scene. Here to guide them on this exciting new journey is Nate Wolf, who will be serving as head coach for both the men’s and women’s cross country programs. Coach Wolf, who recently completed his first season as head men’s and women’s cross country coach at Northwestern College (Iowa), is looking far beyond this season for success.
“We want to create a foundation for the future. As a team, we are simply working to ‘embrace the process’ in how we train, race, study, sleep, eat, etc.,” says Coach Wolf.
It’s this coaching philosophy that helped Coach Wolf lead Northwestern student-athletes to 38 National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics All-American performances in cross country and track and field. The Mustang cross country teams are already off to a solid start after being picked to beat Concordia on both men’s and women’s sides.
However, starting up a program that hasn’t been active for twelve years comes with its share of difficulties. According to Coach Wolf, some of the most common obstacles the he and the teams have faced are “the little things that established programs have like getting lockers, where to meet, where to run, etc.”
Recruiting athletes to a newly instated program can also prove to be difficult. According to Coach Wolf, “A new program is definitely not for everyone. What we want in a student athlete is someone that is excited about being able to put their stamp on a new program. Athletes that are willing to take a leap of faith and be able to say for the rest of their lives ‘I started that, I was on the ground floor when that took off.’”
And it seems that Coach Wolf has found just the right athletes to fit that mold. “Our current athletes have taken that mindset on and prospective student athletes have been excited about being able to be a part of that over the next several years,” says Coach Wolf.
The Mustang men’s and women’s cross country teams were recently picked to finish 12th and 13th in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference. SMSU freshmen Karli Tholen and Jack Derham were also name “NSIC Athletes to Watch.”
According to Coach Wolf, the highlight of the season thus far has been “watching the individual people come together and form a team.” Best of luck to the Mustang men’s and women’s cross country teams as they embark on this new journey!