Conqu'ring Heroes: Warhurst Credits Military Service for Success as U-M Cross Country, Track Coach
11/9/2023 10:00:00 AM | Men's Cross Country, Men's Track & Field
By James Harrison
A member of the Michigan Athletics Hall of Honor Class of 2023, Ron Warhurst had a very successful career at the University of Michigan. He served as its cross country coach for 36 years and was the track and field coach for nine years, and during his tenure, Warhurst led Michigan to eight Big Ten championships.
When asked what his legacy and long list of accolades meant to him, the 2008 Big Ten Coach of the Year and Great Lakes Regional Coach of the Year responded, "If you're hanging out at a place for 37 years, you better do something right."
A corporal in the Marine Corps, Warhurst was deployed in Vietnam, where he was awarded two Purple Hearts and a Navy Commendation Medal for his service.
"I think what you learn there is when one person makes a mistake, everybody in your group potentially could pay for it," Warhurst said of his time in the military shaping him as a coach. "It teaches you that everybody is kind of responsible for the group, everybody in the group has a sense of responsibility to do the right thing."
Bringing these lessons with him to Michigan, Warhurst described the team as "a big social group."
"It's not just a team that you run on and then you go to campus and you do your homework," he said. "You're part of this entire group of social people."
Although his philosophy was team-centric, coaching individual athletes was essential.
"Sooner or later, it comes back to the individual," Warhurst said. "Individuals performing their duties, what they want to get done and that enhances the effort of the group."
Individuals Warhurst coached include 79 Big Ten Champions and 10 NCAA Champions, including 12 athletes that later competed at the Olympics.
Warhurst's legacy continues as one of his former athletes, Kevin Sullivan, is the current Michigan director of track and field and cross country.
"There is a definite advantage of (hiring within) because you get to know the ins and outs of the program and you understand what's expected of you a lot more," Warhurst said of Sullivan being a good choice for the program's future. "In track and field, it's not about the money. It's about getting a program started and keeping it going and going over the years."
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