OBU Track Coach Ford Mastin's is a four-time NAIA National Coach of the Year since starting with the Bison in the 1996-97 campaign.
The highlight season came in 2007 when the women won the Indoor National Championship and the men won the Outdoor National Championship. Along with the Championships came National Coach of the Year awards to bring Mastin's total to four - one in 1998, one in 2005, and two in 2007.
On the national level, the Lady Bison have won two National Championships, one runner-up, and two third place finishes. The Bison have won one National Championship, three runners-up, five third place finishes, and five fourth place finishes in Mastin's 12 years.
Mastin, who has a master of divinity degree from Southwestern Theological seminary and a master of education degree from
His coaching career began at
Ford and his wife, Terri, have three children, Linsey, Trevor, and Kaeley.
Mark Heard brings to OBU 23 years of coaching experience at the high school level. As the head coach in
A graduate of
He earned three All-America Scholar Athlete awards as well as All-Sooner Athletic Conference honors three times during his OBU career.
Johnson joined the OBU coaching staff in 2004. He was voted Sooner Athletic Conference and NAIA Region VI Men's Cross Country Coach of the Year in 2005, 2006 and again in 2007. He works with the distance runners during the track and field season.
Coach Matt Kennedy moved to OBU in 2006 from Midwestern State University in Wichita Falls, Texas, where he assisted with the women's cross country team during the 2005 season. Responsible for leading OBU's jumpers, Kennedy has coached athletes to several national championship appearances and All American certificates.
Prior to MSU, Kennedy served for three seasons as the head track and field coach at Wichita Christian High School. Arguably the most successful teams in the school's history, Kennedy's squads finished among the top eight at the TAPPS State Track and Field Championships each of his three seasons. During this time, Kennedy's athletes brought home 13 individual state titles along with numerous other top-five awards.
From 2003 to 2007 Kennedy was responsible for the resurrection of the Wichita Falls Track Club. During this five year period, the club's enrollment increased from 28 to a record setting 92. In addition, the number of athletes qualifying for the TAAF Track & Field State Championships more than doubled. This includes a historic 32 state qualifiers in 2007 and the club's first TAAF State Athlete of the Year.
Kennedy has a Bachelor of Science degree from Midwestern State University and is currently pursuing a Master of Education Degree from East Central University.
