McKendree University has hired Edward Harris as an assistant men’s and women’s track and field coach.
Harris comes to McKendree after spending the last three seasons as the assistant coach at Maryville University. In his first year at Maryville, Harris coached the sprinters alongside newly named head coach Barry Ford.
In his time at Maryville, Harris coached the women’s Great Lakes Valley Conference champion in the Heptathlon. Harris also coached the indoor NCAA Division II women’s 200-meter national champion at Lindenwood.
In Harris’s first tenure with Lindenwood he was the Director of Cross Country and Track and Field for three years and the two years prior to being the director he was an assistant track and field coach for Lindenwood.
In his time, Harris helped lead Lindenwood to six Heart of America Athletic Conference Championships and six top-10 finishes at the NAIA National Championships. Under Harris, Lindenwood athletes earned All-American honors 27 times, including having nine individual NAIA national champions.
In 2011, Lindenwood’s women’s track and field team captured the team title in the HAAC for both indoor and outdoor track and while the Lady Lions finished eighth at the indoor national meet and seventh at the outdoor national meet. The men’s team was the runner-up at both conference meets while placing 18th at the indoor national meet and ninth at the outdoor national meet. Lindenwood also won two national events at the indoor and outdoor meets.
In 2010, both the Lions and Lady Lions swept the indoor and outdoor HAAC Championships. The women’s team was sixth and eighth, respectively, at the national meets and the men’s team was 16th at the indoor nationals and 10th at the outdoor national meet.
The two years Harris was an assistant coach at Lindenwood, he helped Lindenwood win all eight conference championships that it competed in. Lindenwood also had six top-20 finishes at the national track and field meets in that span, including a third-place finish at the women’s outdoor meet in 2009.
Prior to Lindenwood, Harris was an assistant with Vince Bingham at Missouri Baptist for three years. Harris led the women’s sprint program to the 2006 Indoor and Outdoor National Championship. In his second season, Harris’ sprinters swept the NAIA national sprints by winning the 60 meters, 200 meters, and 400 meters at the indoor national meet for two consecutive seasons and the NAIA outdoor 100 meters, 200 meters, 400 meters and the 4x100 meter relay for two consecutive years. In 2006, Harris coached 22 women national champions, 86 women All-Americans, and 29 men All-Americans at Missouri Baptist.
Before coaching at the collegiate level, Harris coached the track and field and cross-country programs while also being the Director of Counseling at Hazelwood East High School from 1976-2004. While at Hazelwood East, Harris won five state championships in 1982, 1983, 1995, 1996, and 1997. Harris was named the MSHAAA Class 4A Coach of the Year in 1984. Harris coached 75 individual state champions and over 100 Missouri all-state performers.
Harris received his B.S.E. in Driver and Safety Education from the University of Central Missouri in 1972. He earned a Master in Counseling from SIU-Edwardsville in 1976, and an Educational Specialist in Counseling from SIU-Edwardsville in 1977.
Harris has been married to Dr. Brenda A. Harris for 49 years and the couple has two children T’Neisha and Travis and a grandson Caleb.
