Sullivan Named Big Ten Men's Coach of the Year
10/31/2017 4:30:00 PM | Men's Cross Country
ROSEMONT, Ill. -- Two days after leading the No. 13-ranked University of Michigan men's cross country team back atop the Big Ten Championships standings for the second time in three years, head coach Kevin Sullivan was named the conference's Men's Coach of the Year on Tuesday (Oct. 31).
Now already a two-time conference coach of the year in his four seasons at Michigan, Sullivan joined Ron Warhurst -- his own coach during his time as a standout distance runner in the mid-90s -- as the only two U-M men's coaches to have won multiple such awards in their cross country careers.
Sullivan was the pick for the award in a vote of Big Ten coaches after he led the Wolverines from fifth place at the conference meet a year ago to the team title this past Sunday in Bloomington, Indiana.
Led by first team All-Big Ten honoree Ben Flanagan and a pair of second-teamers in Aaron Baumgarten and Connor Mora, the Wolverines topped rival Michigan State for the conference title, 71-82, with one of their deepest team performances in program history.
The three redshirt seniors Flanagan, Baumgarten and Mora were among seven Michigan runners who crossed the line among the top-25 individual finishers. Following them were 18th-place Isaac Harding, 22nd-place Ben Hil, 23rd-place Jack Aho and 25th-place Keenan Rebera.
No other team in the field managed to get more than four top-25 finishers through the chute on the day, a feat only the runner-up Spartans accomplished. Only two other teams had more than three.
The last team with seven top-25 runners at the Big Ten Championships was 2013 team champion Indiana. In the past 20 seasons of Michigan cross country, only the 2012 squad had even put six in top-25 at the conference meet.
Already one of the most decorated student-athletes in Michigan history with four individual Big Ten titles and a Freshman of the Year award to his name, Sullivan is only expanding his legacy as a coach. Only 11 coaches in the nearly 110-season history of the Big Ten Championships have won more conference titles than Sullivan.
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