The coach of Salt Lake Community College’s new cross country program expects to hit the ground running when the team makes its debut this fall.
SLCC selected Isaac Wood, who holds an extensive coaching background at cross country programs across Utah, to lead the Bruins in their inaugural season.
“I love growing teams from the ground up, and I am excited to begin a tradition of excellence,” Wood said this past May in a write-up on the SLCC athletics webpage. “There is incredible talent in the state of Utah that will benefit greatly from having a junior college option for them to begin their college running careers.”
Wood began as a team manager with Brigham Young University from 2007-2013 before becoming an assistant coach at Weber State University from 2014-2016. Wood then returned to BYU to serve as the director of operations for track and field in 2016.
“I’ve been able to learn under and coach with some of the best coaches in the country, people like Ed Eyestone, Diljeet Taylor, Paul Pilkington, Karen Harvey,” Wood said. “I have molded my training philosophies based on my experience with them.”
Salt Lake gets a fresh look
Following his hire, the program unveiled the new cross country, track and field singlets in a tweet earlier this month. The new singlets easily identify the Bruins with the words “Salt Lake” displayed across the front in yellow letters, set against a light-blue backdrop.
The very first @BruinAthletics Cross Country/Track and Field singlets came in today–2 months away from our first competition in school history.
Kept it clean and simple and clear.
Salt Lake Cross Country–with some big things coming this fall.
Exciting stuff!
Go Bruins! pic.twitter.com/RQYJHYH4ck
— Isaac Wood (@isaacegbertwood) July 1, 2022
“I liked having ‘Salt Lake’ on there instead of SLCC,” Wood said when responding to a user on Twitter. “I don’t want there to be any questions [about] where we come from when we’re running at meets.”
The Bruins are set to begin practice Aug. 1 in preparation for their fall schedule.
