Keith Vroman - Women's Cross Country and Track & Field Coach - Middle Tennessee State University Athletics

Keith Vroman

Title:
Head Cross Country/Track & Field Coach
Email:
keith.vroman@mtsu.edu
Phone:
898-5685

Keith Vroman is entering his 17th season at Middle Tennessee and his fourth season as head coach of both Cross Country and Track and Field. Vroman is currently in his 21st year of coaching and brings with him the experience of two distance-running programs steeped in tradition - Eastern Kentucky and Grand Valley State.

After a year of uncertainty dealing with Covid-19 in 2020, Coach Vroman had both the men's and women's cross country teams competing at the highest level possible in 2021 taking first place for both men and women. Vroman earned his sixth and seventh CUSA Cross Country Championship to go along with 14 awards/All-Conference nods. Vroman earned both Coach of the Year awards for sweeping the championship titles, putting him at seven CUSA Coach of the Year honors since joining the Blue Raiders.

Most recently named All-American in 2022 and 2023 was the Ondo, Nigeria native Alaba Akintola. Vroman helped coach Akintola to two record best times in program history in both the 60-meter and 200-meter.

In 2020, Vroman led the women's and men's cross country teams to a first and second-place finish in the Conference USA Championships, respectively. Vroman's distance runners helped secure the women's C-USA Outdoor Championship title in 2020 with multiple impressive showings including a first-place finish in the 800m from Eusila Chepkemei. The Blue Raider's middle and long-distance runners racked up 11 top-five finishes all together that weekend.

MT's men's cross country team won each of its four regular season events in 2019 before claiming first place at the Conference USA Championships. The men went on to place second at the NCAA South Regional and 31st in the NCAA Championships. The Blue Raider women won two events in 2019, including the C-USA Championships, en route to an 11th place finish at the NCAA South Regional. Jacob Choge and Eusila Chepkemei claimed individual championships in the men's and women's C-USA Championships races, respectively.

Vroman’s experience in distance running has helped the Blue Raider cross country teams make great strides in recent years as the men’s team advanced to it’s first-ever NCAA National Championships in 2016. The team broke numerous school records including going 70-3 in the regular season, finishing second overall in the NCAA South Regional to secure the NCAA Championships birth. For the first time in program history the 2016 men’s cross country team was ranked in the USTFCCCA national poll on Oct. 4 coming in at T-29th in the nation. The Blue Raiders eventually made it to as high as No. 22 in the polls at the end of the season.

Vroman has brought in a wealth of talent to Murfreesboro. He was responsible for recruiting standout Jacob Choge. Choge has the fastest times in Blue Raider history in the 8k and 10k. He was named the first All-American in program history, along with being named the Conference USA Male Cross Country Athlete of the Year in 2016 and 2019.

The men’s team captured the 2009 Sun Belt Championship and the women collected back-to-back runner-up finishes in 2009 and 2010. He has also led the track teams to strong showings in the distance events during indoor and outdoor track season. 10 men and six women have earned All-Sun Belt honors under Vroman's tutelage, including at least one male in each of the last six years.

Vroman was hired full-time during the summer of 2007 and helps in all areas of the program, including recruiting and meet management.

The Ludington, Mich., native earned his bachelor's in physical education, his master's in health education and an M.S. in sports administration at Eastern Kentucky, where he competed in cross country and the steeplechase.