One of the most accomplished coaches in collegiate track and field and cross country history,
Bob Braman has been hired by Lenoir-Rhyne University as its new Director of Track and Field and Cross Country.
Braman joins Lenoir-Rhyne following a storied career at NCAA Division I Florida State University, where he served as head coach for more than two decades before retiring in May 2024. Under his leadership, FSU became a national powerhouse, capturing three NCAA Division I men's outdoor track and field national championships (2006, 2007, 2008) and earning 20 combined top-10 NCAA Championship finishes across men's and women's cross country and track and field.
"We are thrilled to welcome Coach Braman to the Lenoir-Rhyne family," saysÂ
Daron Montgomery, Vice President for Athletics. "His incredible track record speaks for itself, and we are excited about the vision he will bring to our programs. We look forward to the leadership, experience and passion he will provide our student-athletes during the years ahead."
During his tenure with the Seminoles, Braman earned 50 national, regional and conference coach of the year honors, including three consecutive USTFCCCA National Coach of the Year awards (2006–08) and the prestigious 2010–11 John McDonnell Award, presented to the nation's top coach.
Braman has coached hundreds of All-America performers, with 25 NCAA champions and 47 Olympians (27 men, 20 women) among his student-athletes. He also mentored 40 individual NCAA national champions and two Bowerman award winners, Ngoni Makusha in 2011 and Trey Cunningham in 2022. The Bowerman is the highest individual honor in collegiate track and field.
"I'm absolutely thrilled to be joining the Lenoir-Rhyne Family!" says Braman. "From the first phone call I had withÂ
Daron Montgomery, to the two days my wife Debbie and I spent on campus, I knew this was a special place. Everyone at LR embraces what I love about collegiate athletics – a total commitment to the betterment of our student-athletes. I believe we can make LR a national contender in both track & field and cross country. Lenoir-Rhyne has so many great things going for it that I know it's going to be an easy sell, and I cannot wait to hit the ground running."
On the conference stage, Braman's FSU teams won 35 Atlantic Coast Conference championships and swept the ACC Triple Crown twice, winning team titles in cross country, indoor and outdoor track in both 2008–09 and 2013–14. He was named ACC Coach of the Year 34 times.
Braman also elevated Florida State's cross country program to national prominence. The men's team made 15 NCAA Championship appearances, including a runner-up finish in 2010. The women's team qualified for the NCAA Championships for the first time under his leadership in 2002, 2003 and 2006.
Prior to his 24 years as head coach at Florida State, Braman spent 17 years at the University of South Florida, 15 of those years as head coach. In his time at USF, Braman grew the program, which started with just men's cross country, by adding a women's cross country team in just two years and later expanding to add both men's and women's track and field to the Bulls Athletic program.
Braman takes over a Lenoir-Rhyne track and field program that continues to make strides nationally. The women's indoor and outdoor teams reached historic milestones last season, finishing in the top 10 at the NCAA Championships for the first time. The men's team also made a strong statement, placing seventh nationally at the conclusion of the 2023 indoor season.
