University of North Carolina Athletics
Track & Field Coach Craddock To Retire After 2012 Season
March 15, 2012 | Track & Field
March 15, 2012
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - Dennis Craddock, the University of North Carolina's men's and women's head cross country and track and field coach for the past 27 years and one of the most successful coaches in Atlantic Coast Conference history, will retire at theconclusion of the 2012 season.
Craddock's teams have claimed 45 ACC titles, more than any other coach in any sport in the history of the league.
"I have many great memories of exciting times, but the thing I am most proud of is that a verylarge percentage of my student-athletes have graduated and gone on to live good, productive lives in the real world," says Craddock. "I've been blessed to have so many talented student-athletes and great coaches help our teams have success.
"I want to thank all those Olympians, NCAA champions, ACC champions, All-Americas, and youngpeople who worked so hard everyday to be good athletes and good people."
Craddock has coached 25 Tar Heels to 38 NCAA Championship performances and 19 Olympians that have competed for numerous countries, winning five gold and two bronzemedals. The Gretna, Va., native has accrued numerous awards, including National Coach of the Year honors in 1995 for men's indoor track and field and ACC Coach of the Year honors 31 times (26 times at Carolina and five at the University of Virginia).
"Dennis Craddockhas succeeded at every level of coaching in cross country and track and field, including sending a number of Tar Heels on to international success, but it is the family-type atmosphere he helped to create within the UNC program that will be his lasting legacy," says director of athletics Bubba Cunningham. "The ACC has been a great conference for nearly 60 years and to have won more team titles than any coach in history speaks for itself. What's even more impressive, though, is when you listen to the former and current Tar Heels speak of their admiration and respect for Dennis. He has obviously made a positive impact on countless young people's lives."
Craddock's UNC teams have won 29 ACC women's track and field titles, six ACC men's track and field titles, three ACC women's cross country titles and one ACC men's cross country title.
The Carolina women's team has been especially dominant during Craddock's career. The Tar Heels won the ACC indoor championship every year except two between 1988 and 2004 and the ACC outdoor crown in every year except three in that same span. The UNC women have a combined 17 Top 10 finishes at NCAA Championshipmeets, most recently finishing fourth in the 2006 NCAA Indoor Championships.
"Coach Craddock recruited me out of a small town and gave me an opportunity to be a part of something great, the UNC family," says Tisha Waller, a five-time All-America, Goodwill Games gold medalist, U.S. Olympian and U.S. record-setting high jumper. "Coach Craddock is more than a coach - he is a mentor and a friend. He will truly be missed at UNC, but will forever be a part of our family."
"Coach Craddock has influenced so many student-athletes' lives in his 27 years at Carolina," says Shalane Flanagan, who will represent the United States in the marathon in the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. "He taught me the importance of being part of something bigger than myself. I am extremely grateful to have Coach Craddock as a mentor and the support from the UNC track and field family, which he cultivated."
Carolina was the first school to win the ACC "Triple Crown" - first-place finishes in cross country, indoor and outdoor track in the same academic year. Under Craddock, the Tar Heel women have done it twice, first in 1994-95 and again in 2003-04. The former squad featured future Olympic gold medalists LaTasha Colander and Monique Hennagan. National champions Flanagan and Laura Gerraughty, who also competed for the U.S. Olympic Team, led the latter unit.
"He gets the best from each athlete, teaching us that if we worked hard enough the results would be there," says Kari (Krehnbrink) Marvin, a member of several ACC championship relays and teams in the late 1980s and early `90s. "He never stopped being my coach and I never stop benefiting from what he taught me. I am a better mother, wife and citizen because of his example, and I'm confident there are hundreds of others all over the world who feel the same. Retirement will bring Coach Craddock well-deserved time with his lovely family, and we are grateful they shared him with us for as long as they did."
Craddock has also led the Carolina men to success, including a 2006 season that saw Vikas Gowda and Justin Ryncavageclaim NCAA outdoor titles, in the discuss and javelin, respectively. The 1995 men's team posted an ACC indoor/outdoor sweep and became the first school to win five ACC team titles in a single year. That team featured Ken Harnden, the NCAA champion in the 400-meter hurdles and a two-time Olympian for Zimbabwe. Tony McCall, Henry McKoy, Milton Campbell and Harnden won the NCAA title that same year in the indoor 4x400.
Carolina's national champions under Craddock include: Allen Johnson (1992, 55-meter hurdles); Ken Harnden (1995, 400-meter hurdles); Milton Campbell, Harnden, Tony McCall and Henry McKoy (1995, 4x400); Monique Hennagan (1996, 400 meters and 800 meters); Eric Bishop (1996 and 1997, high jump); Campbell, Curtis Johnson II, McCall and Marcus Stokes (1996, 4x100); Nicole Gamble (1999, triple jump); Alice Schmidt (2002 and 2003, 800 meters); Shalane Flanagan (2002 and 2003, cross country; 2003, 3000 meters); Adam Shunk (2003, high jump): Laura Gerraughty (2003, 2004 indoors and outdoors and 2006 shot put); Erin Donohue, Flanagan, Anissa Gainey and Schmidt (2003, distance medley relay); Sheena Gordon (2006, high jump); Brie Felnagle, Megan Kaltenbach, Georgia Kloss and Danielle Rodgers (2006, distance medley relay); Vikas Gowda (2006, discus); Justin Ryncavage (2006 and 2007, javelin); Felnagle (2007, 1500 meters); and Felnagle, Tyra Johnson, Kaltenbach and Kloss (2007, distance medley relay).
"As head coach, he put Carolina track and field back on the map," says Allen Johnson, the 1996 Olympic gold medalist in the 110-meter hurdles. "It shows how great of a coach he is with the numerous All-Americans and Olympians and all of the titles he's won. But more important is that he made sure all of his athletes left UNC as better people, not just better athletes. He instilled discipline and did that with everyone - no matter how good you were, he made you accountable for your actions. Coach Craddock truly cares, he's fair, and he always had your back no matter what. You can always go to him if you need something, and he will always do his best to help you."
Craddock was the head coach at Virginia from 1976-85. His tenure in Charlottesville included back-to-back NCAA championships in women's cross country in 1981 and 1982 and a women's indoor national title in 1981. He also led the Cavalier women to consecutive ACC outdoor titles from 1983-85.
Craddock is a 1965 graduate of Ferrum College, where he played football and was named captain and MVP of the track and field team. After two years at Ferrum, Craddock earned his bachelor's degree at Lynchburg College. He is an inductee in the Ferrum College Sports and Lynchburg College Athletics Halls of Fame.
Craddock and his wife Fayehave three children and six grandchildren. Faye recently retired after a long tenure in the UNC athletic department.
"Dennis and I first met while we were both working at the University of Virginia and from the beginning we forged a friendship," says ACC Commissioner John Swofford. "Years later, as the athletics director at North Carolina, I had the chance to hire a track and field coach and Dennis was my first choice. He has enjoyed a long and terrific coaching career and his accomplishments are well documented and deserved. Most importantly, Dennis is a high quality person and has positively impacted the lives of his athletes for decades. I wish Dennis and his family all the best."
"Dennis is a great technical coach and has produced successful individual athletes and many team championships, but more importantly, he is a caring coach and always has the best interest of his student-athletes in mind," says Dr. Beth Miller, senior associate director of athletics. "He wants them to succeed academically and learn life lessons that will benefit them long after their track careers end. I've often heard his student-athletes speak of Dennis as a `father figure,' not only while they are in school, but even after they leave UNC. It is heart warming to see how many of his former athletes stay in touch with him and continue to support our cross country and track and field programs."
