Men's Track and Field
- Title:
- Assistant Coach - Throws
- Hometown:
- Mt. Carroll, Ill.
- Year at Mizzou:
- Third Year
- Alma Mater:
- Monmouth ('89)
- Email:
- richardsonross@missouri.edu
| THE ROSS RICHARDSON FILE |
| Education |
| B.A. in Sociology - Monmouth ('89) |
| As a Coach... |
|
Six National Champions |
| 2007 USTFCCCA Regional Coach of the Year |
|
USATF Level II Certified Throws & Jumps Coach |
Ross Richardson is in his fourth season with the Mizzou Track and Field coaching staff as the throws assistant coach. In a 28 year coaching career, Richardson has mentored 19 All-American performers and 30 NCAA finals qualifiers.
During the 2018-19 season, Richardson coached Gabi Jacobs to a conference championship performance in the Discus at the SEC Outdoor Championships. Jacobs took the top spot in the Mizzou record books with a fantastic performance in the discus during the Herm Wilson Invitational. Jacobs also moved up the record boards to number eight all-time in the shot put. Meanwhile, Sophia Rivera also posted a Mizzou top-10 performance by moving to sixth-all time in the shot put.
In 2017-18, Richardson coached Mizzou throwers to one All-America honor, one conference title and 11 program top-10 marks. Gabi Jacobs led Mizzou’s impressive throws crew, as she won an SEC title and earned NCAA All-America honors in the discus for the second consecutive season. Jacobs improved her discus school record mark during the outdoor season, while Avery Carter entered the top-10 at No. 3 in the hammer throw at the NCAA West Preliminary, which earned him a trip to the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships.
In his first year coaching the Black & Gold throwers, Richardson Mizzou continued the lost-standing tradition of its throws group, led by Gabi Jacobs’ breakthrough season. In the outdoor season, Jacobs captured an SEC title in the discus, and went on to earn All-America honors with a fifth-place finish in Eugene, the highest discus finish at the NCAA Championships in program history.
In all, two throwers set three top-10 program marks in Richardson’s initial season at Mizzou, as Jacobs set the discus school record at the NCAA West Preliminary, as well as the No. 7 mark in the shot put, while Rebecca Keating posted the No. 5 mark in the hammer throw. Five Tigers earned six bids the NCAA West Preliminary, as Jacobs qualified for the discus and shot put, Keating the hammer throw, Emily Stauffer qualified for the shot put, while Patrick Kunza and Ahren Bohanan both qualified for the hammer throw on the men’s side.
Richardson joins the Mizzou staff after coaching stints at Ohio State, Virginia, Harvard, Purdue and Miami (Ohio), among other stops at the Division I, junior college and high school levels. His most recent collegiate stop was at Harvard, for the 2014-15 season, where he coached Nikki Okwelogu to first-team All-American honors (6th-place in the shot put at NCAA Indoor Championships) and to a pair of Ivy League records, in the shot put and discus.
Prior to Harvard, Richardson was at Ohio State, where he served as the men's throws and multi-events coach from 2012-14. During his tenure with the Buckeyes, Richardson coached seven NCAA first round qualifiers, including first team All-America selection Bill Stanley, the Big Ten Conference Championship meet record holder in the javelin.
Prior to his time at Ohio State, Richardson was the throws coach at Virginia for both the men and women from 2011-12. His throwers won three ACC championships and set six schools records. From 2010-11, Richardson coached the women's throwers at Miami (Ohio), producing three NCAA first round qualifiers and one honorable mention All-American.
Richardson spent five seasons at Purdue from 2005-10 where he served as the assistant men's and women's track and field coach. His accomplished tenure with the Boilermakers was highlighted in 2007 when he received USTFCCCA Regional Coach of the Year accolades.
An All-American in track and field and football at Monmouth, Richardson graduated in 1989 with a degree in sociology. He was inducted into the Monmouth College Athletic Hall of Fame in 2003. He is a USATF Level II certified coach in throws and jumps and is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (NSCA and USTFCCCA).
